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| Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness Lyrics
| 11 years ago
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Liminal2
Hi, once again, I think you have picked up on something here I might have mis-interpreted. The 'Kicks' line makes more sense taking in to account the 'fall-back' idea. I am sure Richey was fully aware of the contradiction of having socialist values and being invloved with a conglomorate like Sony or even just in the marketing of music as a 'product' in general. I think he wanted to distance himself from consumerism by calling it a kind of 'emptiness' which is what gives the song such a sorrowful edge. He knew it was pointless, but his vanity ensured he had little choice but to give in to at least some of its offerings. In a way its the ultimate challenge - the idea of living without the 'kicks' perhaps enters most people's minds at some stage (the appeal of the whole crashing on a desert island with no comforts simplicity) but in reality, most of us aren't really wired up in such a way that we could practically sustain ourselves that way. 'Motorcycle Emptiness' presents the ultimate conundrum of modern living, or more to the point, globalisation. The things that create heated debate and continue to divide opinion are senseless dogmatic religions, which political party is slightly less crap than the other, how can we make more money fast etc... In most people's minds, these are the real big issues, not whether or not any of it actually works. Its like one huge ongoing distraction from the rampant removal of our basic liberties and the feeling left from it all is, we need 'them' because there's no other feesable option. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Faster Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Some days you feel superior, bright and full of life other days your flat out trying to think of one good thing about the human race. "It's so easy to cave in" when you face up to the tragedy of life, but then life can be so magnificent it becomes blinding. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Faster Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Interesting summary, but I think 'The Everlasting' is actually about the disappointment felt when expectations for your life aren't met. Much like the song 'So Why So Sad', which touches on similar themes. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Removables Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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'Removables' was written by Nicky after going through a box of photos and finding one of himself flanked by Richey and their ex-manager, Philip Hall who had died in late 1993. The picture was a brutal reminder of the loss of two of his closest friends within a short time, inspiring this song of life's fragility. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – The Love Of Richard Nixon Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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The 'Lifeblood' album was a clear attempt by the Manics to make an 'American' album, which is fine, but this song does raise the question, why write about a 'bad President' from so many years ago when their current one (at the time) could have provided a lot of Manics-centric material. |
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| Suede – God's Gift Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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This song should have made the album, its by far one of the best songs recorded for the 'Head Music' sessions. One way love is pretty much a songwriting standard, but this is one of the finest I have heard. I feel like there's an age gap between the singer and his subject. It starts out like he is remembering his music tastes and fashion sense being influenced by a special but older friend who he regretted never became a lover because of the age difference. |
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| Suede – Elephant Man Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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I'm in the 'pro-Elephant Man camp'. This song must have divided more Suede fans than practically any other. I realise lyrically, 'Head Music' was not up to speed, but at least on this one Brett went for a nonsense fun glam rock song and actually pulled it off. I don't fancy interpreting the lyrics as they are absurd, but I will say before anyone judges too hard... Remember Suede always had contrary side to their more beautiful and poetic stuff. Look at Implement Yeah!, Bored, Dolly, Introducing The Band, Sam, Young Men etc... Sometimes they like to get a little kooky and that's alright by me.
'Savoir Faire' however is just arse plain and simple. |
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| Suede – Duchess Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Sarah Ferguson, anyone? I'm not sure and to be honest, and speaking as a Suede fanatic, this songs is terrible! |
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| Suede – Dolly Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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The band apparently don't like this one much, but I've always loved it. 'Dolly' is one of the most comical Suede songs - not that there are many - but really... singing a tribute to a 'love doll' is pretty hilarious. "Her real hair is what counts"... This one and "My Insatiable One" have a connection; "...and he was my inflatable one" suggesting a dubious fascination of Brett's?
I love how raw it sounds - practically a demo - and its one of the songs that truly captures their wild energy as a live band in the early years. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Liminal2
Its been a long while, but I ended up back here somehow just to see if you had added any further comments and there you are! I wanna talk about the line 'All we want from you are the kicks you've given us' as you mentioned it in your last post. This is the line in the song that first got to me when I was really exploring the Manics music properly for the first time after the 'This Is My Truth' album came out. I went backwards from there even though I owned 'Generation Terrorists' and 'Everything Must Go' already, but I had yet to invest in their songs' actual depth and meaning. 'This Is My Truth' might seem like an odd place to start, but the song 'Tsunami' was intriguing for me and once I discovered this incredible story of the Silent Twins through that track, I decided to investigate all the stuff I had overlooked on their former albums. 'Motorcycle Emptiness' was a great/memorable rock song initially, and that's about all the thought I had given it, but that line 'All we want from you are the kicks you've given us' stood out right away. Kicks = cheap thrills, obviously. It's possibly enough for many people to accept the distractions from the real shitty side of consumerism and capitalism. As long as the conveniences and amusements keep coming, it's just enough for some people. Finding out what actually makes you happy is so much more difficult than just taking the thrills, pills and shiny new things on offer.
