Love and Rockets were a post-punk band which formed in 1985 in Northampton,… Read Full Bio ↴Love and Rockets were a post-punk band which formed in 1985 in Northampton, England Daniel Ash (guitar/vocals), David J (bass/vocals), and Kevin Haskins (drums) - all former members of English post-punk pioneers Bauhaus. Taking their name from the renowned underground comic book created by Los Bros Hernandez (Jaime and Gilbert Hernandez), their music is a mixture of goth, glam, psychedelia, soul and pop.

The band is best known for their singles "Ball of Confusion" (1985, a Temptations cover), "No New Tale to Tell" (1987), "So Alive" (1989) and "No Big Deal" (1990).

L&R's first album was 1985's trippy Seventh Dream of Teenage Heaven; Seventh Dream was followed in quick succession by 1986's Express;which featured a cover of Ball of Confusion, which became a club hit. 1987's Earth * Sun * Moon and 1989's eponymously titled release Love and Rockets (all on Beggar's Banquet). Love & Rockets was met with cries of sellout due to the overly slick So Alive (the band toured stadiums following the hit single) and the group disbanded. Tracks recorded for an abandoned EP Swing were added to a reissue of Love & Rockets in 2002.

After working on solo albums they reformed, recorded material for Hot Trip to Heaven which infused dance/electronica elements into their sound. Fearing the world wasn't prepared for it yet in 1992, they waited until 1994 to release it. A fire destroyed the studio they were working in, and all material was scrapped. The next album, Sweet F.A. features one of Daniel Ash's charred guitars on the front cover. The final album Lift was an epic dance/electronic swan song, owing much to producer Doug DeAngelis, who was given honorary L&R member status. After the Lift tour, they disbanded again in 1999 to work on solo projects, and to reform Bauhaus for a series of tours. L&R reunited in 2007 at Coachella. Plans for a 2009/2010 release fell through as the band went their separate ways again.

On 23 January 2023, Love and Rockets announced a reunion for an appearance at the Cruel World Festival in Pasadena, California on 20 May 2023, the band's first concert in 15 years. They later announced a 2023 U.S. tour in support of their appearance at Cruel World. A Bauhaus reunion was aborted in 2022 after Peter Murphy forced the band to cancel the tour as he entered rehab. Daniel Ash said that the 2023 tour would be the band's final.

Clean
Love And Rockets Lyrics

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Before you can do that you'll need some of this
When you've had some of this you'll need some of these
Before you can get down from the trees

Are you are you are you clean

Does it mix with this
How many do you need

Is there a hungry heart
You need to feed

Does it mix with this
How many do you need
Is there a hungry heart
You need to feed

Are you clean

You were down
Now your higher than NASA
Once you're up
Why come down at all?

Become a star
Higher than NASA
Become a star
What a

Come
Help me feel

Are you clean?

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Love And Rockets’s song Clean seem to allude to the idea of addiction and the cycle of dependence it creates. The singer suggests that before someone can indulge in their addiction or vice, they need some sort of enabler or trigger to start. They question whether the addict is “clean” and can handle their substance abuse, suggesting that they are not and need more of the substance to satisfy their hunger. The lines “You were down/Now you’re higher than NASA/ Once you’re up/Why come down at all?” highlight the destructive nature of addiction and the way it can take someone from a low point to a high, but ultimately leave them in a worse place than before.

The repeated question “Are you clean?” could also be read as a plea for the addict to break the cycle of dependence and seek help to overcome their addiction. The singer seems to be offering help when they say “Come/Help me feel” and expressing concern with lines like “Is there a hungry heart/You need to feed.” Overall, the lyrics to Clean are a poignant commentary on the dangers of addiction and the need for support and help to overcome it.

Line by Line Meaning

Before you can do that you'll need some of this
You need to get high first, in order to do what you want to do.

When you've had some of this you'll need some of these
Once you're high, you'll need some more drugs.

Before you can get down from the trees
You can't come down from your high until you have more drugs.

Are you are you are you clean
Are you drug-free or do you need more?

Does it mix with this
Will your current drug mix well with the new one?

How many do you need
How many more drugs do you need?

Is there a hungry heart
Do you have a craving for drugs that needs to be satisfied?

You were down
You were sad or feeling low.

Now your higher than NASA
You're extremely high on drugs.

Once you're up
Once you're high.

Why come down at all?
Why stop doing drugs?