Apoptygma Berzerk is a Norwegian ebm/futurepop/synthrock musical group, for… Read Full Bio ↴Apoptygma Berzerk is a Norwegian ebm/futurepop/synthrock musical group, formed in 1989. The current lineup includes Stephan Groth (vocals, programming, guitars, samples), Brandon Smith (guitars) and Thomas Jakobsen (drums). The group has achieved moderate commercial success with a unique brand of gloomy, danceable gothic synthpop, winning awards and Top-10 spots in Germany and Scandinavia. The band's name is commonly abbreviated to APOP or APB.

In 1989, Stephan Groth and Jon Erik Martinsen formed Apoptygma Berzerk in Norway. They wrote several songs, one of them "Ashes To Ashes" would later be released as a 12" single on the Norwegian label Tatra Productions in 1991. Martinsen left the band shortly afterwards feeling uncomfortable with the direction of the band's music. Since then the band had many lineup changes, Groth being the only constant members.

Stephan Groth claims that the band name was randomly picked out of a dictionary. Apoptygma is an old Greek word for the fold of a woman's garment. Technically the 'y' ought to be pronounced like a long 'u', but the band's name is commonly pronounced a-pop-TIG-ma or a-pop-TEEG-ma.

Apoptygma Berzerk released six studio albums so far: Soli Deo Gloria in 1993, 7 in 1996, Welcome To Earth in 2000, Harmonizer in 2002, You and Me Against the World in 2005, and Rocket Science in 2009.

The first two albums, Soli Deo Gloria and 7 were a similar style of synthpop and EBM. Welcome to Earth featured an evolved EBM/synthpop sound. Harmonizer featured a softer, more synthpop-oriented direction. You and Me Against the World represented an almost complete change in style for the band, from EBM to indie rock-oriented sound. Rocket Science continued the rock-oriented direction of their sound.

They also released three compilations (The Apopcalyptic Manifesto in 1998, The Singles Collection in 2003 , Sonic Diary in 2006), three live albums (APBL98 in 1999, APBL2000 in 2001, Imagine There's No Lennon in 2010) and three live DVDs (APBL2000 in 2001, The Harmonizer DVD in 2004, Imagine There's No Lennon in 2010).

In total, the band issued six EPs: Victims of Mutilation in 1990, The 2nd Manifesto in 1992, Mourn EP in 1997, Unicorn EP in 2004, Black EP in 2006, and Green Queen in 2009.

List of former band members:
Jon Erik Martensen: keyboards (1989)
Per Aksel Lundgreen: keyboards/manager (1991–1994)
Anders Odden: guitars (1992-1999)
Geir Bratland: keyboards/backing vocals (1995-2009)
Fredrik Darum: producer/live guitarist (1999–2001)
Ted Skogmann: drums and guitar (1999–2002)
Fredrik Brarud: drums (2002-2009)
Audun Stengel (Angel): guitars (2002-2009)
Anders Odden: guitars (2003-2006)

Official site: http://www.apoptygmaberzerk.de

25 Cromwell St.
Apoptygma Berzerk Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Lights out, forever in darkness
The sadness, you're insane
Inside number twenty five, you did commit suicide
You killed them all, and your killed yourself

They think that you're alive
But you know that they are wrong
You left your body in a prison cell

Before you went to hell
They think that you're alive
But you know that they are wrong

You left your body in a prison cell
Before you went to

Overall Meaning

hell

The lyrics of Apoptygma Berzerk's song 25 Cromwell St are a haunting and disturbing portrayal of the infamous crimes committed by the serial killer couple Fred and Rosemary West. The song's opening lines, "Lights out, forever in darkness, the sadness, you're insane" set the tone for the song's exploration of the dark, twisted psyche of the killers. The lyrics go on to detail the events that occurred at number 25 Cromwell Street in Gloucester, England, where the Wests committed murders and buried their victims in the cellar.

The chorus of the song is particularly chilling, with its repeated refrain "They think that you're alive, but you know that they are wrong, you left your body in a prison cell before you went to hell." This can be interpreted as a commentary on the fact that Fred West killed himself in prison before he could be brought to trial, denying his victims' families the opportunity for justice and closure. The song's lyrics are a stark reminder of the horrors that human beings are capable of and the devastating impact that their actions can have on their victims and society as a whole.

Line by Line Meaning

Lights out, forever in darkness
You're now in a state of eternal darkness and there's no hope of light shining on you again.

The sadness, you're insane
The sadness you inflicted on others shows that you're insane.

Inside number twenty five, you did commit suicide
You took your own life within the confines of number twenty five.

You killed them all, and your killed yourself
You murdered all of them and then took your own life too.

They think that you're alive
The general assumption is that you're still alive.

But you know that they are wrong
In reality, you know that they're all wrong.

You left your body in a prison cell
You abandoned your physical self in a locked prison cell.

Before you went to hell
This was all before you succumbed to eternal torment in hell.

They think that you're alive
The belief persists that you're still alive and haven't met your death yet.

But you know that they are wrong
But the fact averse to the myth is that you met your demise.

You left your body in a prison cell
Your corpse was left in a prison cell.