Struggle is a natural part of the creative process for many artists. For Shikhee, the one-woman army behind industrial act Android Lust, struggle became downright essential to the production of the fourth Android Lust album, The Human Animal. Not by choice, of course: Nearly a decade after debuting as the first one-woman industrial act, the Bangladeshi-born New Yorker found herself burnt out from balancing a music career with what some might call “real life.”
The process of making 2006’s Devour, Rise and Take Flight ws “a very trying period,” says Shikhee. “I was coming home from my job around 9 or 10, and then mixing till 2 or 3, only to get back up and get to work at 9 again. I was barely sleeping and losing weight.” Problems with her record label compounded her frustration; the heavy touring season that followed, prolonged it.
When the album cycle finally wrapped, Shikhee returned home to face some familiar fears. “It’s always a bit scary. I start to doubt myself, reacquaint myself with my studio . . . and wonder if I can still do it,” she says. “It took until late 2007 to get back to writing.”
The Human Animal is undeniable proof that she can, indeed, still “do it.” After two albums on preeminent electronic-music label Projekt Records, Shikhee released Animal in August 2010 on her own Synthellec Music. In production for more than two years, this is the work of an artist reinvigorated by the creative process, adding a new set of colors to her signature sonic palette. “It just happened one day after we came back from our tour,” Shikhee recalls. “Songs just started flooding.”
The flood was triggered in part by Shikhee’s decision to work with her live band in the studio for the first time. “In the past I played all the guitars and some bass [in addition to electronic instruments], but now I had access to these really talented musicians and I wanted to bring that touch in the studio. So I wrote parts for them, parts that were beyond my playing ability.”
The mix of live instruments and processed sounds isn’t new for an Android Lust recording—2003’s breakthrough The Dividing featured live drums, string and wind instrument—but never have those sounds figured so prominently as they do on The Human Animal. The slippery undertones of “A New Heaven” are revealed to be an upright bass; pockets of classical guitar propel “Into the Sun”; the overdriven guitars on “Saint Over” surge forth with the spark of vintage Nine Inch Nails. It’s the most organic-sounding Android Lust record while losing none of the unrelenting sonic edge of prior releases.
It’s not just the live instrumentation that brings the album uncharacteristic warmth. Shikhee took to the streets of New York City with a portable recorder, collecting noises that would be used to form rhythms and ambiance throughout the record. The sounds of a screeching subway, a crowded restaurant, geese, pigeons, and a Barnes & Noble escalator all found their way into the mix.
And Shikhee has never sounded better, her whisper-to-a-scream vocals on a par with Polly Jean Harvey (“It’s On You”) and Ruby’s Leslie Rankine (“God in the Hole”).
For an artist whose overarching aesthetic has sought to blur the line between human and machine, Shikhee here sets her sights on the battle between the physical and the spiritual. Much of The Human Animal is about tapping into the deeper well of universal energy within to find true meaning, freeing oneself (the human) from the imprisonment of ego (the animal). “A New Heaven” sums up the central query: “Are we the ones we are seeking under this sun?”
But despite the sometimes reflective tone this is not music for meditation. The Human Animal’s 10 songs, plus a Jerome Dillon remix of “God in the Hole” to close the disc, pulse and pound, posing both an invitation and a challenge to the listener. Welcome to the age of enlightenment for Android Lust.
- by John Brodeur
The Body
Android Lust Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
To fuck to hurt to kill
And if I choose to give it all up
It's mine until the end
Do you understand?
You think you have the right
'Cause you fucked me a couple of times
With this damned body of mine
You just don't understand
You say you know it all
Trust and take the fall
And feed me all this shit
About what's good for me at all
You just don't understand
Get it, say it, hear it
This time I've got to get you off of my back
Get it, say it, hear it
This time I've got to get you off of my back
This body belongs to me
To take it where I will
And if I choose to be unkind
Decision's mine to make
Do you understand?
Do you understand?
This body belongs to me
To fuck to hurt to kill
And if I choose to give it all up
It's mine until the end
Do you understand?
You think you have the right
'Cause you fucked me a couple of times
To tell me what to do
With this damned body of mine
You just don't understand
You say you know it all
Trust and take the fall
And feed me all this shit
About what's good for me at all
You just don't understand
The lyrics of Android Lust's "The Body" are about owning and controlling one's own body. The song's chorus repeats the lines "This body belongs to me / To fuck to hurt to kill / And if I choose to give it all up / It's mine until the end / Do you understand?" This is a powerful statement about personal autonomy, ownership, and sovereignty. The singer is making a clear statement that it is their right to do what they want with their body, whether that involves sexual or violent acts, or even if they choose to relinquish control over it entirely.
The verses address someone who believes they have the right to dictate what the singer does with their own body because they have had a sexual relationship in the past. The lyrics suggest that this person is trying to give unsolicited advice about what is "good" for the singer or what they should do with their life. The singer, however, asserts their independence and autonomy, declaring that they alone have the power to decide what is best for themselves.
The song's lyrics are a powerful expression of individual autonomy and self-determination, particularly in the context of relationships or societal expectations about what people should do with their bodies. The repeated phrase "Do you understand?" emphasizes the importance of recognizing and respecting other people's autonomy and boundaries.
Line by Line Meaning
This body belongs to me
I am the sole owner of my body
To fuck to hurt to kill
I can use my body as I please, even if that means causing pain or ending a life
And if I choose to give it all up
I have the power to decide if and when to give up my body, whether in a literal or figurative sense
It's mine until the end
My ownership of my body is constant and unchanging, until the day I die
Do you understand?
Do you comprehend the extent of my control over my own body?
You think you have the right
You mistakenly believe that you have the authority to dictate what I do with my body
'Cause you fucked me a couple of times
Just because we have had intercourse does not mean that you have ultimate command over my physical being
To tell me what to do
To impose orders or restrictions on my use of my body is not within your domain
With this damned body of mine
You view my body as an annoyance or a burden, when in reality it is completely under my control
You just don't understand
Your inability to grasp the limits of your authority is frustrating and infuriating to me
You say you know it all
You speak with an air of absolute certainty, as if you understand more than I do about myself and my body
Trust and take the fall
Your advice or demands may lead to negative consequences for me, but you expect me to trust you nonetheless
And feed me all this shit
Your words are insincere or manipulative, aimed only at convincing me to follow your lead
About what's good for me at all
Your idea of what is best for me may be completely different from my own, and I am entitled to make my own decisions
Get it, say it, hear it
I need to emphasize my point until you truly comprehend it
This time I've got to get you off of my back
I need to assert myself in order to free myself from your grasp and control
To take it where I will
I am free to take my body wherever I desire
And if I choose to be unkind
I reserve the right to use my body in ways that may be unpleasant or hurtful to others, if I so choose
Decision's mine to make
I am the only one who has the power to decide how I use my body and when
Do you understand?
Are you capable of accepting and respecting my right to make decisions about my own body?
Contributed by Ruby Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.