Eloy is a progressive rock band from Germany, whose musical style includes … Read Full Bio ↴Eloy is a progressive rock band from Germany, whose musical style includes symphonic and space rock, the latter being more prevalent on earlier albums. The band took their name from the Eloi, a futuristic race of people in the H.G. Wells novel The Time Machine.

Founded in 1969 by guitarist Frank Bornemann, the band has endured several line-up changes, with Bornemann being the only consistent member of the group. In the 1980s, after a series of major splits (like in 1984 although reformed in 1988) in the group, Bornemann pursued a more commercial direction. Despite attracting a large following, the band never gained popularity in the United States.

However, in later years, former members of the band re-joined, and in 1998 fans delighted in hearing Ocean 2, a return to the classic symphonic progressive genre that the band was so well known for. A sequel to the 1977's original, it is commonly thought among fans that it successfully recaptures the spirit of the band, and is a worthy follow-up to the much beloved classic.

Of the band's numerous records, fans generally consider Inside, Floating, Dawn, Ocean, Silent Cries & Mighty Echoes, Planets and Ocean 2 to be the superior albums.

Despite their nationality, the band is not generally considered krautrock due to their sound which has much more in common with English progressive groups such as Pink Floyd and Yes.

In 2009 after a decade of hiatus Frank Bornemann released a DVD celebrating their 40th anniversary and a new album called Visionairy.

In the following period he worked on a concept double album about the life of the Maid of Orleans, Jeanne d'Arc. The album The Vision, the Sword and the Pyre, Pt. 1 was released in 2017, followed by The Vision, the Sword and the Pyre, Pt. 2 in 2019.

Current Line-up:
Frank Bornemann
Klaus-Peter Matziol
Hannes Arkona
Hannes Folberth
Bodo Schopf

Fools
Eloy Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

We're walking contradictions
And toothless we try to bite
We live up to our standards
Though we know they ain't right
Fools we always stand up to fight when nothing's left to win
We draw the shades when we're bothered
Ignorance is our twin
We've got our fancy but empty preconceived life

Instance of how we wondered why we're seldom satisfied
But only the fools will applaud this strange self-deception
But only the fools will believe in resurrection of ideals in purest form
They're the first who have claimed their piece
And then the first who will ask for release
Why do we sanction their means with a nod
Boasting the absolute freedom of thought
We are fools
We hide with pride behind tolerant words
Neglecting the fact that we've been lured
We are fools
We are fools
But only the fools will applaud this strange self-deception
But only the fools will believe in resurrection of ideals in purest form

They're the first who have claimed their piece
And then the first who will ask for release

Overall Meaning

The opening lines of Eloy's song "Fools" speaks of the paradox in human beings - being walking contradictions. This means that we struggle and are often unable to practice what we preach. The next line "And toothless we try to bite" refers to our efforts to fight for what we believe in, despite being unable to put it into practice. The third line, "We live up to our standards though we know they ain't right," implies that we cling to our own flawed standards, despite knowing that they are unrealistic or hypocritical.

The next verse highlights how foolish we are in our actions. It speaks of how we always stand up to fight even when there's nothing left to win. It also talks about how we retreat when we feel bothered and how we use ignorance as a defense mechanism. The next lines suggest that we lead empty lives full of fanciful ideas that rarely satisfy us.

The chorus of "Fools" highlights our hypocrisy and how we pretend to be accepting of others and yet fail to see that we have been led astray. We believe in strange self-deceptions and resurrection of ideals in purest form, but only fools believe such things. The lines in the chorus could be interpreted as a wake-up call, to recognize our own foolishness and not fall prey to manipulative tactics.

Line by Line Meaning

We're walking contradictions
We're saying one thing but doing the opposite

And toothless we try to bite
We try to appear strong but we lack the power to do so

We live up to our standards
We conform to the norms we have set for ourselves

Though we know they ain't right
Despite knowing that our standards may not be ethical, we still follow them

Fools we always stand up to fight when nothing's left to win
We stubbornly fight for lost causes even when there's no chance of success

We draw the shades when we're bothered
We avoid dealing with our problems by retreating into ourselves

Ignorance is our twin
We are closely associated with ignorance

We've got our fancy but empty preconceived life
We have a superficial and hollow understanding of the world

Instance of how we wondered why we're seldom satisfied
We wonder why we are unhappy despite living the life we thought we wanted

But only the fools will applaud this strange self-deception
Only ignorant people will support our flawed thinking

But only the fools will believe in resurrection of ideals in purest form
Only people who lack understanding will believe in an unrealistic return to perfect ideals

They're the first who have claimed their piece
Ignorant people are quick to claim their share of something

And then the first who will ask for release
But they are also the first to want to leave when things do not go their way

Why do we sanction their means with a nod
Why do we approve of their misguided actions?

Boasting the absolute freedom of thought
We believe we have total freedom of thought

We are fools
We are ignorant and misguided

We hide with pride behind tolerant words
We use political correctness to justify our flawed thinking

Neglecting the fact that we've been lured
We ignore the fact that we have been deceived into thinking this way

We are fools
We are still ignorant and misguided

But only the fools will applaud this strange self-deception
Only ignorant people will support our flawed thinking

But only the fools will believe in resurrection of ideals in purest form
Only people who lack understanding will believe in an unrealistic return to perfect ideals

They're the first who have claimed their piece
Ignorant people are quick to claim their share of something

And then the first who will ask for release
But they are also the first to want to leave when things do not go their way

Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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