The Perfect Kiss

One thing I've always enjoyed about New Order's lyrics is their sexual ambiguity and this song is a prime example. On the surface, it seems to be about Bernard encountering a self-destructive friend. His friend is someone who's at the end of his rope and it's quite obvious. Yet this friend is intent on drowning his sorrows, trying to ignore his pain by going out and having some fun. The reference to the gun could mean a lot of things. Is it his friend's charged sexuality? Bernard makes a comment in the second verse about wishing he would have stayed at home, playing with his pleasure zone (most likely masturbating). This would make sense - he wishes he would have kept his sexual life to himself instead of becoming entangled in whatever "fun" his friend has in store. That's just one possibility, though, for "The Perfect Kiss". It's simply one of the best pop songs of the eighties. A true masterpiece.

Some of the lyrics from the full version of this song are missing. Here they are: When you are alone at night You search yourself for all the things That you believe are right If you give it all away You throw away your only chance to be here today Then a fight breaks out on your street You lose another broken heart in a land of meat My friend, he took his final breath Now I know the perfect kiss is the kiss of death

This song was a big dance number in the 80's and if I recall it's about the unspoken AIDS epidemic that was big in the gay community at the time. It was also rumoured to be about the violence in Manchester and at the Hacienda at the time. Basically, people who don't take precautions, do crazy things in search of the ultimate high and ironically achieve it (through death).

I have always assumed that this song was about Ian and the band knowing that he was at risk and turning a blind eye to the situation. I have never entertained the idea that this had anything to do with sex and that the gun in the song was metaphor for the danger signs that were being exhibited and ignored.

The final verse I believe is summing up the whole Ian situation. Beginning by looking back on the situation when your are alone and your mind has quieted. Thinking about what happened and the things that were done thinking that they were doing the right thing but purhaps in essense were not. In the middle you start to reflect on the choice that the friend made by giving his life away and in return not being with the band today. It then goes on to discuss that this is a common occurance and no one really care because human life is just a commodity, land of meat. Finally he realizes his friend made a discision for himself and that discision was to end his lfe, for him the perfect kiss was the kiss of death.

forgot the last line, the one that has the title and sums everything up.

Last 2 lines -

My friend, he took his final breath Now I know the perfect kiss is the kiss of death

It's ultimately about Ian.

I stood there beside myself, Thinking hard about the weather Then came by a friend of mine Suggested we go out together Then I knew it from the start: This friend of mine would fall apart Pretending not to see his gun, I said "let's go out and have some fun" I know, you know, you believe in a land of love I know, you know, we believe in a land of love

I have always thought about Staying here and going out Tonight I should have stayed at home, Playing with my pleasure zone He has always been so strange, I'd often thought he was deranged Pretending not to see his gun, I said "let's go out and have some fun" I know, you know, we believe in a land of love I know, you know, we believe in a land of love

When you are alone at night You search yourself for all the things That you believe are right If you give it all away You throw away your only chance to be here today Then a fight breaks out on your street You lose another broken heart in a land of meat My friend, he took his final breath Now I know the perfect kiss is the kiss of death

This song I always figured was about finding the perfect something or someone and enjoying the hunt. A great song heard live, especially when the "frogs" are heard.

Yeah, I agree. A friend who needs a friend so he takes him out to have a good time, the friends dies. All seriousness aside, could it be about a bachelors party and the friend is getting married? HA-ha.

Has anyone listened to New Order's remix (kiss of death). It's mostly instrumental, yet still it's awesome! By the way, if you listen closely, near the end it sounds something like "... power";