The rest of your last message was interesting as well. The battle for democracy - the thing that apparently creates waves of envy from non-Western countries - is a lie in that it completely fails in what it promises to provide. You were spot on about democracy being the freedom to compete brutally against one another. A divided community, or one in fear of/in competition with its neighbour is one that is submissive and manageable. Dictatorships are horrendous, but aren't they simply more transparent versions of democratic governing by today's standards? Its like the saying 'communism is the longest road to capitalism, and capitalism is the longest road to communism' - or every form of government eventually becomes a dictatorship. Upheaval by populations in certain non-democratic countries seems to be about what religion is the best one rather than solving human rights abuse issues and in the West I guess we have a different set of futile distractions.
Ego loaded and swallow! Once you realise ego is such a controlling force in human behaviour you start to look at things differently I think. What motivates this that and the other... If its mindless and seems to serve the good of only the few its probably born in ego.
Any further thoughts from you would be welcome Limina2. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Small Black Flowers That Grow In The Sky Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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Thank you, milkandnosugar!
This is the best description/explanation of the title I've seen. It makes perfect sense the way you word it. Subversion of nature - its exactly what the song deals with. Us humans have constructed unnatural environments to live in and we do the same to animals. 'Here comes warden, Christ, temple, elder'; so many people are content to surrender their free will to so-called authorities/supposed high powers and it becomes second nature for us to inflict the same standards on our animal friends. |
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| XTC – Greenman Lyrics
| 12 years ago
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The Greenman is as others here have pointed out a pagan symbol of nature's fertile/masculine side. Its Andy's song of course, so it is written from the atheist pov and I don't know what Mayordperry is talking about - A cahnge of heart would imply Andy was questioning, when in fact this song, as does 'Dear God', demonstrates someone totally opposed to religion. Check the line; "see the greenman blow his kiss from the church wall". I love this part because he's saying, 'go one build your churches on top of what we should be worshiping: nature, but nature itself will in turn grow on your churches, and be there much much longer than any of those buildings.'
The Greenman in folklore was a character that turned up in stories as a symbol of hope for good crops and fertile land, which pagans obviously held in highest regard. This song is a reminder of that tradition of worship, long since replaced with the religion (*spits*) and the father and lover references are beautiful descriptions of our natural world as essential to our birth, survival, learning and happiness, whereas religion only seems to create hatred and confusion.
Totally magnificent song.
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| Rufus Wainwright – Liberty Cabbage Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I absolutely adore this song. The notes he hits in Liberty Cabbage are other-worldly. The meaning to me is probably quite obvious to anyone who's heard it, he feels completely let down by the US and their outdated laws affecting rights of gays. I love it when he sticks it to the US, after all, they deserve it. "...Trying to kill me with your stars and stripes..." = US laws in general don't protect, support or deliver equality to the gay population and Wainwright I guess feels constantly reminded of this living in the US (as he did then), and through his US friends not having anything like the same rights Canadian's have.
