Heap grew up playing music from an early age, and by her eleventh birthday she was writing her own songs. From the age of 15, she studied at the BRIT School Of Performing Arts & Technology in Croydon, South London, recording three tracks for the school's annual CD between 1994 and 1995, "Aliens" being the title track of the latter.
After being introduced to Nik Kershaw by his manager Mickey Modern, Heap and Kershaw recorded four demos that Mickey Modern took to Rondor Music. Consequently, a few months later Heap signed her first record contract at 18 to independent record label Almo Sounds. During 1996, Heap began working with an experimental pop band called Acacia, which featured her future collaborator Guy Sigsworth and was fronted by the singer Alexander Nilere. While never a full member of the band, Heap was a guest vocalist (as a counterpart to Nilere) and contributed to various Acacia single and album tracks in 1997. One Acacia song, "Maddening Shroud", would later be covered by Frou Frou.
Heap enjoyed a prestigious live début, performing four songs (backed by friends Acacia) between sets by The Who and Eric Clapton at the 1996 Prince's Trust Concert in Hyde Park, London. Her début album, I Megaphone (an anagram of "Imogen Heap") was internationally released in 1998 on independent record label Almo Sounds and garnered critical acclaim. However, as production of the album neared completion, it was announced that the record label had been sold and would be shut down. I-Megaphone featured collaborations with Guy Sigsworth and Dave Stewart. In Japan, the regional distributor, Zora, re-released the album in 2002, featuring "Blanket," her collaboration with Urban Species which was released as a single in the United Kingdom, and a Frou Frou remix of one of her B-sides, a video to which was released exclusively to Japanese media. Following the disbanding of her UK and USA record label, I Megaphone was scarce in circulation, having not been re-printed until November 2006. An independent Brazillian record label has rights to the record, and has issued limited copies, some of which are available on eBay. It has also been released through the iTunes Music Store under the Almo label.
At the same time as the Japanese re-release, Heap was working on new tracks with producer Guy Sigsworth, who had collaborated on "Getting Scared" from I-Megaphone. Together, they formed an electro-pop group Frou Frou, releasing an album called "Details" and singles, "Breathe In", "It's Good To Be In Love" and "Must Be Dreaming." The album was a full collaboration between the two artists. Frou Frou were approached to cover "Holding Out for a Hero", originally performed by Bonnie Tyler, for the soundtrack to the highly successful movie Shrek 2. An album track, "Let Go", was featured in the movie Garden State in 2004.
In December 2003, Heap announced on her web site that she was going to write and produce her second solo album, using her site as an online blog to update fans on progress, even seeking them to be her A&R team for the lyrics to "Daylight Robbery". Heap set herself a deadline of one year to make the album (she booked the album mastering for December 2004), and re-mortgaged her flat to fund production costs, including the use of studio time and instruments (which she purchased as a birthday present to herself). Having been burned by previous challenges with record labels (Heap had been spurned twice by record companies, when Almo Sounds was sold and when Frou Frou's label staff focused on promoting other acts), Heap decided to form her own record label on which to release the new record. At the end of 2004, Heap premiered two album tracks online, enabling fans to pay for a digital download, entitled "Just For Now" (which was up for a limited time as a Christmas gift), and "Goodnight And Go", which had been featured on the second season of hit US TV drama The O.C.
In April 2005, The O.C. season two finale featured another track, the sparse vocodered-vocal track, "Hide And Seek". The track was released immediately to digital download services such as iTunes where it became an instant fixture in the chart. The track was released as a digital download on the 5th July 2005 in the UK and peaked at #8 on the iTunes download chart.
The album, entitled "Speak For Yourself" was then released in the UK on July 18th 2005 on her own record label, Megaphonic Records. The album was also released on iTunes UK, where it entered the top 10, selling strongly. "Hide And Seek" also received radio attention from the popular UK radio station BBC Radio One, with DJ Scott Mills featuring it as his "Record of the Week", and provoking strong reactions ("love it or hate it") from other DJs at the station. Due to popular demand, the track was commercially released on a special limited edition (1500 copies were printed) 7" vinyl in the UK in September. Speak For Yourself was licensed to Sony BMG imprint RCA Victor in August 2005, enabling the record to be released in the United States, Canada and Mexico. It was released in those territories in November, and Heap appeared on the Hotel Cafe Tour promoting the record. Imogen also performed "Goodnight And Go" on The Late Show with David Letterman on January 11, 2006. Heap is slated to continue touring in 2006 in the US and UK to support the record.
As well as TV soundtracks (Frou Frou and Heap's solo records have been featured in shows as varied as The O.C. to CSI, among others), Heap has also contributed solo tracks to movie soundtracks. Her cover of the song "Spooky" (made famous by the band Classics IV, and previously covered by Dusty Springfield) for the soundtrack to the Reese Witherspoon movie Just Like Heaven. Heap also wrote a special track entitled "Can't Take It In" for the soundtrack to The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe. She has also appeared on the second soundtrack for the HBO television series "Six Feet Under", entitled "Six Feet Under Vol. 2: Everything Ends" with a 50-second track that closed the Season 4 episode "I'm A Lonely Little Petunia (In An Onion Patch)". Three versions were recorded and are available from Heap's official web site.
In addition to producing her own records, she has also produced a track for Nik Kershaw and has collaborated with artists as diverse as Joshua Radin, Jeff Beck, Temposhark, LHB, Way Out West, Jon Bon Jovi, Mich Gerber, Sean Lennon, Urban Species, Blue October, Jon Hopkins and Acacia.
Heap's 2009 album 'Ellipse' features Canvas, Aha! and Half Life.
Sites: Twitter
www.imogenheap.com
The Beast
Imogen Heap Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Steady as we go, steady as we go
I can sense in opening the front door as we came in
You were burning a hole in my back
Can we turn this around from where we lost you in the evening
Before things get out of hand
Shear power and the heat of hate brings our army of two to its knees
Steel lungs are shouting the house down, going for the kill from the kiss
Battle stations are now navigation, have we driven love to this
Gently as we go, gently as we go
Steady as we go, steady as we go
All fired up, you're a hot mess getting messier
I'd do anything for sleep
But I can think of far better ways to waste your energy
If you can bare to still touch me
One by one skin hardens, we're becoming the beast
Shear power in the heat of hate brings our army of two to its knees
Steel lungs are screaming the house down, going for the kill from the kiss
Battle stations are now navigation, have we driven love to this?
Have we left, have we left the building?
Did we die a little death?
Is this the end of the road for us, no more bridges for us to burn left?
Do we finally find ourselves at the point of no return?
One by one, we're becoming the beast
Sheer power in the heat of hate brings our army to its knees
Steel lungs are shouting the house down, going for the kill from the kiss
Battle stations are now navigation, have we driven love to this?
Gently as we go, gently as we go
Steady as we go, steady as we go
The opening lines of Imogen Heap's song, "The Beast," contain the repeated phrases "Gently as we go" and "Steady as we go." The theme of moving cautiously and with intentionality persists throughout the song amidst the foreboding lyrics about the breakdown of a romantic relationship. Heap sings about the unraveling of what was once a tender connection between two people that slowly devolves into a ferocious and unrecognizable version of themselves, i.e., "the beast." The sensation of being consumed by the flames of fiery passion is juxtaposed with a desperate reluctance to accept the end of the relationship. The violent imagery of lashing out and the ultimate moment of truth where the couple must confront whether or not they have reached "the point of no return" is striking.
The phrase "have we driven love to this?" encapsulates the central theme of the song's narrative. Heap is musing on whether this is just a natural evolution of the relationship or something avoidable. The song does not offer any clear resolution or answers to the questions posed; it is left up to the listener's interpretation. One could argue that Heap is advocating for a measured approach to love, one that is not so easily consumed by passion but understands the value of patience and empathy. Or alternatively, it could be read as a cautionary tale about the dangers of becoming too consumed by one's emotions.
Line by Line Meaning
Gently as we go, gently as we go
Let's proceed delicately
Steady as we go, steady as we go
Let's try to remain calm
I can sense in opening the front door as we came in
I can feel tension as soon as we entered
You were burning a hole in my back
You were staring at me intensely
Can we turn this around from where we lost you in the evening
Can we salvage this situation from where we left off earlier
Before things get out of hand
Before things escalate
All fired up, you're a hot mess getting messier
You are emotional and your behavior is becoming more chaotic
I'd do anything for sleep
I want to avoid conflict and just rest
But I can think of far better ways to waste your energy
I have other ideas that could be less destructive
If you can bear to still touch me
If you are willing to continue a physical connection
One by one eyes go optic, we're becoming the beast
We are losing our rationality and becoming overwhelmed by emotion
Shear power and the heat of hate brings our army of two to its knees
Our anger is overpowering and destroying us
Steel lungs are shouting the house down, going for the kill from the kiss
Our words are destructive and aimed to hurt
Battle stations are now navigation, have we driven love to this
We are now in conflict and questioning if love still exists between us
Have we left, have we left the building?
Have we separated already?
Did we die a little death?
Have we already experienced the end of our relationship?
Is this the end of the road for us, no more bridges for us to burn left?
Is it impossible for us to ever reconcile and move forward?
Do we finally find ourselves at the point of no return?
Have we reached a place where moving forward is no longer possible?
Gently as we go, gently as we go
Let's proceed delicately
Steady as we go, steady as we go
Let's try to remain calm
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: CLARENCE MONTGOMERY III, BOBBY SIMMONS, IMOGEN HEAP
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind