When I first heard this song, I only understood bits and parts, and from what I gathered, it appeared to me like another sex-song, particularly focused on exotic dancers.
Upon actually looking up the lyrics, I find that I was wrong. Please allow me to recant and give a more suitable "translation"
In brief, this song is describing a club scene, similar to "Body Electric" as The Knave pointed out.
"The bodies on the naked on the low damp ground" - This notes how the clubbers are scantily clad, and in a rather unclean area...perhaps damp refers to spilled drinks. "In the violent hour to the violent sound" - Here Eldritch describes the dancing, how they are sporadically moshing or grinding to the harsh techno-gothic whatever-you-call-it music that the club is playing. It's rather dark in the club, because you can only see the whites of people's eyes - "And the darkenss the blinding, the eyes that shine". The people are having a good time, listening to the music, even singing along and clapping to the songs, thus creating quite a ruckus - "And the voices and the singing and the line on line", and sweating - "And the animal flow from the animal glands". "Going round, and around, and.." I think that part is very straight foward....
Anyways, Andrew then really gives us a personal experience of what he sees on the stage, seeing such a scene - "I feel the bite I feel the beat I see the dancing feet/I feel the light I feel the heat I see the new elite/I see the final floorshow I see the western dream/I see the faces glow and I see the bodies steam". Here, he describes feeling the rhythm and beat of the music that the Sisters are playing - brutal, wild, savage. On stage, he also sees the people dancing, using the synecdoche of 'feet' for the people; also, he feels the direct heat of the lights and strobes that flash around the club, and shine on the stage. The elite is, perhaps, a sarcastic term towards the proud lounge lizards who haunt clubs, accusing people of being wannabes and stereotypes, when they themselves are the greatest offenders. Then, Andrew refocuses on the crowd, seeing their faces and sweaty bodies, via strobe lights and other forms of illumination. With final 'floorshow', he means the last song they are going to perform; Western dream: hedonism, or indulging oneself completely in physical and material occupations...starting back in the 60s, the world took on a more materialistic edge that has grown ever since, and Eldritch does have some hedonistic tendencies.
"See them shimmy see them go/See their painted faces glow/Slow slow quick quick slow/See those pagans go go go go go" - Basically, straight-forward, describing the dancing he sees. 'Painted faces' is an older way of saying "wearing make-up"; the word 'paint' denotes heavy or thick, a reference to gothic make-up (also associated with prostitutes in older times....). Pagans, which Andrew uses frequently in this song, he means hedonists (as many ancient pagans were), people with out much morals, or faith, simply living life for pleasure, and currently receiving such pleasure from clubbing and being part of the 'floorshow'.
"This is the floorshow the last ideal/It's populist got mass appeal/The old religion redefined/For the facile futile totally blind" - Eldritch compares this show to religion, how it's the faith of those who have, perhaps, lost faith in almost all religious and philosophical teaching, the last resort - "the last ideal". The 'mass appeal" means that it attracts everybody's base sense of pleasure and sensory feeling, so anybody, regardless of all qualifications, could find much enjoyment in a vibrant and social activity. Once again, he hints at paganism, "the old religion", that is very much interwoven with hedonism, and living for the now and this contingent world. Now, he seems to insult the crowd, calling them, basically, hopeless people who easily lose their anima and are foiled, thus easily give up, blind and ignorant of reality, because they give up to easily to try.
"Mundane by day inane at night/Pagan playing in the flashing light" - Eldritch further insults the crowd, calling them tiresome and dull when outside the club scene, like another ordinary person, and at night, in the clubs, the same thing, lacking of sense and substance. He once again calls the crowd "pagan", short for hedonistic people who have a religious dedication to clubbing, "playing in the flashing light", or simply dancing in the club while strobe lights flash around them.
Well, that's that. Just a disclaimer: this is a personal interpretation, and honestly the real meaning lies with the poet. I could have either read it too deep, or not deep enough, or if I am lucky, I have gotten the song. That's all from me now! I am mentally out of breath from all that dissecting...