Living so far from the US as I do, I feel the 'trying to kill me with stars and stripes' line relates to the gradual but constant edging out of my own counties identity over the adoption of US influences. Magnificent song. |
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| Rufus Wainwright – Do I Disappoint You? Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Wow, according to many fan's interpretations here, I feel as though I have totally got this song wrong. To me it was blatantly about Rufus making peace with his atheism. He imagines the god figure as being spiteful, judgmental and destructive, yet Rufus realises its all bravado and he mocks back as if faced with a (hu)man displaying the same weak personality traits. He is done with religion and wakes up to the fact that maintaining any belief in it weakens his self-worth. This song is the moment of realisation that he is a stronger person without religion beating him down for not upholding its ridiculous dogmatic rules. Being gay, he falls outside the hardcore religious clique, but his unrestrained singing and confidence in this song tells of somebody relieved to not fit in with such shallow rules. Rufus with this song, basically had the last word on religious bigotry. He said it all. |
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| The The – Twilight Of A Champion Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I've loved this song for so long but only quite recently I realised its blatantly anti-capatilist. I don't know if Matt's a socialist, but these kinds of sentiments do tend to come up in his songs regularly. It's beautifully sinister - love it. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Liminal2
Yeah, I was totally into what you surmised and in particular how much this song's meaning had remained strong for you. For myself, it has gradually increased - after years of simply 'enjoying it' - to realising the stark reality it captures that so few songs can/have. As you say also, it is a platform in a way and even something of a sad reminder that we're already there. If this song has done anything for me, it's to take a lot more notice of the effects of consumerism and to try and avoid being wasteful. Plus as soon as people begin to talk about what they own and how much it cost them, I can't help getting the refrain of Motorcycle Emptiness stuck in my head. The idea of 'consumerist culture' is totally ruined for me - I know deep down I could never be happy living like that. I'm just pleased that a song such as this came along and could articulate what I was feeling so bent about.
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| Manic Street Preachers – Auto Intoxication Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I always thought it was "Welcome to the new slave trade." Like much of "Postcards...", this song is closely related to virtual world obsession. Auto-intoxication I think can be viewed as self-absorption as well in this song... The idea that in an online world people can labour under the illusion they are powerful and entirely self-reliant, yet in reality the 'intoxication' is merely ego-based, and therefore empty. The 'new slave trade' bit I think is mostly to do with how easily we surrender our liberties online with things like personal information swapping, the overall reliance on the internet in modern times and the totally false sense of being in control.
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| Manic Street Preachers – Motorcycle Emptiness Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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MOTORCYCLE EMPTINESS = FUCKING BIG STINKING SHINY VOID - ON WHEELS. That is what the band wonderfully reduced consumerism to. How can you flaw this song when it speaks the truth so beautifully. Liminal2, you made some great observations about this song, but your first line analysis maybe a little off. I think what CULTURE SUCKS DOWN WORDS means is how generally our language is cohearsed or guided by what we hear through the media. We bend words and their meanings to fit with our personal bias's/viewpoints which in turn are adopted often thoughtlessly via reporting/advertising etc... ITEMISE LOATHING AND FEED YOURSELF SMILES - I think you nailed this one. ORGANISE YOUR SAFE TRIBAL WAR - Again you made some excellent points about this lyric. It could also be talking about peaceful protest and how it has become a token activity while leaders in 'free consumerist countries' continue to slowly crush our liberties and offer miniscule rewards to maintain the notion of fair play.
LIFE LIES A SLOW SUICIDE
Some might say most of the things that are supposed to satisfy us - ultimately kill us.... And we know it but choose to ignore. The underlying reason? We are deeply unhappy (talking generally about consumerist cultures) and have decreased personal value but increased ego. We feel invincible on one level when surrounded by safety of 24 hour shopping, just about every distraction possible on demand, reinforcment from equally unhappy friends and family etc... Yet the fundamental awareness of our mortality clashes with our ego and we feed it by acting in what we know will be ultimately destructive ways. Its like regaining control of mortality by letting the ego take over and subconsciously say "I will not accept my mortality is out of my hands - I alone will decide when I've had enough."
ORTHODOX DREAMS AND SYMBOLIC MYTHS
Well this is typical human egocentric behaviour. Tying so much meaning into symbolism (see Astrology, religion) as a way of trying to identify with whatever spirituality is supposed to mean. A religious person for example will look at a cross and pray holding onto one because that symbolises spirituality to them. Why? Because that's what they have been told spirituality is or is symbolised by and that's good enough to to keep the ego fed. Spirituality is such a nonsense word that vast amounts of symbolism can be attached to it and accepted as actuality. The idea that life after death is better is a powerful one as long as the notion that deep seeded unhappiness with how we live in consumerist cultures exists.
FROM FEUDAL SERF TO SPENDER
I am not terribly well informed on the Serfs, so its difficult to comment, but I understand that they were essentially slaves who built an enormous amount of infrastructure for the upper classes but had no rights to use what they created. I think I can see where the Manics found room for that reference in this song.
THIS WONDERFUL WORLD OF PURCHASE POWER
Whereas the class divide once determined how much u could possibly own depending on what side of the fence you came from, credit and loaning etc... has meant consumerism is wider spread than ever. Just because your near-broke doesn't mean you should miss out on spending loads of money on crap you really don't need. You can feel like your keeping up with Joneses - while spiraling into debt. The level of importance put on ownership is kind of absurd. Especially considering how most of your crap will be around a lot longer than you.
....Okay, anybody want to have a go at the last verse?
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| Manic Street Preachers – Me and Stephen Hawking Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Yeah its defiantly an un-paranoid view of what human genetic engineering could actually mean in the future, or have meant for Hawking in utero had the technology been developed long ago. The song has an undercurrent of a familiar Manics target - fascism. Whereas Hitler for example wanted to create a pure race through genocide, genetically altering human's pre-birth to "eradicate flaws" is hardly a long stretch from nazi-ism. I think they are spot on too. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Me and Stephen Hawking Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Rumour has that Richey didn't write the lyrics on "Journal For Plague Lovers"? Was there ever more concrete evidence than that I ask you? I gotta say I'm almost offended by that remark... I don't believe the Manic's would be so careless and calculating. However, I have no doubt that Richey's lyrics were complex and convoluted and it was up to the band to turn his writing into actual songs and so its reasonable that they altered passages, but anyone who has followed the band for a long while, can see these are typical Richey song lyrics.
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| Manic Street Preachers – Jackie Collins Existential Question Time Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Hey this is a pretty interesting take on the song and closest I think to what was intended by the band. I have been trying to break this down for a while. I got as far reading into it an imaginary forum taking place in which Richey poses questions to Catholics about how broad they consider one person's infidelity supposedly reaches by their (un)reasoning. Jackie Collins is a great example of someone who's work flys in the face of dogmatic views on sex according to Catholicism. I agree I think Richey hated the fact that so many people read crap like Collins' but I think he was equally pissed that people went to the other extreme and believed unquestioningly in the hard-nosed Catholic obsession with the sin of sex. He's questioning the extremes of Collins and religious sex-obsession and sees both as equally wrong in their own ways. I don't think Edwards was speaking directly about himself at all - if he failed to have meaningful relationships, wasn't that more to do with his apparent self-loathing?
The lyric "Oh Mummy what's a Sex Pistol?" intrigues me. I get the impression he was saying children kept sheltered and made afraid of sex in homes that practice a loose Catholic upbringing (I was unfortunately raised Catholic, so I can kinda relate). This imagined child's first idea of sex is not to do with sex at all but a band's name which is confusing if you don't understand the obvious metaphor because you live in a "sexless" environment. The mother's greatest fear is her child first asking about sex, if you think about it from a deeply religious angle, in which the innocent question is made a loaded one with the parent's own fear of sex (through being religious) in mind. The mother here is unlikely to be a Sex Pistols fan, and like the child is unaware of their music, so she is not really in a position to answer simply - 'it's a band'. Instead the question cuts into her deepest fear of having to explain something she has grown up with being told is wicked to think about, do outside of marriage etc... etc... The song therefore also deals with how at home, (depending especially on religion) we are taught our bias's and fears despite the parent's best intention to protect us as children, and keep talk of sex - a natural curiosity for children to have - oppressed. You could even go on to say many of us as children had our first encounter with a very adult world through seeing the cover of some steamy/cheesey Jackie Collins novel, at the same time as being told the religious ideals regarding sex. Richey is simply discussing in his lyrics the misinformation/misconceptions about sex we pick up in early life lead to much greater woes later on.
I think....
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| Manic Street Preachers – (It's Not War) Just The End Of Love Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Not to detract from your analysis of the song, but "You Stole The Sun" was almost certainly about the band's hatred of touring - not a relationship ending. In that song the lyrics, "You have broken through my armor" the adoration from fans in a live arena is disarming and humbling to the band, but the line, "I gotta stop smiling, it gives the wrong impression, I love you all the same" is actually Nicky talking about posing for fan photos - he doesn't particularly enjoy it but tolerates it. He acknowledges his love for the fans but he makes it clear in that song he's faking his enjoyment of the process. "It's Not War..." also is very loosely related to anything like relationship issues. Wire's just using identifiable language to address bigger issues as he likes to do. |
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| Kate Bush – Top of the City Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Magnificent song! I used to be very literal and go to the highest car-park in my city (a very small city with only one big car-park!) and listen to this on my headphones while looking over the edge at the traffic and people on the street. Up there I could quite easily say I was at the top of the city, but Kate's city I think was a huge metropolis, and it is a very satisfying feeling being in the midst of a large city and being up so high just taking in everything.
I see her in this song as someone who's trying to make the man see her as 'the one', but also wishing him to test himself and not give himself up at the first chance of a love affair. Kate's goal is to challenge herself and needs the man to be just as fascinated by the seemingly unreachable. It's like when you see something grand about a fellow human and they maybe don't realise it themselves... Also it's about the dream of being desired and sharing a growing love with somebody who is discovering along with you their true potential.
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| Kate Bush – Moments of Pleasure Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This is my favorite song of all time. I don't think any other piece of music has come this close to describing life's little journey so well. I know it's more of an 'end of life' song, but to me it just as easily evokes the sweetness and sadness of life as it goes on. There's optimism in there as well... A reminder that each sad or happy moment is transitory and all make up the experience and all are vital for fulfillment. Loss is just as important as joy to gain a greater understanding. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – All We Make Is Entertainment Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Great track from PFAYM. Apparently the 'get it made overseas cheaper' mentality has lead to massively declining British industries which has lead to mass unemployment and skills shortages. The one flourishing industry - making bad reality talent shows etc... |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Small Black Flowers That Grow In The Sky Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I agree that the small black flowers are a WWII reference - But wouldn't they be bombers not bombs? I understand that animals were used for experiments in Nazi Germany, which is roughly what the majority of the lyrics conveys, but also the Warden, Christ, Elder bit suggests any kind of oppressive authority figure - The animals are simply at the mercy of thier captors. The song seems to flip between animals kept captive for experiment purposes and the more traditional zoo situation. The Manics apparently see little difference in the two. As long as we keep animals from their nature, we are oppressing them. Our beastly cousins have been domesticated for so long they are reliant on us to a degree, and that reliance is often abused I think is what the song's saying. The WWII reference as I (and a couple of others here) see it, is probably to suggest how long this kind of thing has gone on for. |
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| Suede – Moving Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Moving - I think it's a piss take of the cheesier pop hits around at the time... It's easy to get on the radio if you "Moving.... Sooo Moving" and the "Tough kids sing about tough kids" - Cock rock bullshit that Suede were a big reaction to. "Oh we are a boy, we are a girl" Suede always blurred that line in their early songs, while everyone else it seemed was getting either blokeier or girlier to the point of self-parody.
It's almost the Suede blue-print.
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| Suede – We Are The Pigs Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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"We Are The Pigs" refers to how the majority of society is willing to sit back and watch everything go to shit 'like cattle'. The song's almost wallowing in it's celebration of how irregularly people react against obvious wrongs unless it affects them directly.
Freakin' master piece of Suede's.
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| Suede – The Power Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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No way, this song is not an arrogant statement at all. It's about how just because you're less privileged than others it doesn't mean you're set for life as a lamb. Realising your ability is a beautiful thing not arrogant!
"Enslaved in a pebble-dash grave" refers to a mundane suburban existence many remain in for life.
"You might live in a screen kiss" refers to the first seeds of escapism forming through romanticising about a more exotic life.
"And I'll make them bleed" refers to the helplessness some people feel at the mercy of other, stronger individuals.
"Belong to a world that's gone - it's the English disease" I believe refers to outgrowing a way of life that's been upheld within the family for generations.
Love this track so much....
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| Suede – Animal Nitrate Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This song's about rolls people take in sexual relationships. Some people discover they are submissive with certain partners and visa-versa.... The loss of the dominant partner can leave the more submissive party needing crueler and crueler partners to continue to feed their urge. The pattern formed by some abuse victims is definitley in there as well. It could easily be talking about a guy who was abused as child by the father or father figure and grew up to seek out abusive sexual partners.
Dark and divine stuff from Brett and the boys. |
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| Suede – Heroine Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Nothing at all to do with the drug Heroin....! The album this comes from (Dog Man Star) heavily features references to Hollywood's more tragic figures - Marilyn Monroe in this one - and is a simple homage to the sexualisation of her. Monroe was the ultimate fantasy woman for many men and was rarely seen as more than that, sadly.
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| Suede – Black Or Blue Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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The song's about old fashioned attitudes to a mixed race relationship, specifically in Britain. When a lot of West Indian families began moving to the UK, they were treated with suspicion and it was a cause for concern that a young woman might date a black man or marry into a black family. This song attempts to defy that bias and the male refuses to hold back from his love for a non-white girl despite the disapproval of his old fashioned parents. Apparently Brett had first hand experience of this within his own family. I believe an aunt of his dated outside of her anglo roots and it caused a fuss.
A beautifully sung track. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – Don't Be Evil Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Well it's about how the internet is credited as launching "grass-roots" stars, who despite the opportunity to use the net to do absolutely anything (say something revolutionary or important), instead gain popularity through being exceptionally mundane and ridiculous. They're saying the internet has highlighted humanity's apparent obsession with mindless celebrity culture and the graceless never-ending race to be number one on whatever list is perceived to be important. Although there's a huge online community who do not fall into that category at all, the overwhelming lean is towards 'dumb shit' for want of a better term. Besides that, could the net be anymore corporate if it tried? Look around this page, how many bullshit adds do you see peaking out from behind the pop-ups? Google have created the widest reaching advertising space in the world... Don't Be Evil... (Don't say anything negative/appreciate the wonderful crap we offer you)... Just be corporate... (We know where you live)...
It's funny that this song came out around the time google got into a huge pile of shit for being busted gathering personal data on people against thier knowledge. Fuckers.
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| Manic Street Preachers – Faster Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Great lyric really. I know it's been discussed to bits, but I think the key to this song is Edwards' fragility as a human being was at odds with his mind. He felt super-human when he read the words of Mailer, Mensa and Plath etc... He found authors/thinkers he could identify with and put himself into that category of biting commentator debased by a society driven by vulgar distractions.
I used to think this song was about the proposed 'super-race' the Nazi's were aiming towards... But that's crap.
Love the Manics naturally, but my only criticism of Richey is that he was probably a bit too reflective and too close to his influences.... But then he was still a pretty young writer when he 'went'. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – No Surface All Feeling Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This song is more about Richey and Nicky's friendship than Edward's disappearance. Wire acknowledges here that they bonded so closely through their sickness (Wire's liver disease, Richey's depression) and wrote hoards of material together picking apart the world over a bottle of wine and reinforcing each other's somewhat bleak viewpoints. They had a rare love for each other that was indeed no surface... Wire once commented that what he and Richey missed out on was a 'normal' friendship just being mates and goofing around - they didn't have the opportunity to as one or bother were often in hospital or recovering or writing albums like "The Holy Bible". This song beautifully recalls the intensity of their bond, one of which only an certain extremes can create. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – (It's Not War) Just The End Of Love Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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It seemed to me they were talking about the media driven divide between Eastern and Western countries and how we are continuously reminded 'they're different from us' through the way in which reporting is localised. Regardless of whether countries are 'at war' or not, there's often a threatening angle in the way foreign countries are represented through how they practice religion or specifically with the Manics in mind, whether they're communist or not. for example.... "The End Of Love" is to me the end of tolerance. It's far more appealing in the media world to maintain the idea of a divide despite no actual waring. The US and Russia comes to mind... They stopped fighting years ago, but there's hardly ever a report on Russia that doesn't mention 'reds' or the 'cold war'. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – A Billion Balconies Facing The Sun Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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Funnily enough, I thought quite a few songs of the new album refer to internet culture - except for this one. It seemed to me they were talking about the media driven divide between Eastern and Western countries and how we are continuously reminded 'they're different from us' through the way in which reporting is localised. Regardless of whether countries are 'at war' or not, there's often a threatening angle in the way foreign countries are represented through how they practice religion or specifically with the Manics in mind, whether they're communist or not. for example.... "The End Of Love" is to me the end of tolerance. It's far more appealing in the media world to maintain the idea of a divide despite no actual waring. The US and Russia comes to mind... They stopped fighting years ago, but there's hardly ever a report on Russia that doesn't mention 'reds' or the 'cold war'. |
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| Manic Street Preachers – To Repel Ghosts Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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To me this song's about feeling empowered by learning to withhold love from those who would just take and not return it. Think people you might know who are maybe very giving and appear to not wish to be reciprocated, well I'm sure there are some who truly deal with that, but for some the intention when offering their 'best' is it will be noticed and rewarded. "To Repel Ghosts" I think is speaking to those people who learn the hard way that to withhold can also be rewarding. Of course the "Ghosts" in this song are people who come and go in life offering little to enrich each our experiences but instead only want to take or rather sap a kind individual's soul of whatever they can. It might sound like an aggressive analysis - and I'm not referring to personal experiences - but I think it's a relevant fact of life that the band are acknowledging here. Be careful of who you give your love to etc... Apart from that, beautiful song really. "Lifeblood" has finally started to grow on me!
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| Manic Street Preachers – Love's Sweet Exile Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I thought this was about imperialism. From any 1st world countries viewpoint, percieved 'threats' in the form of extremist religions or simply refugees or asylum seekers are very powerful. It's saying take action against anyone or anything that could potentially affect what we take for granted. The 'leave this country' line I think refers to supporting aggressive or military action abroad, but not close to home. NOT 'leave this country' as in 'get out!.'That's what I'm hearing anyway.
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submissions
| Manic Street Preachers – Black Dog on My Shoulder Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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I read a bizarre folklore tale about black dog apparitions that supposedly appeared to people in times of trouble as either warnings or as protectors. These stories go back a long way, so I suppose the black dog labelling of Churchill's condition was related to that. The song was to me the most obvious on the album as far as meaning goes... The depressive is anticipating his imminent down swing, or he's 'seen he ghost of the black dog' as those folklore stories stated. |
submissions
| Manic Street Preachers – The Everlasting Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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To me this song is about a certain type of person, say Salvador Dali for example, who identify closely with their childhood selves but are frustrated by the absurd and ridiculous lives we often build for ourselves through as adults. The voice is longing for the honesty and unspoiled viewpoint of his childhood self. He's grown up to despise a society built on distractions and tokens and misplaced importance. It's a great song, I mean who hasn't thought about that stuff from time to time. It's pretty sad how much of life is lived in expectations laid down by tradition without pausing to ask reasons.
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submissions
| Manic Street Preachers – Tsunami Lyrics
| 13 years ago
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This is interesting, I had never heard of these twins! I love this song so much and it just seems to keep coming around for me. I get it stuck in my head all the time and finally I decided to try and put it into some kind of context. The Manics always reference real people in their songs it seems, I wasn't surprised that this one was no exception. I was starting to think it was about feeling imprisoned by addictions; "Tied up to all these crutches/never far from your hands." Seemed to support that up to a point, and maybe also "Inhale the anxiety - in between etc...", further more I was hearing "Tsunami Tsunami came washing over me" as the moment of whatever addiction being fed. I thought it made sense, but the twins story obviously kicks that idea. There is an undeniable feeling in this song of urgent need and being trapped. The girls were imprisoned so I guess I picked up on that... "Disco dancing with the rapists" I read as a line about a woman becoming a victim of rape by close male friend/co-worker/familiar after a night out on the piss gone bad... "Your only crime is silence" - the woman doesn't report the abuse... I basically was getting it all wrong, but these themes I think can be read into it.
I adore this track so much, the squealing sitar over strings during the build up to the chorus always gets me. |
submissions
| Röyksopp – What Else Is There? Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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Well what's the life force when you're a new born? Your mother's milk right, so the girl in the video is a spirit and that scene is just representing her lifelessness by the outpouring of milk - they could have used any life giving substance such as blood, but who knows... maybe too gruesome??
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submissions
| Fever Ray – When I Grow Up Lyrics
| 14 years ago
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Interesting... But Karin's mother died in 2006. The Knife song "We Share Our Mother's Health" was written just after her death and deals with losing the connection to your heritage through a parent's death. I doubt Karin would make casual slanderous comments about her mother in this song.
"on the seventh day i rest
for a minute or two
then back on my feet and cry for you"
This line makes me think she's still grieving for her mother in between raising her children and carrying on her day to day activities.
The first verse is from her daughter's perspective - as with many Fever Ray songs, the child's perspective is often represented - the daughter is perhaps fascinated by Australia and maybe has books on it and talks about it constantly in the way kids become obsessed so wholly with things.
The next verse is I think Karin fantasising about growing up all over again from childhood and and wondering what path her life could have take a turn had she chosen a different course.
The theme's of age and alternate perspectives are all over this album. The video for "Seven" shows Karin as an old woman still looking after 'children' (the farm animals) as though she see's no end to the demands on her time by 'underlings'. The clip for this song is less directly Native American influenced than it is any kind of tribal person from any ancient culture. Her character enters a domestic setting and commands the water in the pool to bubble and leap on her command as though she sees herself as far removed from simple domesticity and her connection to the earth has strengthened since bringing two children into the world. Domesticity/tired mum with kids at her feet is a somewhat enforced lifestyle so she feels like a stranger in that world.
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