Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine is a cult French pop-rock singer and songwriter, bor… Read Full Bio ↴Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine is a cult French pop-rock singer and songwriter, born July 21, 1948 in the town of Dole in the Jura département.

Mostly shunned by television and radio, he has built through word of mouth and frequent touring a considerable following over the years, which allowed him to fill the 17,000-seater Palais Omnisport de Bercy for an anniversary concert in 1998. In recent years he has been increasingly name-dropped as an influence by the latest generation of performers in France, and was the subject of a tribute album of covers in 2002. He has been performing since the late 1960s and releasing records since 1978.

His parents sent him to a catholic boarding school. He spent few years there, where being singled out by his schoolmates started to be interested in great poets (such as Rimbaud) and writers. The catholic education he received will leave its mark on him. He became nonconformist; he wrote blasphemous lyrics, such as "Au nom du Pere, au nom du vice, au nom des rades et des mégots" (In the name of the Father, in the name of vice, in the name of the cafés and the (cigarette) butts), made biblical and latin references in "Femme de Loth" and many others. Musically, H-FT draws mostly from classic rock, with rare nods to the latest musical trends, and generally leaves the arranging to a collaborator. But his songs are most notable for instantly recognisable lyrics, with their trademarks streams of consciousness, surreal and often extreme or dark imagery, often tinged with comedy, cynicism, literary references, neologisms and liberal use of scientific, long or foreign words. The lyrical mayhem sometimes spreads into comically long song titles, such as Enfermé dans les cabinets (avec la fille mineure des 80 chasseurs), or Exercice de simple provocation avec 33 fois le mot « coupable ».

His avowed influences include Léo Ferré, Lou Reed, and many French, Anglo-saxon and German novelists and poets, with a preference for romantic litterature.

Discography

* 1978 - Tout corps vivant branché sur le secteur étant appelé à s'émouvoir
* 1979 - Autorisation de délirer
* 1980 - De l'amour, de l'art ou du cochon
* 1981 - Dernières balises (avant mutation)
* 1982 - Soleil cherche futur
* 1983 - En concert - live (double album)
* 1984 - Alambic/sortie-sud
* 1986 - En concert vol.2 - live
* 1986 - Météo für nada
* 1988 - Eros über alles
* 1988 - 1978-1983 - compilation
* 1988 - Routes 88 - live
* 1989 - 1984-1988 - compilation
* 1990 - Chroniques bluesymentales
* 1993 - Fragments d'hébétude
* 1995 - Paris-Zénith - live (double album)
* 1996 - La tentation du bonheur
* 1998 - Le bonheur de la tentation
* 1998 - 1978-1998 - compilation
* 1999 - En Concert A Bercy - live (double album)
* 2001 - Défloration 13
* 2002 - Au Bataclan - live
* 2005 - Scandale mélancolique

Les Mouches Bleues
Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

L'ours en cage est au pied du mur
En train d'équarrir son dresseur
Vapeurs d'oxyde et de luxure
C'est déjà demain et d'ailleurs
C'est juste une visite au musée
Pour mater les singes acrobates
Avant que je donne ma tête à couper
Et peut-être ma langue à ta chatte

C'est étrange comme les mots se troublent
A l'intérieur de mon cerveau
Chromosomes noircis au chirouble
Au gasoil et à la nitro
Il est trop tard pour s'abîmer
Dans des scories émotionnelles
Je veux mourir estrangulé
Sous tes nylons et tes dentelles

Peu à peu
Peu à peu
Les mouches bleues
Les mouches bleues reviennent
Et les hyènes
Toujours les hyènes
Sur la même chaîne

Peu à peu je vois s'estomper
Les rêves de mon esprit tordu
Je commence même à oublier
Les choses que je n'ai jamais sues
Peut-être eussé-je dû frapper plus
Et me lever tôt le matin
Peut-être encore eût-il fallusse
Baby que je buvasse un peu moins

Peu à peu
Peu à peu
Les mouches bleues
Les mouches bleues reviennent
Et les hyènes

Toujours les hyènes
Sur la même chaîne

Overall Meaning

The song Les Mouches Bleues, by Hubert-Félix Thiéfaine, is a dark and introspective piece about the struggles of the human mind, and the oppressive forces that often seem to constrain us. The first verse introduces us to the image of a bear in a cage, trapped and struggling against its captor. The bear's frustration and rage are palpable, as he tries to break free from the confines of his prison. However, despite his valiant efforts, he is ultimately powerless against the forces that hold him captive.

The second verse speaks of the strange way in which words can lose their meaning, and the way in which our thoughts can become jumbled and confused. The singer tells us that his chromosomes have been blackened by various poisons and chemicals, which have corrupted his mind and made it difficult for him to communicate effectively. He longs for a release from this mental prison, and wishes to die while being suffocated by his lover's stockings and lingerie.

The chorus is a repetition of the phrase "Les Mouches Bleues", which translates to "The Blue Flies". These flies are a metaphor for the oppressive forces that the singer is struggling against, as they continue to buzz around him and torment him with their insistent presence. The final line, "Sur la même chaîne", which means "On the same chain", implies that the singer is not alone in his struggles, but is part of a larger community of individuals who are all facing similar challenges.

Line by Line Meaning

L'ours en cage est au pied du mur
The caged bear is backed into a corner

En train d'équarrir son dresseur
Working on taking down its trainer

Vapeurs d'oxyde et de luxure
In a cloud of rust and lust

C'est déjà demain et d'ailleurs
It's already tomorrow and elsewhere

C'est juste une visite au musée
It's just a visit to the museum

Pour mater les singes acrobates
To watch the acrobatic monkeys

Avant que je donne ma tête à couper
Before I put my head on the chopping block

Et peut-être ma langue à ta chatte
And maybe even give my tongue to your cat

C'est étrange comme les mots se troublent
It's strange how the words get muddled

A l'intérieur de mon cerveau
In the depths of my mind

Chromosomes noircis au chirouble
Chromosomes blackened by chirouble (a type of wine)