Tibet has been the only constant in the group, though Steven Stapleton (of Nurse With Wound) has appeared on nearly every Current 93 release. Michael Cashmore has also been a constant contributor since Thunder Perfect Mind. Douglas P. of Death In June has played on well over a dozen Current 93 releases, and Steve Ignorant of Crass (using the name Stephen Intelligent), Boyd Rice, runologist Freya Aswynn , Nick Cave, Björk, Andrew W.K., Will Oldham, Ben Chasny, Rose McDowall, Tiny Tim, Tony Wakeford of Sol Invictus, Marc Almond, John Balance of Coil, Antony Hegarty of Antony and the Johnsons, Baby Dee and Ian Read of Fire + Ice have also lent their talents over the years. Tibet is fond of the works of American writer Thomas Ligotti, and invited him to collaborate with Current 93.
Current 93 have released over twenty albums and many singles as well as having been a guest on many of the above listed artists' records. Tibet has also collaborated with Nature and Organisation and The Hafler Trio.
Much of Current 93's early work was similar to late 1970s and early 1980s industrial music: abrasive tape loops, droning synthesizer noises and Tibet's distorted, excoriating vocals. This early work became influential with the goth scene. Later works found Tibet mostly casting off such trappings in favor of a more organic sound, labeled by some as "apocalyptic folk" music, occasionally featuring his sinister nursery rhyme-influenced singing and primarily acoustic folk-styled music.
Tibet's lyrics have been fairly consistent, regardless of delivery: The earlier recordings reflect his preoccupation with death, Christ, mysticism, Aleister Crowley (Tibet borrowed the term "93 Current" from Crowley - the 93 Current being the current of Thelema or Agape), Tibetan Buddhism, Gnosticism, runes, swastikas, Noddy, The Wicker Man, and a variety of occult notions. The later to present-day period of Current 93's recordings increasingly reflect Tibet's interest in Christian mysticism. Tibet has stated that he identifies as a Christian.
Literary influences include Lautreamont's Les Chants de Maldoror, the Bible, The Poetic Edda, Hildegard von Bingen, John Dee, Heptarchia Mystica, The Thunder, Perfect Mind, William Blake, Louis Wain, writer Thomas Ligotti, occult British author Arthur Machen (originator of the title "The Inmost Light"), M.R. James's various ghost stories, The Cloud of Unknowing, Count Eric Stenbock, and Russell Hoban's Riddley Walker.
Musical influences include religious chants, traditional folk music, The Tam Lin ballad, The Incredible String Band, Sand, Comus, Blue Öyster Cult, Black Sabbath, Love, Shirley Collins, some progressive bands such as Yes, King Crimson, Emerson, Lake & Palmer, and the British composer Kaikhosru Shapurji Sorabji.
David Keenan's book England's Hidden Reverse - A Secret History of the Esoteric Underground (SAF Publishing 2003) extensively covers Tibet's musical evolution along with that of Coil, Stephen Stapleton, and others.
The Frolic
Current 93 Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We walk towards where the roses once grew
I lie back in the grass and dream of how it once was
The rubbishstrewn streets
Riperising smell of gutters and rain
The children abandoned
Mother recalls child in pool
I have such nightmares and you're all in all of them
It's worse than you or I can ever know
On the edge of the clouds we crouch
We smile and spit
The pool of saliva carrascates below our feet
It shifts
Children with knives begin to rise from it
They laugh and blow kisses at the moon
We think it's the rain
I see a bird move onto the table in my garden
Its beak scoops up the seeds
The green of the grass and the blue of the sky
Are immense and terrifying
Everything seems so close
So very very close
Should a storm come
Should a storm break and halo all around us
As some savage and blind god
Jerking his hands out to us
The birds drop all around us
I walk into the altar room
All the buddhas are smashed there
Avalokitesvara's hundred faces lie shattered
I have done this
I walk to the makeshift redbrick altar a hundred years ago
There is a small brass image there
I have built this
The red and black ants mill around
Unknown journeys
I take my lighter and torch them
I take my lighter and torch them
I weep, I weep
The ants scatter or writhe
I take my lighter and torch them torch them
I have done this
I am surrounded by butterflies
The chid's legs lay smashed
Please pray for him she says to me
Too late
Alas, oh so too late
I see the twinkling stars
I drop a photograph
I bend to pick it up
My heart leaps as I see your face
Stare up at me from the paper
As if still alive on this earth
When I return my eyes to the stars
They gathered
They pucker
And are blind
And are blind
So lost are we
Oh what have I become
I have become that I hate
I have become that I shall say no
The bird is dead now alas
A voice whispers to me
And says nothing nothing
There is nothing
I look to my right and see her face again
And again the world disappears
And all fall down
All fall down
All fall down I all fall down
All fall down I all fall down
We all fall down
We all fall down
The Frolic by Current 93 is a song that is filled with vivid and intense imagery that is both beautiful and disturbing. The lyrics describe a dream-like sequence in which the singer is taken on a journey through dark and surreal landscapes alongside an unknown companion. The opening line of the song, “I take your hand, we walk towards where the roses once grew”, sets the tone for the rest of the song by implying that the journey they are embarking on is one of nostalgia and sadness. The lyrics that follow describe a world that is filled with death, despair, and destruction. The image of dead children lying in pools and buddhas lying shattered on the ground creates a sense of loss and despair, while the image of children rising from a pool of saliva with knives is both creepy and surreal.
Throughout the song, there is a sense of unease and tension that builds with each verse. The lyrics are fragmented, and the singer seems to be struggling to put together the pieces of their own experience. The line, “So lost are we, oh what have I become, I have become that I hate,” suggests that the singer is struggling with their own sense of identity and morality, and is perhaps grappling with the dark forces that lurk within themselves.
Overall, The Frolic is a haunting and evocative song that takes the listener on a dark and surreal journey through the landscapes of memory and nightmares.
Line by Line Meaning
I take your hand
I lead you towards the once beautiful rose garden with me
We walk towards where the roses once grew
We walk towards the memory of the roses that once bloomed
I lie back in the grass and dream of how it once was
I lay down in the current reality and dream of the past
The rubbishstrewn streets
The streets are scattered with trash
Riperising smell of gutters and rain
The smell of rotting gutters mixed with the aroma of rain fills the air
The children abandoned
The children are left alone and forgotten
Mother recalls child in pool
The mother recalls the memory of her child in the pool
What is that that lies? deadchilddead
The child is dead, what can be done?
I have such nightmares and you're all in all of them
I am haunted by nightmares that all of you reside in
It's worse than you or I can ever know
It is even worse than we could imagine
On the edge of the clouds we crouch
We stand on the brink of madness
We smile and spit
We find pleasure in nihilism
The pool of saliva carrascates below our feet
The spit puddles beneath our feet
It shifts
The ground beneath us changes
Children with knives begin to rise from it
The next generation emerges violently
They laugh and blow kisses at the moon
They find joy in the chaos and destruction
We think it's the rain
We blame nature for our own destruction
I see a bird move onto the table in my garden
I watch as a bird lands on my table
Its beak scoops up the seeds
It feeds on what little life is left
The green of the grass and the blue of the sky
The beauty of nature contrasts against the ugliness of our existence
Are immense and terrifying
Their beauty is overwhelming
Everything seems so close
Our destruction is imminent
So very very close
The end is near
Should a storm come
If destruction comes
Should a storm break and halo all around us
If we are surrounded by complete destruction
As some savage and blind god
As if a deity forces us towards our demise
Jerking his hands out to us
Reaching out his hands to us in violence
The birds drop all around us
Even nature cannot survive our destruction
I walk into the altar room
I enter the room of worship
All the buddhas are smashed there
All of the sacred idols within are destroyed
Avalokitesvara's hundred faces lie shattered
The deity's many faces are now broken
I have done this
I am the cause of this
I walk to the makeshift redbrick altar a hundred years ago
I travel back in time to revisit the ruined worship space
There is a small brass image there
A small, but present, image of worship is there
I have built this
I am the source of this worship
The red and black ants mill around
The ants swarm within this sacred space
Unknown journeys
My unknown travels led me to this space
I take my lighter and torch them
I set the ants on fire
I weep, I weep
I feel sadness for my destructive actions
The ants scatter or writhe
The ants either run away or perish
I take my lighter and torch them torch them
I continuously set fire to their remains
I have done this
I am the cause of this destruction
I am surrounded by butterflies
Butterflies now surround me
The chid's legs lay smashed
The child's legs lie broken
Please pray for him she says to me
She requests me to pray for the child
Too late
It is too late for any salvation
Alas, oh so too late
It is a tragedy beyond words
I see the twinkling stars
I look up at the stars
I drop a photograph
I accidentally drop a photo
I bend to pick it up
I pick up the photo
My heart leaps as I see your face
I am happy to see your face once again
Stare up at me from the paper
Your photo seems to stare back at me from the paper
As if still alive on this earth
You seem as though you are still here
When I return my eyes to the stars
I look back up at the stars
They gathered
The stars seem to come together
They pucker
The stars distort in shape
And are blind
