Had anyone actually thought about it, Drugstore should have been branded Alt-indie-country - as Isabel’s smoky vocals and pitch-dark lyrical subject matter, coupled with the band’s minimalist, melancholic guitar and string arrangements, stick them firmly in the lovelorn, caustic company of Low, Dusty in Memphis and Leonard Cohen.
Throughout the band's eventful career (although Isabel prefers to describe it as an adventure rather than a professional enterprise), the band have landed 2x top 50 album charts and a top 20 single.
Drugstore's music nimbly hops over the ages, from 1920s Berlin cabaret through the French chanson tradition, via The Velvet Undergrounds woozy melodic charm and Tom Waits’bar-room badinage, across PJ Harveys earnest intellect and The Bad Seeds’rumbling, angry melancholia, with an intoxicating mix of heartfelt and carefree disarming vérité.
The band was formed in 1993 when Isabel Monteiro and american drummer Mike Chylinski got together via a flat-share in East London. Soon after their self-financed debut single ‘Alive’ was released, and having only performed a handful of gigs, the band signed a major deal with maverick label GoDiscs.
The single immediately draw an unprecedented amount of attention, earning the band their first of many 'single of the week' in Melody Maker, Music Week, Q and others.
Another 2 critically acclaimed albums followed: White Magic for Lovers’, in 1998, which features the top 20 sinle ‘El President’, a duet with Thom Yorke – and ‘Songs for the JetSet’, released in 2001.
In the summer of 2001, while the band were in the middle of promoting the 'Songs for the Jetset' album, to the surprise of band members and dismay of the Record Company, Isabel suddenly decided to 'walk away from it all' and the band went into hibernation.
8 years later, in 2011, Isabel Monteiro reappeared with the semi-acoustic intimate album ‘Anatomy’, released by RocketGirl and partly financed by the fans.
In 2013 the band teams-up with London based label Cherry Red Records, for the release of a 'Best of' compilation, released on September 2013, which includes tracks spanning the band’s 20 year career and 4 albums.
The band now plays special gigs, and Monteiro is currently writing material for a new album.
Wayward Daughter
Drugstore Lyrics
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Coming through this winter sky
So the mystery unfolds
When the black turns into gold
Long time ago I had a friend
Who told me nothing matters
Then she says "Well then again, life's no laughing matter"
Look at all the crazy people
Look at all the crazy people
I wonder what goes on inside their minds
I think of you like no one else
Like a wayward daughter
So it seems I had to go
Blood can run like water
Look at all the crazy people
Running in the dark against the light
Look at all the crazy people
I wonder what goes on inside their minds
If you could see the morning light
Coming through this winter sky
And so the mystery unfolds
When the black turns into gold
The song "Wayward Daughter" by Drugstore begins with a serene and contemplative verse about the beauty of a winter morning and the way a new day brings a sense of possibility and wonder. The mystery of what's to come unfolds as the darkness of night gives way to the golden light of morning. However, this idyllic opening is undercut by the somber memories of the singer's friend who told them that nothing really matters in life, and that it's not always something to laugh about. The singer then shifts to contemplating the state of the world and the strange actions of people, wondering what goes on inside their minds. The chorus, where the singer addresses someone as a "wayward daughter," is particularly poignant, conveying a sense of loss and separation. The final verse returns to the idea of the morning light, suggesting that even amidst the darkness of daily life, there is always the possibility of redemption and transformation.
Line by Line Meaning
If you could see the morning light
Describing the beauty that can be seen watching the sun rise during an oncoming winter season
Coming through this winter sky
A reference to the season of winter and the sky during this time
So the mystery unfolds
A spiritual connotation to the beautiful nature and change that occurs with the changing of seasons
When the black turns into gold
A beautiful metaphor of the sun turning darkness into light
Long time ago I had a friend
A reference to a past friend the writer once knew
Who told me nothing matters
The writer's friend shared a bleak perspective on life to the writer
Then she says "Well then again, life's no laughing matter"
The friend provides a more serious outlook on life to the writer
Look at all the crazy people
Observing everyday life and the people around
Running in the dark against the light
Noticing people going against their own best interests and desires
I wonder what goes on inside their minds
Reflecting on the complex thoughts and feelings of others
I think of you like no one else
The writer holds a special thought and memory for someone
Like a wayward daughter
The writer is making a comparison between the memory and that of a daughter who may have left home and found their own way
So it seems I had to go
The writer may have been forced to leave and start new somewhere else
Blood can run like water
A metaphor for how easily loved ones can leave us without a trace
Look at all the crazy people
Observing everyday life and the people around
Running in the dark against the light
Noticing people going against their own best interests and desires
Look at all the crazy people
Observing everyday life and the people around
I wonder what goes on inside their minds
Reflecting on the complex thoughts and feelings of others
If you could see the morning light
Describing the beauty that can be seen watching the sun rise during an oncoming winter season
Coming through this winter sky
A reference to the season of winter and the sky during this time
And so the mystery unfolds
A spiritual connotation to the beautiful nature and change that occurs with the changing of seasons
When the black turns into gold
A beautiful metaphor of the sun turning darkness into light
Contributed by Alexandra M. Suggest a correction in the comments below.