Taking their name from the number of Susans in the line up, Band of Susans released one EP - Blessing and Curse - on Poss's own Trace Elements label before being signed to Mute Records's Blast First imprint for their first album Hope Against Hope. After the release, Rogers, Lyall and Tallman quit to be replaced by Karen Haglof (guitar) and Page Hamilton (guitar). After a second album - Love Agenda - and a Peel Sessions EP the two new members quit (Hamilton to form Helmet) and were replaced by Anne Husick (guitar) and Mark Lonergan (guitar), forming the line up which made three more albums and one EP. On the band's final U.S. and European tours a young Jay Braun filled in for Mark Lonergan. The band's final production was a version of Wire's Ahead for a collection of Wire cover versions called Whore, released in 1996.
Musically, BoS organised their three guitarists into providing an overwhelming wail of feedback and guitar noise layered under more conventional song structures (Poss had worked with guitar enemble composer Rhys Chatham and was a big fan of The Rolling Stones - the latter resulting in covers of Child of the Moon and Paint it Black). Although pretty much unconnected with it, Band of Susans are generally included in the New York No Wave scene that produced Sonic Youth and Glenn Branca.
After the dissolution of the band, Poss and Stenger performed with Bruce Gilbert of Wire as GilbertPossStenger. Poss then concentrated on production and solo work whilst Stenger played live with The Creatures for a period. An open-ended promise to reform under a new name has yet to happen.
Blind
Band Of Susans Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The pitch-black night is crowded with stars
Hand in hand climbing up the highest hill
To get the bird's-eye view of where we've been
Like phases of the moon gone and back again
Spreading out the maps and tracing every turn
We took side by side
Without a trace
A veil of shadows falls around my face
My vision fades but I see you as you walk away
I see you clearly as I walk away
The song Blind by Band of Susans has a reflective tone that captures the yearning for clarity and the desire to hold onto fleeting moments. The opening lines evoke a sense of surreal beauty with the picture of two people standing “arm in arm gazing into diamond light.” The reference to “diamond light” implies a rare and precious moment, and the image of being in the pitch-black night surrounded by stars amplifies this sense of wonder. The concept of taking a bird’s-eye view of where they’ve been suggests a desire to gain perspective and understand their journey. However, the singer also acknowledges the impermanence of life, likening it to “phases of the moon gone and back again.” Despite this, they seem content to take the journey side by side with another person, tracing every turn.
The second verse takes a slightly darker turn, with the singer acknowledging the possibility of losing themselves without a trace. This could refer to losing a sense of self or losing moments that slip away. The veil of shadows that falls around their face creates a sense of ambiguity and obscurity. Yet, even as the vision fades, the singer seems to find comfort in the presence of the other person. They see the person clearly as they walk away, suggesting that this relationship may be a source of grounding or stability.
Line by Line Meaning
Arm in arm gazing into diamond light
Together we stand, looking up at the brilliant stars above us
The pitch-black night is crowded with stars
Although it's a dark night, the sky is filled with bright stars
Hand in hand climbing up the highest hill
We are holding hands as we make our way up the highest point in the area
To get the bird's-eye view of where we've been
We want to see the area from above to get a better understanding of our surroundings
Like phases of the moon gone and back again
Just like the moon goes through different phases, we've experienced ups and downs before and will again in the future
Spreading out the maps and tracing every turn
We're examining maps and carefully studying every route we've taken
We took side by side
We went on this journey together, side by side
Sometimes I lose a day
Occasionally, I feel like a day goes by really quickly without me realizing it
Without a trace
Suddenly, without warning
A veil of shadows falls around my face
A feeling of darkness and sadness overcomes me
My vision fades but I see you as you walk away
Although I can't see clearly, I can still see you leaving
I see you clearly as I walk away
Even as I walk away, my vision of you remains clear
Lyrics © ECLIPSE LOUD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Ashley Monday
Just found this band and I am incredibly moved by this song.
slobomotion
In many ways, this is my favorite song they did -- best one about depression I think I've ever heard. Awesome group live. Was a pleasure to know and to boost them. Shared. Favorited.
thechillcomesover
BoS was one of the truly great guitar bands, and more importantly a band with truly great songs. Love Agenda is probably their best, but there's a lot of good material there. Ah, the glorious noise...
CuteCatFaith
I knew both Robert Poss and Susan Stenger and it was magic what they did, you cannot believe how good this group was live. They had almost no fans, it was sad. This is probably my fave song -- Susan wrote it.
Terry Monse
i have this cassette i believe i may have worn the shit out of it love everything about it thanks for posting
Joe Serrano
AWESOME Band, where do all the COOL Bands go? Now this is REAL MUSIC, REAL ROCK Vibes!!! =D
slobomotion
"Sometimes I lose a day without a trace. A veil of shadows falls across my face. My vision fades. But I see you clearly, as you walk away. I see you clearly, as you walk away." xob!
CuteCatFaith
@Joe Serrano
This is a total guitar band with a wall of sound and males and females take turns here.
Joe Serrano
Oh yeah my beautiful buddy, what an AWESOME Band!!! =D
CuteCatFaith
For some reason, I didn't care for their early recordings. For me, they then bloomed and I was floored by the power of this group, recorded and live. It was great to turn people on to them. This song always gets me weepy. I really encourage people to find any of their recordings. Shared and favorited.