Coil spent the next period of its existence exploring visual media. In late 1984 they recorded a rendition of Tainted Love (originally recorded by Gloria Jones, but made popular by Soft Cell in the 80s), producing a widely banned, hallucinogenic video clip featuring Marc Almond as the Angel of Death; despite considerable controversy at home, the video ultimately found its way to the archives of the Museum of Modern Art. After spending several years working with filmmaker Derek Jarman on the feature The Angelic Conversation, Coil issued a remixed edition of their soundtrack. Following 1986’s Nightmare Culture, a collaboration with Boyd Rice produced as split release with Current 93, Christopherson and Balance invited Stephen Thrower to join the group in a full-time capacity. As a trio, they recorded 1986’s LP Horse Rotorvator, introducing orchestral, jazz, and middle Eastern textures into the mix; this album included The Anal Staircase.
In 1987, Coil issued The Unreleased Themes for Hellraiser, a collection of atmospheric gothic instrumentals commissioned for but ultimately cut from the Clive Barker horror film, followed by compilation album Gold Is the Metal (With the Broadest Shoulders), a remixed history of the group’s first several years of work. Unnatural History, another career overview, effectively ended the first phase of the band’s career in 1990; when Coil resurfaced a year later with Love’s Secret Domain, their music reflected the strong influence of the acid house culture. Another long layoff brought on by financial difficulties ended in 1995, when the group - now consisting of Sleazy, Balance, and Drew McDowell - signed to Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor’s Nothing Records to release Backwards, an album which was never officially released, although it is available in a number of bootleg versions. Additionally, they recorded the LP Worship the Glitch, issued under the name ELpH, and in 1996 cut A Thousand Lights in a Darkened Room as Black Light District.
1998 marked a significant stylistic shift for Coil, as the group moved away from the industrial dance sound they pioneered in the first half of their career towards what Balance referred to as "Moon Musick". This began with the release of four seasonal EPs throughout that year, coinciding with the equinoxes and solstices; this marked the group making further forays into ambient and neoclassical styles. Lyrically, there was a push towards naturalistic, pagan imagery, and an emphasis on free form, improvisatory chants. All four of these releases were later collected and released as Moons Milk (in Four Phases) in 2002. Coil also put out a purely drone based project, Time Machines, under that alias the same year.
In 1999 Coil started to work with Thighpaulsandra, and with him released the chilling Musick to Play in the Dark, a dark, meditative work featuring mostly intoned vocals from Balance, and exploring deeper electronic textures and pitches. A second volume followed in 2000. After years of refusal to do so, Coil started to perform live again in 1999. They released a number of albums containing the various shows they did in the period 2000 - 2004. Coil have released a lot of material in very limited editions, and have distributed certain records only at concerts. In 2003 they started a project to re-issue these tracks. Amidst their sporadic touring, and growing internal tensions within the group, Black Antlers was released in 2004, consisting of many of the songs played in concert at the time. This would prove to be the last studio recording put out in Balance's lifetime.
Jhonn Balance’s long-time struggle with alcoholism led to his death on 13th November, 2004. He fell from the second floor window at his home, while drunk, and died a short time after. Coil’s last live performance took place at Dublin’s City Hall on 23 October 2004 and is expected to appear on the forthcoming DVD box set “Colour Sound Oblivion”. A number of songs that were (as good as) ready were released in autumn 2005 as a last farewell to Jhonn.
Peter Christopherson passed away peacefully in his sleep on November 25, 2010. Instead of sending flowers in memory of Peter Christopherson, people were asked to donate money to help children affected by AIDS in Thailand, the country he loved and died in.
http://www.thresholdhouse.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coil_(band)
SOTW03-The Anal Staircase
Coil Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Our souls in bliss
Measure the extent
Of a dizzying descent
Down the
Anal staircase.
Put just one foot on
The staircase
And the next step
You're down here
On this face.
And the rapids
Of my heart
Will tear your
Ship of live apart
And we'll
End up wrecked
We'll end up
At the start
Of the Anal Staircase.
And the angels kiss
Our souls in bliss
Measure the extent of a
Dizzying descent
Down the
Anal staircase.
Take a
Hollowpoint revolver
Shoot down the rapids
Of your heart
Blow the fucking
Thing apart
Blow the fucking
Thing apart.
One step
Two step
Three step
Four Step.
The lyrics of Coil's song The Anal Staircase evoke themes of self-destruction, descent into madness, and the allure of taboo desires. The song opens with a seemingly blissful description of angels kissing souls, but quickly takes a darker turn as the language shifts towards a dizzying descent down the "Anal Staircase". The staircase is a metaphor for a dangerous path that leads to destruction, and once one takes the first step, there is no going back. The singer warns that the rapid beating of their heart will ensnare the listener in a downward spiral and ultimately lead to them being "wrecked" and returned to the start of the staircase.
The final lines of the song introduce the idea of a hollowpoint revolver as a way to "blow the fucking thing apart" - possibly referencing suicide or a desire to erase oneself entirely. The repetition of the four-step count at the end of the lyrics is haunting and suggests a never-ending cycle of destruction, descending down the staircase again and again.
Overall, The Anal Staircase can be interpreted as a cautionary tale about the danger of giving into one's darkest desires and the inevitability of self-destruction.
Line by Line Meaning
And the angels kiss
Our spirits are embraced by divine beings
Our souls in bliss
We experience utmost ecstasy
Measure the extent
Calculate the scope
Of a dizzying descent
Of a disorienting drop
Down the Anal staircase.
Through the path of the anus.
Put just one foot on
Merely stepping on
The staircase
The structure leading to our descent
And the next step
Then the subsequent movement
You're down here
We're instantly in this location
On this face.
On this surface
And the rapids
And the swift-moving currents
Of my heart
Of my emotional core
Will tear your
Shall damage your
Ship of life apart
Vessel of vitality beyond repair
And we'll
And we shall
End up wrecked
Be left distressed
We'll end up
We are destined to
At the start
At the beginning
Of the Anal Staircase.
Of the journey through the anus.
Take a
Use a
Hollowpoint revolver
A type of firearm with a hollow tip bullet
Shoot down the rapids
Eliminate the strong currents
Of your heart
Of your emotional core
Blow the fucking
Destroy the damn
Thing apart
Object into pieces
Blow the fucking
Destroy the damn
Thing apart.
Object into pieces.
One step
Initial stage
Two step
Second phase
Three step
Third step
Four Step.
Final stage.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind