Death in June emerged in 1981, reuniting singer/multi-instrumentalist Douglas P. and bassist Tony Wakeford; drummer Patrick Leagas completed the original lineup, which made its live debut late the following year with an opening slot for the Birthday Party.
The 12-inch Heaven Street soon followed, and in 1983 Death in June issued their first full-length effort, The Guilty Have No Pride. From the outset, the group was criticized for its adoption of fascist imagery, and charges of Nazism dogged Pearce throughout his career. However, Pearce is openly homosexual and has also collaborated with various ethnic Jews throughout his discography; the official Death in June web site used to sport an Israeli flag, and Death in June played live in Israel on June 18, 2004 for a predominantly Jewish audience.
Upon completing the Burial LP, Wakeford left the lineup to form Sol Invictus. Following the release of 1985’s Nada!, only Pearce remained, with Leagas exiting to form his own project, Sixth Comm.
Beginning with the 1986 double album The World That Summer, Pearce continued Death in June primarily as a solo concern, aided by a revolving group of collaborators including Current 93’s David Tibet, Boyd Rice and Coil’s John Balance. The abrasive electronics and martial rhythms of early efforts gave way to an increasingly expansive sonic approach over the course of subsequent outings including 1987’s Brown Book, 1989’s The Wall of Sacrifice and 1992’s But, What Ends When the Symbols Shatter?, the latter evoking Pearce’s longstanding interest in traditional European folk music.
The first British act to perform in Croatia following the outbreak of Yugoslavia’s civil war, Death in June documented their experiences on 1993’s Something Is Coming. Subsequent efforts include 1995’s Rose Clouds of Holocaust, 1998’s Take Care and Control, 2000’s Operation Hummingbird, and 2001’s All Pigs Must Die.
The official web site of Death in June is maintained at http://www.deathinjune.net.
Official Death In June merchandise can be bought here http://www.plastichead.com/catalogue.asp?ex=backlist&category=merch&target=DEATH+IN+JUNE.
Touch Defiles
Death in June Lyrics
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And Touch Defiles
Afloat On The Evening Tide
It's Light and It's Sadness
Growing Fainter and Fainter
Growing Fainter and Fainter
This War of Emotion
The Fate of Our Age
To The Brow of Our Death
Cut Off From Despair
The True Deceit
With Dedication
With Will
So Purged of Purity
Perished in The Night
Where Every Dream
With Every Hope
In Someone Else
Has Been Betrayed
The Passion
The Devotion
The Knowing
The Nothing
The Echoes
The Names
The Sadness
The Blame
The lyrics to Death in June's song Touch Defiles are laden with themes of despair, betrayal, and resignation. The line "But We Desecrate At A Touch! And Touch Defiles" appears to speak to the idea that intimacy can be harmful, and that even the slightest touch can be enough to taint someone or something. This is echoed in the following lines "This War of Emotion, The Fate of Our Age," which suggest that the pain of human emotions and relationships are a constant presence in our lives and that it is part of the human experience to be destroyed by them.
The theme of sadness and loss is further emphasized by the lyrics "It's Light and It's Sadness, Growing Fainter and Fainter," which imply that even as we hold on to our memories and experiences, they gradually fade away until they are gone forever. The final lines of the song "The Passion, The Devotion, The Knowing, The Nothing, The Echoes, The Names, The Sadness, The Blame" leave the listener with a sense of futility and despair, suggesting that even love and devotion can ultimately lead to pain and regret.
Line by Line Meaning
But We Desecrate At A Touch!
We have no respect for anything and will destroy it as soon as we come into contact with it!
And Touch Defiles
Merely touching something is enough to soil and corrupt it!
Afloat On The Evening Tide
We're aimless, like driftwood on the waves of time!
It's Light and It's Sadness
Life is characterized by its fleeting moments of joy punctuated by overwhelming disappointment!
Growing Fainter and Fainter
Even these moments of happiness, brief and insignificant as they are, are disappearing more and more, until they are virtually gone!
This War of Emotion
Our existence is dominated by an ongoing struggle with feelings that often threaten to overwhelm us!
The Fate of Our Age
This is our destiny for as long as we live!
It Rains Slashed and Sweaty
The world seems to be tearing itself apart in relentless agony!
To The Brow of Our Death
This extends all the way to the moment where we breathe our last breath!
Cut Off From Despair
While life may be unbearable, it's even worse to be unable to escape it!
The True Deceit
The greatest lie we tell ourselves is that we can find happiness and meaning in this existence!
With Dedication
Despite all of that, we have a fierce sense of commitment, even in the face of these enormous hardships!
With Will
And this inner strength is what sustains us, even when things seem most dire!
So Purged of Purity
In this horrible world, there is nothing that remains uncorrupted!
Perished in The Night
In such a bleak and unforgiving universe, anything that we hope for, that we dream of, that we cherish, all of it will ultimately fail us!
Where Every Dream
That is the world we inhabit!
With Every Hope
And even something as basic as hope must ultimately be discarded!
In Someone Else
Our happiness can never be found in another person or external thing!
Has Been Betrayed
For we are bound to be disappointed again and again!
The Passion
And yet in spite of all this, we continue to feel and experience intense emotions!
The Devotion
Our dedications, our loves, our commitments burn inside us fiercely, even when existence so often punishes us for them!
The Knowing
We know despair and loss intimately - and yet we continue to fight!
The Nothing
For the alternatives are to give up, or live in denial, neither of which are acceptable to us!
The Echoes
And so we continue to make our mark on this fleeting, meaningless existence!
The Names
We persist despite everything, and our impact on the world will stay with us even after we are long gone!
The Sadness
It's a sad, hopeless world - but even in this, we can find some kind of strange beauty!
The Blame
We may still rail against fate and against ourselves, but at least we're willing to try!
Contributed by Audrey K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.