London After Midnight (LAM) is a music project formed in the 1990s by singe… Read Full Bio ↴London After Midnight (LAM) is a music project formed in the 1990s by singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Sean Brennan. LAM has retained and nurtured the political and socially aware element of the later punk scene that virtually vanished from all music scenes in the early 90s, and has developed as a passionate and political dark rock-music entity. LAM has a large worldwide following, with many gothic rock fans (LAM shuns labels such as "gothic", however, saying that labels limit an artist's creative realm and also destructively divides audiences- unfortunately too many people define themselves by the style of music they listen to and refuse to expand beyond that).

LAM has gained a large and loyal following all over the world, from the USA to Europe to Latin America (where the live band has toured extensively), and beyond. LAM has headlined and co-headlined concerts and major festivals with bands like The Cure, Green Day, HIM (HIM has cited LAM a favorite artist), Rammstein, Soft Cell and many more. LAM has performed to crowds of over 30,000 people as headliner and co-headliner on major music festivals around the world. However, London After Midnight maintains a strong underground and independent "personality" despite being a top seller (charting in the top 10 and top 20 German DAC, and other European independent charts, with each of 4 CDs released) and a major draw at music festivals year after year.

Songwriter, instrumentalist, producer and founder Sean Brennan is known for his strong stances in favor of animal rights, pro-environmental and human rights issues, anti-corporate control of media, and support for progressive and liberal political and social causes. Whatever the approach or subject matter, the music of London After Midnight is deeply touching, powerful, socially aware, romantic, emotional, disturbing, haunting, moving, and often exhibits a morbid wit with its sardonic humor (listen to the tongue-in-cheek "Your Best Nightmare" and try not to think of an Edward Gorey story).

LAM is all this, while at the same time appealing to a wide variety of people. There really is no classification that fits London After Midnight (despite LAM's "dark" image) because the music is so varied and the lyrical content (and even LAM's personality and causes) are unique and uncommon in today's music scene (often breaking boundaries- much to the outrage of people who live and die by genre labels). Sean Brennan shuns all labels (as any artist worth their salt will do) and the music he creates can really only be classified as "London After Midnight".

From 2015-2019 LAM headlined major festivals around the world, including Wave Gotik Treffen multiple times, and many other events. In 2019 Sean Brennan started his own record label, Darkride Records, and released "Selected Scenes from the End of the World: 9119", the original 1991 album remixed from the original master tapes (it is NOT A REMASTER- it's completely remixed from the multi-track master tapes). This new mix restored missing audio tracks and includes a never before released song from the 1991 sessions. Darkride Records released the "Oddities Too", similar in theme to the 1998 album "Oddities" with unreleased music, new music and much more. The all new un-named LAM album and a complete remix of "Psycho Magnet", remixed from the original master tapes, is also underway.

Main discography:

-Selected Scenes from the End of the World, 1995 CD (originally released as a cassette in 1991)
-Psycho Magnet, 1995 cassette, 1996 CD
-Oddities, 1998 cassette, 1998 CD
-Violent Acts of Beauty, 2007 CD
-Selected Scenes from the End of the World: 9119, 2019 CD (remixed from original multi-track master tapes)
- Live From Isolation, 2021 CD.
- Oddities Too, 2022 CD

Permanent line-up:

Sean Brennan: music, lyrics, vocals, most of the instruments.

Current live line-up:

Jeremy Kohnmann: guitar
Michael Areklett: bass
Pete Pace: drums.

Complex Messiah
London After Midnight Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

You drew a line at being honest.
You drew a line at being sincere.
You drew a line at being there for me.
You drew a line that much is clear.
I don't believe that it was hopeless.
I don't believe you can get something for free.
And now I can honestly tell you,
you mean absolutely nothing to me.

I am the last man standing here.
I am the last one who'll tell you all the truth.
I am your last chance and you fear it,
so take your last breath brutal youth.
You can't see that you're killing yourselves.
you can't see that you've thrown it all away.
You've turned Heaven into Hell.
You're only happy when you inflict pain.

I don't want to think.
I don't want to feel.
I don't want to know.
I don't want to heal.
I don't want to love.
I don't want to help.
I don't want to trust.
I just want myself.
I don't want to give.
I don't want to grow.
There is nothing real,
I don't care who knows.
The last bridge is burned.
I just want to be,
the one in control,
With no empathy.

You can't see that you're killing yourselves.
you can't see that you've thrown it all away.
You've turned Heaven, into Hell.
You're only happy, when you inflict pain.
I am the last man standing here.
I am the last one who'll tell you all the truth.

I am your last chance and you fear it,
so take your last breath brutal youth.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of London After Midnight's song "Complex Messiah" are powerful and emotionally charged. The song seems to be about a relationship that has soured and the feelings of betrayal and anger that arise from such situations. The opening lines suggest that the other person has drawn a line, indicating their unwillingness to be sincere or honest and to be there for the singer when needed. This has caused an irreparable rift in the relationship, and the singer acknowledges that the person means nothing to them anymore.

The second part of the song seems to be a warning to the other person, telling them that their actions are killing themselves and that they are only happy when causing pain. The lines "You've turned Heaven into Hell" indicate that the other person has destroyed something beautiful and pure, and the singer is the last one standing who can see the truth. The lines "I don't want to think, feel, or heal" and "The last bridge is burned" suggest that the singer has given up on the relationship and does not want to try to fix it anymore. The final lines "I am your last chance, and you fear it, so take your last breath brutal youth" seem to be a final warning to the other person that if they continue down this path, they will self-destruct.

Overall, the lyrics of "Complex Messiah" are a powerful message about the importance of honesty, sincerity, and being there for others in relationships. The song suggests that when these values are not upheld, relationships can become toxic, and people can become self-destructive.

Line by Line Meaning

You drew a line at being honest.
You established a boundary to ensure you never had to be truthful.

You drew a line at being sincere.
You created a limit so you could avoid being genuine.

You drew a line at being there for me.
You set a barrier which prevented you from being available when I needed you.

You drew a line that much is clear.
You made your boundaries abundantly obvious.

I don't believe that it was hopeless.
I don't accept your claim that the situation couldn't have been fixed.

I don't believe you can get something for free.
I don't accept that you can get anything without putting in any effort or cost.

And now I can honestly tell you, you mean absolutely nothing to me.
I can sincerely state that you hold no significance to me whatsoever.

I am the last man standing here.
I am the sole survivor who remains in this location.

I am the last one who'll tell you all the truth.
I am the final person who will disclose the full veracity of the matter.

I am your last chance and you fear it, so take your last breath brutal youth.
I am your final opportunity and you are frightened of it, therefore, prepare yourself for the end, young and ruthless.

You can't see that you're killing yourselves.
You are unable to perceive that you are self-destructing.

you can't see that you've thrown it all away.
You are unaware that you have carelessly discarded everything you had.

You've turned Heaven into Hell.
You have transformed what was once blissful into utter torment.

You're only happy when you inflict pain.
You find joy solely in causing hurt to others.

I don't want to think.
I don't desire to ponder.

I don't want to feel.
I don't wish to experience emotions.

I don't want to know.
I don't want to acquire knowledge.

I don't want to heal.
I don't want to recover.

I don't want to love.
I don't want to have affection for anyone.

I don't want to help.
I don't want to provide assistance.

I don't want to trust.
I don't wish to place faith in anyone.

I just want myself.
I only want what benefits me.