They seem to have lost their shine and beauty
And are blind
The stars have lost their luster
So lost are we
We are without a guide, forever wandering
Oh what have I become
I am ashamed of who I have become
I have become that I hate
I have become the very thing I despise
I have become that I shall say no
I vow to no longer be who I have become
The bird is dead now alas
The bird has perished
A voice whispers to me
I hear a voice whispering to me
And says nothing nothing
The voice only whispers nothingness
There is nothing
Only emptiness remains
I look to my right and see her face again
I look to my right and see her face once more
And again the world disappears
The world fades away again
All fall down
All crumbles to dust
All fall down
Everything collapses
All fall down I all fall down
Everything crumbles
All fall down I all fall down
We all collapse
We all fall down
We are all doomed to fall
Lyrics © DOMINO PUBLISHING COMPANY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@esamunaeebsaad389
I take your hand
We walk towards where the roses once grew
I lie back in the grass and dream of how it once was
The rubbishstrewn streets
Riperising smell of gutters and rain
The children abandoned
Mother recalls child in pool
What is that that lies? deadchilddead
I have such nightmares and you're all in all of them
It's worse than you or i can ever know
On the edge of the clouds we crouch
We smile and spit
The pool of saliva carrascates below our feet
It shifts
Children with knives begin to rise from it
They laugh and blow kisses at the moon
We think it's the rain
I see a bird move onto the table in my garden
Its beak scoops up the seeds
The green of the grass and the blue of the sky
Are immense and terrifying
Everything seems so close
So very very close
Should a storm come
Should a storm break and halo all around us
As some savage and blind god
Jerking his hands out to us
The birds drop all around us
I walk into the altar room
All the buddhas are smashed there
Avalokitesvara's hundred faces lie shattered
I have done this
I walk to the makeshift red brick altar a hundred years ago
There is a small brass image there
I have built this
The red and black ants mill around
Unknown journeys
I take my lighter and torch them
I take my lighter and torch them
I weep i weep
The ants scatter or writhe
I take my lighter and torch them torch them
I have done this
I am surrounded by butterflies
The child's legs lay smashed
Please pray for him she says to me
Too late
Alas oh so too late
I see the twinkling stars
I drop a photograph
I bend to pick it up
My heart leaps as i see your face
Stare up at me from the paper
As if still alive on this earth
When i return my eyes to the stars
They gathered
They pucker
And are blind
And are blind
So lost are we
Oh what have i become
I have become that i hate
I have become that i shall say no
The bird is dead now alas
A voice whispers to me
And says nothing nothing
There is nothing
I look to my right and see her face again
And again the world disappears
And all fall down
All fall down
All fall down I all fall down
All fall down I all fall down
We all fall down
We all fall down
@ranXerox09
This album is WONDERFUL. One of the best albums i've ever heard... Hearing it is just an unique experience. I think so many things when I listen to it...
@SNESdrunk
My favorite thing about David Tibet is his delivery. He sounds like he doesn't know what he's going to say before he says it
@hellinterface6721
Ha. Didn't expect to see you here
@mikeydubbs8565
Agreed. He does it in a way that sounds earnest and not pretentious. You did a cool thing with SMT, btw
@ranXerox09
One of the most beautiful albums I've ever heard it makes me cry
@mudkipstoat23
I have such nightmares. And you're all in all of them.
BEST LYRICS EVER
@Zenssei
Its the vocal delivery that gets me there
@bravason1186
Voice whispers to me... Nothing ~ meditating for new year 2022, love Tibet ❤
@forbiddenSn0wflake
i think it's almost impossible to fully understand what david has in mind. Everybody see what they want to see, according to their experiences and thoughts. that's art i believe. it's an incredible way to look inside you, find out things you didn't realise they were a part of you. discover a different side of yourself away from what others think of you. i'm just on the start to make that puzzle you say. keep trying, you never know what you'll find in the end.
@aerokraft
i'm absolutely mesmerized by this song