Cardiacs, originally called Cardiac Arrest, was an English band formed in 1… Read Full Bio ↴Cardiacs, originally called Cardiac Arrest, was an English band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith (1961-2020). Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by many newer groups and artists.

As well as Smith, around 23 musicians were part of the Cardiacs over the years, including Smith's brother, Jim, and multi-instrumentalist, Sarah Cutts, who married Tim Smith in 1983.

Their music combined the excitement and energy of punk with the intricacies and technical cleverness of early British progressive rock, a combination sometimes referred to as pronk, although frontman Smith disavowed this classification.

Cardiacs released eight studio albums plus a number of live albums, compilation albums and singles between 1980 and 2007, and are best known for the 1988 minor hit single "Is This the Life?" They are also noted for attracting strongly diverse responses: they have remained one of Britain's leading cult rock bands during their four-decade-spanning career, but have also attracted virulent critical attack (including a lengthy editorial ban from the British music magazine New Musical Express).

On the 30th June 1990, Cardiacs played at Salisbury Arts Centre (a former church). The show was recorded and initially the video of it was released on VHS tape under the name "All That Glitters Is A Mare's Nest". The video helped Cardiacs achieve a cult following, with pirated copies of the video, being highly sought after. The audio from the show was released on CD in 1995.

The band was on hiatus following the 2008 hospitalisation of Tim Smith after a heart attack and series of strokes which affected his speech and movement.

Commenting on his condition, in 2017, Smith wrote: “Imagine if you were wearing a skintight bodysuit made of fishnet all around you, with electrical pulses going all the time. This is what my body feels like unless I fall asleep.”

In 2018, fundraising was set up for Tim Smith, which included the comment “This condition has affected Tim’s movement, his dexterity, his ability to speak, and it has added painful muscle tone and spasms that are a permanent feature of his life these days.”

On Tuesday 21st July 2020, at around 10.30 pm, Tim Smith passed away at his home, as a result of a heart attack.

Cardiacs final album, "LSD" remained unfinished at the time of Tim Smith's death. At the time of his death, Cardiacs still remained a cult following, their recordings were not, for example, available on Spotify. For many years there were few new copies of Cardiacs albums in circulation. Later on, re-releases became available on CD and then vinyl.

Sleep All Eyes Open
Cardiacs Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You mistake you-self heavily
Will you this?
Is your master at home?
Yes Sir!
Is it up?
No Sir he sleep yet!
It come in ones how is it you are in bed yet

Suck bear daddy she stink all clean
Upon my soul upon her life
She dog a - sleep all eyes open
Prays all our own jelly as fear yeah!

Grizzle yeah oh and contain me
Grizzle oh yeah and contain me

Since you not go out
I shall go out nor I neither
That may dead if I lie you
She dog a - sleep all eyes open

Prays all our own jelly as fear yeah!
The sun rise on sun lie down
Upon my soul upon her life she dog
Asleep all eyes

I feel very very bloody complete
Says if I falls froggy squish
Hooray yeah! Oh! Hooray yeah-eah ah!
Hooray yeah! Oh yeah! Oh Hooray yeah!

Hooray yeah! Oh! Hooray yeah-eah ah!
Hooray yeah! Oh yeah! Oh Hooray yeah!

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Sleep All Eyes Open by Cardiacs are surreal and difficult to fully comprehend on first listen. The song plays off disjointed and disjointed lyrics that often do not relate to one another in a traditional narrative sense. The song begins with a series of disjointed questions and answers that seem to imply someone mistook themselves and that their master is not yet awake. The next verse takes a more surreal turn, mentioning a stinky bear and someone who is asleep with their eyes open. The song continues in this vein, switching between different images and phrases that speak to a larger sense of confusion and grasping at meaning.

While it is difficult to definitively interpret Sleep All Eyes Open, one possible reading of the song is that it speaks to the chaotic nature of life and the often-fruitless attempts to understand it. The disjointed lyrics and strange imagery could be seen as a metaphor for the human condition, where life can often seem nonsensical and incomprehensible. The repeated refrain of "Hooray yeah!" could be interpreted as a coping mechanism, a way of finding joy in the midst of confusion and uncertainty.

Overall, Sleep All Eyes Open is a challenging and intriguing song that rewards careful listening and analysis. Whether one chooses to interpret it as a commentary on the human condition or simply as an exercise in surrealist writing, there is much to discover and marvel at within its strange and beautiful lyrics.

Line by Line Meaning

You mistake you-self heavily
You are very wrong about yourself

Will you this?
Do you understand?

Is your master at home?
Is the person in charge here?

Yes Sir!
Yes, they are

Is it up?
Are they awake?

No Sir he sleep yet!
No, they are still sleeping

It come in ones how is it you are in bed yet
It happens one at a time, why are you still in bed?

Suck bear daddy she stink all clean
Kiss me, I smell good

Upon my soul upon her life
I swear on my life and hers

She dog a - sleep all eyes open
She is sleeping, but with her eyes open

Prays all our own jelly as fear yeah!
Let's hope everything goes well