The band's early work drew influence from Siouxsie and the Banshees and Joy Division. After signing with the British record label 4AD in 1982, they released their debut album Garlands later that year. The addition of Raymonde in 1983 solidified their final lineup, which produced their biggest hit in the UK, "Pearly-Dewdrops' Drops", peaking at No. 29 on the UK Singles Chart. In 1988, Cocteau Twins signed with Capitol Records in the United States, distributing their fifth album, Blue Bell Knoll, through a major label in the country. After the 1990 release of their most critically acclaimed album, Heaven or Las Vegas, the band left 4AD for Fontana Records, where they released their final two albums.
After nearly 20 years together, the band disbanded in 1997 in part due to issues stemming from the disintegration of Fraser and Guthrie's romantic relationship. In 2005, the band announced that they would reunite to headline Coachella and embark on a world tour but the reunion was cancelled a month later after Fraser refused to perform on stage with Guthrie. In a 2021 interview, Raymonde confirmed that Cocteau Twins "will never reform".
Ups
Cocteau Twins Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We are low we are low
We are ups
We
Look up and see angels see
Now see inside me
Sheer and spooky
Never lose contact
This place I have inside me I will learn to share
Yes you know
Get up all we had to now
We are low we are low
We are ups
We
Look up and now angel see
You have seen inside me
sheer and spooky
Never lose contact
Makes our life show up, show up
This place I have inside me I will learn to share
Never lose contact
Makes our life show up, show up
This place I have inside me I will learn to
Blessed my summering this way
Brr hana
Never lose contact
Makes our life show up, show up
This place I have inside me I will learn to share
To realize you are a liar
To realize you are a liar
To realize you are a liar
The lyrics of Cocteau Twins’ Ups are open to interpretation, but a common theme throughout the song is transformation. The first line sheds light on this, “Shed our cold reality.” The singer of the song wants to escape their mundane, everyday life and become something more, something better. They refer to themselves as both low and ups, suggesting that they are experiencing highs and lows. The second verse mentions angels and seeing inside someone, which could be interpreted as discovering a spiritual or emotional connection with another person. The repetition of “never lose contact” emphasizes the importance of maintaining this connection to truly bring their inner selves out into the world. The final lines, “to realize you are a liar” may suggest that the singer is acknowledging their own flaws and wants to move past them.
Overall, Ups is a song about personal growth and self-discovery, with a message of not losing sight of those who help us along the way.
Line by Line Meaning
Shed our cold reality
Let go of our current harsh and unforgiving reality
We are low we are low
We are feeling down and upset
We are ups
We have our moments of happiness and joy
We
Referring to the group of people or togetherness
Look up and see angels see
See the beauty in the world around us
Now see inside me
Understand and empathize with my feelings and emotions
Sheer and spooky
Hauntingly beautiful and mysterious
Never lose contact
Always stay connected and in touch with ourselves and others
Makes our life show up, show up
Brings meaning and purpose to our lives
This place I have inside me I will learn to share
I will work on opening up and expressing my inner thoughts and feelings
Yes you know
Acknowledging the understanding of the listener
Get up all we had to now
Overcome any challenges we have faced so far
Look up and now angel see
Continuing to appreciate the beauty in the world
Blessed my summering this way
Feeling grateful and fortunate to experience life in this way
Brr hana
Unknown/undecipherable expression without clear meaning
To realize you are a liar
Possible alternate interpretation or additional commentary not directly related to the rest of the lyrics
To realize you are a liar
Possible alternate interpretation or additional commentary not directly related to the rest of the lyrics
To realize you are a liar
Possible alternate interpretation or additional commentary not directly related to the rest of the lyrics
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: ELIZABETH FRASER, ROBIN GUTHRIE, SIMON RAYMONDE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
charlie z
milk and kisses ages so well! unlke some of their albums this is so consistent, not a single average track..! "ups" might be secretly among the top tracks on it actually.. so beautiful. I really love the drums here btw.
Louis Caprani
Karel Zich How about or las gevas?
Autos389
That's also a great CD. But M&K is their masterpiece, IMO.
charlie z
las vegas is obviously a very good album, my only complaint is that a lot of people say it's their best - while i'd argue it's "just" one of their many good albums and their most radio friendly. better than treasure, blue bell knoll, victorialand or milk and kisses? i'd say not at all.
BandfromtheBand
Their 80's albums DO, indeed sound dated, but I still love listening to them. Like so many other records from the 1980's, they will always have the stigma of the best and current production values going on at the time! I think that stigma will change. It will become insignificant as younger people will finally uncover the great songs that they have been missing, and will give no credence to the production values of the decade of the 80's. It is what it is! It WAS what it WAS, and it still sounds GREAT!! The Cocteau Twins optimized the shoegaze era of this kind of music, named that way because all of these bands were looking down at their effects pedals and getting ready for their next change as they were performing! They wanted to get it right! Can you blame them? That would be incredibly stupid to do so.
human skin
that was so hot….the way you just said all that
Julio Florentino
Liz Fraser the voice of angels
Micro Kid.
Just another masterpiece from my fav band 😚
vance wright
the fact that shes actually singing words makes her a queen! (like at 3:20 who would've gussed she was saying "to realize you are a liar") Absolutely stunning!
AviatorRider
So nice to hear her singing and playing with her own voice....