Arab Strap is an independent rock band from Falkirk, Scotland, UK, signed f… Read Full Bio ↴Arab Strap is an independent rock band from Falkirk, Scotland, UK, signed for the majority of their albums to independent record label Chemikal Underground. The duo had a short lived flirtation with a major label at the peak of their critical acclaim (after "Philophobia") when they signed to Go!Beat records (a former independent label now owned by Universal).

Vocalist Aidan Moffat and multi-instrumentalist Malcolm Middleton met in Falkirk, bonded over their mutual love for Drag City recording artists such as Smog and Will Oldham, and began a collaboration in 1995. The band is completed by violinist Jenny Reeve and cellist Stacey Sievewright. Arab Strap's marked characteristics include frank and forthright lyrics delivered in a Scottish brogue.

Aidan Moffat and Malcolm Middleton confirmed the rumours about the end of Arab Strap on 8th September 2006. They celebrated their Ten Years of Tears with a tour through the UK and the rest of Europe. After UK/Europe, they made a short secret tour in Japan as the last of Arab Strap. In 2016, however, they have reunited a decade after their breakup and will be touring throughout the year 2017.

Tanned
Arab Strap Lyrics

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The Greek sun made you lovely
But attacked me with its rays.
I feel asleep and burned so badly
I could barely move for the first few days.

The girls in front all lay topless
I did my best not to look.
But you could see right through my glasses

As I pretended to read my book.

We went for dinner then tried the cocktails
And drank our way through the list.

For the first time in ages we just sat and chatted
Then staggered home happy, tanned and pissed.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Arab Strap's "Tanned" depict a story of the singer and their companion on a trip to Greece. The singer recounts how the Greek sun made their companion "lovely" but "attacked" them with its hot rays, rendering the singer burned and unable to move for a few days. As they lay on the beach, the singer tries not to look at the topless girls in front of them, but the glasses they are wearing betray their gaze. The two then go for dinner and drink their way through the cocktail menu, leading to a happy and drunken night.

The lyrics suggest a level of discomfort with one's own body and desires, exemplified by the singer's attempt to hide their gaze behind glasses and their discomfort with the topless girls in front of them. There is a sense of a fleeting moment of escape, as the two seem to have had a carefree night drinking and chatting, albeit with the consequence of drunkenness.

Overall, the lyrics to "Tanned" portray a common experience of going on vacation, experiencing some discomfort or pain, and finding temporary relief through leisure and distraction.

Line by Line Meaning

The Greek sun made you lovely
The sunlight from Greece made you beautiful

But attacked me with its rays.
However, the sunlight had a negative effect on me and caused me harm

I feel asleep and burned so badly
I fell asleep and the sunburn was so severe that it caused me great discomfort

I could barely move for the first few days.
The sunburn was so overwhelming that for the initial period, I had difficulty moving around

The girls in front all lay topless
The women in front were lying on the beach without their tops on

I did my best not to look.
I tried my hardest not to ogle the women

But you could see right through my glasses
However, despite my effort, one could see through my sunglasses that I was trying to sneak a peek

As I pretended to read my book.
I was pretending to read a book as a cover-up

We went for dinner then tried the cocktails
We went out for dinner and had a few drinks

And drank our way through the list.
We proceeded to drink through the cocktail menu

For the first time in ages we just sat and chatted
For the first time in a while, we had a leisurely conversation without any distractions