Both Numan's music and his transgressive public image are known for his sense of alien coldness and embrace of avant-garde influences. Becoming of the founding fathers of electronic-based pop music, Numan's reach extends far beyond his lone American hit, “Cars,” which still stands as one of the defining new wave singles. That seminal track helped usher in the synthpop era on both sides of the Atlantic, especially his native England, where he was a genuine pop star and consistent hit-maker during the early 80s. Even after new wave had mostly petered out, Numan’s influence continued to make itself felt. His dark, paranoid vision, theatrically icy persona, and clinical, robotic sound were echoed strongly in the work of many goth rock and (especially) industrial artists during the past several decades. For his part, Numan just kept on recording, and, by the late 90s, he’d become a hip name to drop. Prominent alternative rock bands have covered his hits, with Numan himself playing live with Nine Inch Nails briefly to much acclaim, and a goth-flavored brand of industrial-type music christened darkwave looks to him as its mentor.
Numan was born Gary Anthony James Webb on March 8, 1958, in Hammersmith, West London, U.K. A shy child, music brought him out of his shell; he began playing guitar in his early teens and played in several short-lived bands. Inspired by the amateurism of the punk movement, he joined a punk rock group called "The Lasers" in 1976. The following year, he and bassist Paul Gardiner split off to form a new group, dubbed "Tubeway Army", with drummer Bob Simmonds. They recorded a couple of singles under futuristic pseudonyms (Valerium [or Valerian], Scarlett, and Rael, respectively) that attempted to match their new interest in synthesizers. Scrapping that idea, Webb rechristened himself Gary Numan and replaced Simmonds with his uncle Jess Lidyard. Thus constituted, "Tubeway Army" cut a set of "punk-meets-Kraftwerk" demos for Beggars Banquet in early 1978. That work ended up being released several years later as 'The Plan'.
That summer, Numan sang a TV commercial jingle for jeans, and toward the end of the year the group’s debut album, 'Tubeway Army', appeared. Chiefly influenced by Kraftwerk and David Bowie’s Berlin-era collaborations with Brian Eno, the album also displayed Numan’s fascination with the electronic, experimental side of glam rock (such as in some works by Roxy Music and Ultravox) and Krautrock (such as in some works by Can). He also drew much influence from transgressive science fiction writers such as Philip K. Dick, people who challenged conventional thinking through exploring the affects of new technology.
The group’s second album, 'Replicas', was released in early 1979. Its accompanying single, “Are ‘Friends’ Electric?", was a left-field smash, topping the UK charts and sending 'Replicas' to number one on the album listings as well. The record also included “Down in the Park", an oft-covered song that stands as one of Numan’s most 'gothic' outings.
Numan had become a star overnight, despite critical distaste for any music so heavily reliant on synthesizers, and he formed a larger backing band that replaced "Tubeway Army", keeping Gardiner on bass. "The Pleasure Principle" was released in the fall of 1979 and spawned Numan’s international hit “Cars”, which reached the American Top Ten and hit number one in the UK; the album also became Numan’s second straight British number one. He put together a hugely elaborate, futuristic stage show and went on a money-losing tour, and also began to indulge his hobby as an amateur pilot with his newfound wealth.
Numan returned in the fall of 1980 with "Telekon", his third straight chart-topping album in Britain, and scored two Top Ten hits with “We Are Glass” and “I Die: You Die”; “This Wreckage” later reached the Top 20.
In 1981, Numan announced his retirement from live performance, playing several farewell concerts just prior to the release of "Dance". While "Dance" and its lead single, “She’s Got Claws”, were both climbing into the British Top Ten, Numan attempted to fly around the world, but in a bizarre twist was arrested in India on suspicion of spying and smuggling. The charges were dropped, although authorities confiscated his plane. His retirement proved short-lived, but when he returned in 1982 with "I, Assassin", some of his popularity had dissipated - perhaps because of the retirement announcement, perhaps because the charts were overflowing with synthpop, much of which was already expanding on Numan’s early innovations (which were starting to sound repetitive). "I, Assassin" was another Top Ten album, and “We Take Mystery (To Bed)” another major hit, but in general Numan’s singles were starting to slip on the charts; the title track of 1983’s "Warriors" became his last British Top Twenty hit (excluding reissues and collaborations).
Numan and Beggars Banquet subsequently parted ways, and Numan formed his own Numa label, kicking things off with "Berserker" in late 1984. Sadly, longtime collaborator "Paul Gardiner" died earlier that year from a drug overdose. 1985’s "The Fury" became the final Numan album to reach the British Top 30. Over the next few years, Numan collaborated occasionally with "Shakatak’s" Bill Sharpe, releasing four singles and one album from 1985-1989.
Following 1986’s "Strange Charm", Numan signed with IRS, but the relationship was fraught with discord from the start. IRS forced Numan to change the title of 1988’s "Metal Rhythm" to "New Anger" for his first North American release since 1981 (and also remixed several tracks), refused to release his soundtrack for the film "The Unborn", and would not fund any supporting tours for "New Anger" or 1991’s "Outland". When his contract expired, Numan returned to Numa for 1992’s "Machine + Soul".
1994 brought the release of the industrial-tinged "Sacrifice", the first glimmering of Numan’s return to critical favor and underground hipness. Over the next few years, bands like "Hole", "The Foo Fighters", and "Smashing Pumpkins" covered Numan songs in concert, and Marilyn Manson recorded “Down in the Park” for the B-side of the “Lunchbox” single; moreover, "Nine Inch Nails" cited Numan as an important influence. With his fan base refreshed and expectations raised, Numan delved deeper into gothic, metal-tinged industrial dance on 1997’s "Exile". However, he didn’t truly hit his stride in this newly adopted style until 2000’s "Pure", which was acclaimed as his best work in years and expanded his cult following into new territory.
In 2003, Numan enjoyed fleeting chart success once again with the "Gary Numan vs Rico" single “Crazier”, reaching No.13 in the U.K. chart. Rico, who is an up and coming artist from Glasgow, also worked on the remix album "Hybrid" which featured reworkings of older songs in a more contemporary industrial style. In 2004 Numan took control of his own business affairs again, launching the label Mortal Records and releasing a series of live DVDs as a precursor to his highly anticipated new studio album, "Jagged" which was released on 13 March 2006. An album launch gig took place at "The Forum, London" on 18 March 2006. Numan announced a UK tour commencing in April 2006 and plans to tour other countries, including the USA, during the year in support of the release. Numan also to launched a "Jagged" website to showcase the new album.
Numan contributed vocals to four tracks on the April 2007 release of Ade Fenton’s debut solo album "Artificial Perfect" on his new industrial/electronic label Submission, including songs “The Leather Sea”, “Slide Away”, “Recall” and the first single to be taken from the album, “Healing”. The second single to be released in the UK was “The Leather Sea” on July 30, 2007.
In 2008, he released a double CD remix album "Jagged Edge", based around 2006’s critically acclaimed "Jagged", co-produced with Ade Fenton. The pair are currently in the studio working on Numan’s 18th studio album "Splinter", due for release in 2009.
While Numan is known for his electronic music innovations, he prefers real instruments. He explained in an interview with Songfacts: "I didn't go the technology route wholeheartedly, the way Kraftwerk had done. I considered it to be a layer. I added to what we already had, and I wanted to merge that. There's plenty of things about guitar players, and bass players, and songs I really love that I didn't particularly want to get rid of. The only time I did get rid of guitars was on Pleasure Principle, and that was in fact a reaction to the press. I got a huge amount of hostility from the British press, particularly, when I first became successful. And Pleasure Principle was the first album I made after that success happened. I became successful in the early part of '79 and Pleasure Principle came out in the end of '79, in the UK, anyway. And there was a lot of talk about electronic music being cold and weak and all that sort of stuff. So I made Pleasure Principle to try to prove a point, that you could make a contemporary album that didn't have guitar in it, but still had enough power and would stand up well. That's the only reason that album didn't have guitar in it. But apart from that one album they've all had guitars - that was the blueprint."
