A key influence on industrial rock, their early music was described by critics Stephen Thomas Erlewine and John Dougan as well as industrial metal and "quasi-metal, dancing to a tune of doom and gloom," which gradually evolved over the years, incorporating elements of electronic music, synth-pop, gothic rock, and alternative rock, though always emphasizing Coleman's "savagely strident vocals."
Finding modest commercial success, Killing Joke have influenced many later bands, such as Nirvana, Ministry, Amen, Lamb of God, Nine Inch Nails, Napalm Death, Amebix, Big Black, Godflesh, Tool, Prong, Metallica, Primus, Jane's Addiction, Soundgarden, Foo Fighters, Faith No More, Blacklist, Shihad and Korn, all of whom have at some point cited some debt of gratitude to Killing Joke.
Medicine Wheel
Killing Joke Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Into a mountain side
Sedona red the landscape
An offering for her life
She starts to rub her red clay
Across her fair white skin
She starts to dance and play
She plays a drum and sings
She builds a medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
He studied physics there
An undergraduate
But in the coffee shop
He talks of gaia's love
He talks of gaia's love
He speaks out how he feels
He turns the medicine wheel
He builds a medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
I, am so grateful
I, am so grateful
I, am so grateful
He wields a band of fire
To fill his heart's desire
And how the wolves they bay
He hears a brand new day
With reverence he plays his song
Stone by stone he carries on
Following some high ideal
He turns the medicine wheel
He turns a medicine wheel
He builds a medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
He builds a medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
I, am so grateful
I, am so grateful
I, am so grateful
I, am so grateful
The lyrics to Killing Joke's song Medicine Wheel are filled with imagery and symbolism, beginning with a woman walking up a mountain path in Sedona, Arizona, a place known for its spiritual and healing energy. She rubs red clay on her skin, dances and plays a drum, and then proceeds to build a medicine wheel. A medicine wheel is a Native American spiritual symbol that represents balance and connectivity with nature. The idea of building a medicine wheel suggests a ritualistic and profound spiritual experience that the woman is having.
The lyrics then transition to a man who studied physics but now speaks of Gaia's love in a coffee shop. Gaia is the Greek goddess associated with the Earth, and the mention of her love reinforces the spiritual theme of the song. The man builds and turns the medicine wheel while holding a band of fire to fill his heart's desire. He hears the howling of wolves as a sign of a new day, and with reverence, he plays his song stone by stone, echoing the process of building the medicine wheel. The repetition of the phrase "He builds a medicine wheel" and "We build a medicine wheel" at the end of the song suggests a collective and communal experience of spiritual growth and healing.
Overall, the song Medicine Wheel is a metaphor for spiritual awakening and the power of ancient knowledge and rituals. It highlights the importance of balance, harmony, and connectivity with nature in the pursuit of spiritual growth and healing.
Line by Line Meaning
She walks up by the path
A woman walks towards a path
Into a mountain side
She is walking towards the side of a mountain
Sedona red the landscape
The landscape she is in is the color of Sedona red rock
An offering for her life
She took this journey as an offering for her life
She starts to rub her red clay
She starts to rub red clay on her white skin
Across her fair white skin
She has light-colored or white skin
She starts to dance and play
She starts to dance and play
She plays a drum and sings
While dancing, she also plays a drum and sings
She builds a medicine wheel
She creates a medicine wheel
He studied physics there
A man studied physics somewhere
An undergraduate
As an undergraduate student
But in the coffee shop
He finds himself in a coffee shop
He talks of gaia's love
He expresses his thoughts on Gaia's love
He speaks out how he feels
He voices what is on his mind
He turns the medicine wheel
He takes part in turning the medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
We create a medicine wheel
I, am so grateful
The artist is expressing gratitude
He wields a band of fire
He has or holds a ribbon of fire
To fill his heart's desire
He is using it to fulfill his heart's desire
And how the wolves they bay
Reference to the howling of wolves
He hears a brand new day
He hears a new beginning or a new day
With reverence he plays his song
He plays his song with respect and admiration
Stone by stone he carries on
He continues step by step, one stone at a time
Following some high ideal
He is following a lofty or noble ideal
He turns the medicine wheel
He takes part in turning the medicine wheel
She builds a medicine wheel
She creates a medicine wheel
We build a medicine wheel
We create a medicine wheel
I, am so grateful
The artist is expressing gratitude
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JAMES A. S. JR. WALKER
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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