When I first heard this song, I only understood bits and parts, and from what I gathered, it appeared to me like another sex-song, particularly focused on exotic dancers.
Upon actually looking up the lyrics, I find that I was wrong. Please allow me to recant and give a more suitable "translation"
In brief, this song is describing a club scene, similar to "Body Electric" as The Knave pointed out.
"The bodies on the naked on the low damp ground" - This notes how the clubbers are scantily clad, and in a rather unclean area...perhaps damp refers to spilled drinks. "In the violent hour to the violent sound" - Here Eldritch describes the dancing, how they are sporadically moshing or grinding to the harsh techno-gothic whatever-you-call-it music that the club is playing. It's rather dark in the club, because you can only see the whites of people's eyes - "And the darkenss the blinding, the eyes that shine". The people are having a good time, listening to the music, even singing along and clapping to the songs, thus creating quite a ruckus - "And the voices and the singing and the line on line", and sweating - "And the animal flow from the animal glands". "Going round, and around, and.." I think that part is very straight foward....
Anyways, Andrew then really gives us a personal experience of what he sees on the stage, seeing such a scene - "I feel the bite I feel the beat I see the dancing feet/I feel the light I feel the heat I see the new elite/I see the final floorshow I see the western dream/I see the faces glow and I see the bodies steam". Here, he describes feeling the rhythm and beat of the music that the Sisters are playing - brutal, wild, savage. On stage, he also sees the people dancing, using the synecdoche of 'feet' for the people; also, he feels the direct heat of the lights and strobes that flash around the club, and shine on the stage. The elite is, perhaps, a sarcastic term towards the proud lounge lizards who haunt clubs, accusing people of being wannabes and stereotypes, when they themselves are the greatest offenders. Then, Andrew refocuses on the crowd, seeing their faces and sweaty bodies, via strobe lights and other forms of illumination. With final 'floorshow', he means the last song they are going to perform; Western dream: hedonism, or indulging oneself completely in physical and material occupations...starting back in the 60s, the world took on a more materialistic edge that has grown ever since, and Eldritch does have some hedonistic tendencies.
"See them shimmy see them go/See their painted faces glow/Slow slow quick quick slow/See those pagans go go go go go" - Basically, straight-forward, describing the dancing he sees. 'Painted faces' is an older way of saying "wearing make-up"; the word 'paint' denotes heavy or thick, a reference to gothic make-up (also associated with prostitutes in older times....). Pagans, which Andrew uses frequently in this song, he means hedonists (as many ancient pagans were), people with out much morals, or faith, simply living life for pleasure, and currently receiving such pleasure from clubbing and being part of the 'floorshow'.
"This is the floorshow the last ideal/It's populist got mass appeal/The old religion redefined/For the facile futile totally blind" - Eldritch compares this show to religion, how it's the faith of those who have, perhaps, lost faith in almost all religious and philosophical teaching, the last resort - "the last ideal". The 'mass appeal" means that it attracts everybody's base sense of pleasure and sensory feeling, so anybody, regardless of all qualifications, could find much enjoyment in a vibrant and social activity. Once again, he hints at paganism, "the old religion", that is very much interwoven with hedonism, and living for the now and this contingent world. Now, he seems to insult the crowd, calling them, basically, hopeless people who easily lose their anima and are foiled, thus easily give up, blind and ignorant of reality, because they give up to easily to try.
"Mundane by day inane at night/Pagan playing in the flashing light" - Eldritch further insults the crowd, calling them tiresome and dull when outside the club scene, like another ordinary person, and at night, in the clubs, the same thing, lacking of sense and substance. He once again calls the crowd "pagan", short for hedonistic people who have a religious dedication to clubbing, "playing in the flashing light", or simply dancing in the club while strobe lights flash around them.
Well, that's that. Just a disclaimer: this is a personal interpretation, and honestly the real meaning lies with the poet. I could have either read it too deep, or not deep enough, or if I am lucky, I have gotten the song. That's all from me now! I am mentally out of breath from all that dissecting...