The official website can be found here: www.garynuman.co.uk
New Anger
Gary Numan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Look at this
They say that I'm all over
I don't know
They're not the first ones to try
So try
Again
Is it good?
I'll need some convincing
If you've got it
Then I've seen it before
So try
Again
Welcome to new anger
Do you want it?
Do you want it?
I don't need it
I can stop
I can take this or leave it
You can have it
But if you want it from me
Then come
And try
I've been bad
I've been good
I've been one more hero
I've been up
And I've been lower than you
So come
And try
If you want it
Come and get it
In Gary Numan’s song “New Anger”, he speaks of a level of weariness and perhaps even cynicism with the world around him. He begins with referencing the media and how they constantly report on him to the point of overexposure, but he states he has experienced this before and dares anyone to try again. The chorus welcomes the listener to new anger, questioning whether they want it. Then Numan seems to take on the role of a dealer offering a drug - the anger - to the listener, but he doesn't seem keen on it himself. He claims he can stop and take it or leave it while inviting the listener to come and try it themselves.
The bridge lists the things he has been, from bad to good and to a hero. He suggests that he has been both higher and lower than the listener before inviting them to take the anger if they want it. The lyrics seem to indicate that Numan is tired of the world around him and is no longer affected by it. He is provoked by the world's relentless negativity and has become desensitised to it to the point of trading it as a drug.
Line by Line Meaning
I've read the papers
I am aware of what the media is saying about me.
Look at this
The media is portraying me negatively.
They say that I'm all over
The media is claiming that I'm everywhere.
I don't know
I am unsure about why the media is trying to ruin my reputation.
They're not the first ones to try
The media has attempted to discredit me before.
So try
I am dismissing their efforts and urging them to keep trying.
Again
This is not the first time the media has tried to make me look bad.
What's the fashion?
I am questioning the current trend or style.
Is it good?
I am asking if the trend or style is actually good or worthwhile.
I'll need some convincing
I am not easily swayed and require proof or convincing to believe something.
If you've got it
If you believe the trend or style is worth something,
Then I've seen it before
I am suggesting that I have previous experience with similar things.
So try
I am urging others to attempt to persuade me to believe in this trend or style.
Again
This is not the first time someone has tried to convince me of something I'm skeptical of.
Welcome to new anger
I am sarcastically welcoming the negativity that others are trying to bring to me.
Do you want it?
I am questioning if others actually want to feel this negativity or if they are doing it out of spite.
Do you want it?
I am questioning if others actually want to feel this negativity or if they are doing it out of spite.
I don't need it
I do not wish to have the negativity.
I can stop
I have the ability to distance myself from negative people or situations.
I can take this or leave it
I can either choose to engage in negative situations or to ignore them.
You can have it
If others want to engage in negativity, it is their choice.
But if you want it from me
I am suggesting that others might want to pull me into their negativity.
Then come
If others want to involve me in negative situations, they must approach me directly.
And try
I am challenging others to attempt to make me engage in negativity.
I've been bad
I am admitting that I have made mistakes in the past.
I've been good
I am saying that I have also made positive choices in the past.
I've been one more hero
At times, I have been a hero to someone or something.
I've been up
I have experienced moments of success and positive experiences.
And I've been lower than you
I have also had moments of failure, sadness, and hardship.
So come
I am suggesting that others should approach me to determine who I truly am, rather than giving into rumors and negativity.
And try
I am urging others to attempt to genuinely understand me and my experiences.
If you want it
If others truly want to understand me and my story,
Come and get it
They must be willing to make an effort to do so.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Gary Anthony Webb, Gary Anthony James Webb
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind