The group recorded its first release for the label, Livonia, in Defever's home studio. The album features Oliver's shivery vocals along with tape loops, samples, and guitar blasts, for a noise-damaged, ethereal collection of songs about ghosts, reincarnation, and dreams. By 1992's Home Is in Your Head, the band's lineup and scope expanded. New singers Denise James, Karen Neal, Melissa Elliott, and guitarist Jymn Auge added depth and breadth to the band's original lineup. An epic 23 songs long, Home Is in Your Head ranges from folky ballads to electrifying guitar maelstroms and tape collages. That year also saw the release of The Dirt Eaters EP, named for Defever's other, more rock-oriented group, of which Elliot was also a member. In 1993, His Name Is Alive released two albums: King of Sweet, a limited-edition release that mixed tape effects, samples, demos, and unreleased songs, and Mouth by Mouth, which added more pop structure into the group's inherently experimental and dreamy sound, resulting in its most accessible and diverse album to that date. A new drummer, Trey Many, took over Lang's duties.
As Defever's reputation as an innovative producer spread, he lent his skills to bands like Grenadine, a side project of Tsunami's Jenny Toomey and Unrest's Mark Robinson, other 4AD acts like Liquorice (which featured Toomey, Dan Littleton from Ida, and His Name Is Alive's Many) and Tarnation, and other Detroit-area bands like Godzuki and Outrageous Cherry. Defever also worked on other projects, including the folky ESP Summer (with former Pale Saint Ian Masters) and the electronic Robot World and Control Panel, and founded the Time Stereo art collective with a childhood friend, artist/musician Davin Brainard. Some of Time Stereo's projects included films, coloring books, and cassette-only releases from bands like Princess Dragon Mom, the Crash, Godzuki, New Grape, and Noise Camp.
Defever's diverse interests influenced His Name Is Alive's next release, 1996's Stars on ESP. Very little of the group's original ethereal sound remained, augmented instead with touches of dub, folk, gospel, and early- to mid-'60s pop like the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds. At the time of the album's release, Defever claimed that he was so fascinated by the group's "Good Vibrations" that he listened to it for months at a time. The following year's Nice Day EP reached to garage rock and '60s R&B for its inspiration, and featured some of the gospel singers from Stars on ESP, including Lovetta Pippen, whose singing also gave His Name Is Alive's 1998 LP, Fort Lake, an earthy sensuality. Fort Lake also marked the first time the band worked with another producer, recording engineer Steve King. King, another Livonia native, had also worked with Funkadelic and Aretha Franklin, and his touch meshes nicely with the funk, soul, and classic rock allusions His Name Is Alive makes on the album. In preparation for recording Fort Lake -- named after a waterlogged Civil War fort in Michigan -- the group played monthly shows at the Gold Dollar, a tiny Detroit club. At this time, Pippen, bassist Chad Gilchrist, and additional drummer Scott Goldstein debuted as part of the new lineup.
In 1999, His Name Is Alive released a U.S. compilation of tracks from their first five albums called Always Stay Sweet; at the time, those albums were only available as British imports. Like the rest of the band's work, the compilation highlights their mercurial, unique nature. Someday My Blues Will Cover the Earth appeared two years later. Released in 2002, the darkly soulful Last Night ended up being the group's final album for 4AD, but His Name Is Alive found other outlets for their music, and were actually busier than ever. Time Stereo released several CDs, such as 2004's ten-disc Cloud Box set, Leaf Club, Brown Rice, and The Detroit River, as well as many MP3-only works, including the Summer Bird and Something_Nothing EPs and a remastered version of King of Sweet. UFO Catcher was released in 2005 on CD by the German label En/Of and on vinyl by Time Stereo, while Ypsilanti Records issued the full-length Summer Bird that spring. Late in 2005, His Name Is Alive released the Raindrops Rainbow EP via iTunes as a teaser for Detrola, their debut for Reincarnate, also the home of fellow former 4AD artist Lisa Germano and Sing-Sing, the project of former Lush member Emma Anderson.
There's Something Between Us And He's Changing My Words
His Name Is Alive Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The signs the symbols everything that happens
And you're lucky if we agree
Sometimes it just if you believe
Its a hideous voice
I don't know where it comes from
Please don't listen
Its not what I mean to say
It comes out unlike anything
There are these things
That are trying to speak to me
But wait 'til I'm asleep
There's something between us and he's changing my words
The lyrics of the song "There's Something Between Us and He's Changing My Words" by His Name Is Alive are quite cryptic and enigmatic in nature. The song seems to convey a sense of unease and anxiety, as if the singer is struggling to find their voice amidst external and internal forces that are threatening to silence them.
The opening lines of the song - "We are the ones who can control/The signs the symbols everything that happens" - suggest a sense of power and agency, but this is quickly tempered by the fact that "you're lucky if we agree" and "sometimes it's just if you believe." This ambiguity suggests that the singer is not entirely in control, and that external forces may be influencing them in ways they don't fully understand or comprehend.
The next lines of the song describe a "hideous voice" that the singer doesn't know where it comes from, and pleads with the listener not to listen to it because "its not what I mean to say." The chaotic and fragmented nature of the voice - "It comes out scattered crooked and shattered/It comes out unlike anything" - seems to be a representation of the singer's own internal struggles and conflicts.
Finally, the chorus of the song - "There's something between us and he's changing my words" - brings all of these themes together, suggesting that there is some external force that is influencing the singer's words and thoughts. This force is not identified, but it is described as being "between us," suggesting that it may be something that is shared between the singer and the listener, or between the singer and the world more broadly.
Overall, "There's Something Between Us and He's Changing My Words" is a complex and multi-layered song that explores themes of power, agency, and identity, and the ways in which external and internal forces can shape our thoughts and words.
Line by Line Meaning
We are the ones who can control
We hold the power to influence and manipulate the events unfolding around us.
The signs the symbols everything that happens
We have the ability to interpret and direct the significance of every occurrence and symbol.
And you're lucky if we agree
If we align our perspectives with yours, you may consider yourself fortunate.
Sometimes it just if you believe
At times, perception alone can determine the validity and reality of a situation.
Its a hideous voice
There is an unpleasant, disturbing voice making itself heard.
I don't know where it comes from
The source of this voice is unknown and unclear to me.
Please don't listen
I implore you not to pay attention to it.
Its not what I mean to say
The words that come out of my mouth do not reflect my true intentions.
It comes out scattered crooked and shattered
The voice expresses itself in a disjointed, uneven, and broken manner.
It comes out unlike anything
The words that emerge bear little resemblance to what I intended to convey.
There are these things
Something intangible and elusive is attempting to make itself known.
That are trying to speak to me
There is an effort to communicate with me, despite the obstacles.
But wait 'til I'm asleep
Perhaps I will be able to understand this entity better when I am not hindered by my conscious mind.
There's something between us and he's changing my words
There is a force influencing and distorting my attempts at communication with you.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: WARREN DEFEVER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind