After the departure of Gish (who would later join Bark Psychosis) the three-piece Disco Inferno recorded the single 'Entertainment' with producer Charlie McIntosh. Their first album, Open Doors, Closed Windows, was released in 1991 on Che and received positive reviews, although most mentioned the heavy influence of late 1970s post punk bands, particularly Joy Division and Wire (In fact Disco Inferno's manager, Michael Collins, had previously managed Wire during their 70's incarnation). 'Entertainment', 'Open Doors, Closed Windows' and the 'Science' EP would later be collected on the album In Debt.
In 1992 the band released Summer's Last Sound, widely regarded as the first in a run of classic Disco Inferno EPs which saw the band's increasing use of samples. The band's use of sampling combined with traditional instruments - particularly Wilmott's bass - continued on the EPs A Rock To Cling To and The Last Dance and reached its peak on their second album D.I. Go Pop. After the full-on assault of D.I. Go Pop the band opted for restraint on the beautiful Second Language EP which also had a new-found optimism in Crause's lyrics.
Their final single, 'It's A Kid's World', sampled the distinctive drumbeat from Iggy Pop's Lust for Life and added in a series of old children's TV themes to good effect, but despite critical acclaim the band attracted little commercial success and split before their final album Technicolour was released in 1996.
The Atheist's Burden
Disco Inferno Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And it was a show-stopper.
I'm rising early again, and it's great.
I took a Hell of a chance,
And it's paid off handsomely.
Now it looks like everything is right.
And the sky was deep blue, and the air was ice-cold.
Don't you know?
'Cause I don't know what the future's got in store for me,
But it's gotta hold more than the past any day.
Now I don't care if the past has left marks on me
Who can't assess their own damage with their own two eyes?
God knows how we did it,
I guess we're all just scrabbling around in the dirt
We just aim for the sky.
There's so much pessimism around that it's frightening
Makes you wonder where it's all gonna end.
But if you get up real early--say 4:30--and look around,
You'll see the world before the cynics have got out of bed.
In the Disco Inferno's song The Atheist's Burden, the lyrics describe the moment when the singer catches a dawn chorus and it becomes a show stopper for them. The singer also reveals that they are rising early again, and it's great. Taking a hell of a chance has paid off handsomely, and now it looks like everything is right. The sky is deep blue, and the air is ice-cold. The singer looks at the sky quite a lot, and they don't know what the future has in store for them, but they are confident that it's gotta hold more than the past any day. Even if the past has left marks on them, they don't care because they believe that it's impossible not to be scarred by life experiences. The singer acknowledges that they do not know how they made it this far and that they are just scrabbling around in the dirt, aiming for the sky.
The song suggests that there is a lot of pessimism in the world, which can be daunting, and there is no telling how it will all end. However, if you wake up early and look around before the cynics have gotten out of bed, you will get to see the world in a different light. The singer implies that the world is a beautiful place, and it's worth waking up early to appreciate it.
Line by Line Meaning
I caught a dawn chorus this morning,
I witnessed the beautiful sounds of morning birdsong
And it was a show-stopper.
It was truly impressive and captivating
I'm rising early again, and it's great.
Waking up early has become a positive habit for me
I took a Hell of a chance,
I engaged in a risky endeavor
And it's paid off handsomely.
It has resulted in great success and rewards
Now it looks like everything is right.
All feels well and as it should be
And the sky was deep blue, and the air was ice-cold.
The sky had a rich blue hue and the air felt very cold
I look at the sky quite a lot,
I enjoy observing and contemplating the sky
Don't you know?
Do you understand why I find it so captivating?
'Cause I don't know what the future's got in store for me,
I am uncertain about what the future holds for me
But it's gotta hold more than the past any day.
I trust that the future will be better than my past experiences
Now I don't care if the past has left marks on me
I am unbothered by the impact my past has had on me
Who can't assess their own damage with their own two eyes?
It is impossible not to recognize the effects of one's own past experiences
God knows how we did it,
It is a mystery how we have made it this far
I guess we're all just scrabbling around in the dirt
We are all struggling to find our way and make sense of things
We just aim for the sky.
Despite the struggles, we aspire for greatness and success
There's so much pessimism around that it's frightening
The overwhelming negativity can be scary
Makes you wonder where it's all gonna end.
It leads to questioning where this negativity will eventually lead us
But if you get up real early--say 4:30--and look around,
By waking up early and taking in the world, you will realize it is not all negative
You'll see the world before the cynics have got out of bed.
You will observe the world before those who are negative and critical have even started their day
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Kevin Crause, Paul Wilmott, Robert Whatley
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@ivanl.8201
This is by far one my most favorites of their songs. It's just so creative and original, and it just grabs you and never lets go. One small curiosity that didn't escape me was that Ian Crause could surely sound very similarly to Robert Forster from the Go-Betweens. I think it's that uncanny, free-form, slightly unwieldy but oh so charming and special vocal delivery of both. And if you strip all their experimental layers here, this DI song really sounds the closest to a Go-Betweens song, and I mean it as a compliment of the highest order :)
@matthewerickson5607
Absolutely brilliant -- my 2nd favorite DI song behind 'The Long Dance'
@swilliamk
🙏
@Ncp2666
I caught a dawn chorus this morning,
And it was a show-stopper.
I'm waking early again, and it's great.
I took a hell of a chance,
And it's paid off handsomely.
Now it looks like everything is right.
And the sky was deep blue, and the air was ice-cold.
I look at the sky quite a lot,
Don't you know?
'Cause I don't know what the future's got for me,
But it's gotta hold more than the past any day.
Now I don't care if the past has left marks on me
Who can't assess their own damage with their own two eyes?
God knows how we did it,
I guess we're all just scrabbling around in the dirt
We just aim for the sky.
There's so much pessimism around that it's frightening
Makes you wonder when it's all gonna end.
But if you get up real early--say 4:30--and look around,
You'll see the world before the cynics have got out of bed.
@robertgalpin148
I think it's "I guess while you were scrabbling around in the dirt / We just aimed at the sky"