1. Lowlife was a Scottis… Read Full Bio ↴There is more than one band with this name.
1. Lowlife was a Scottish post-punk/dream pop band, active from 1985 to 1997. Although never obtaining mainstream popularity, they developed a cult following that continues to this day.
Early years: Pre-Lowlife
Dead Neighbours was an early-1980s psychobilly band from Grangemouth, Scotland, originally consisting of Craig Lorentson (vocals), David Steel (bass), Ronnie Buchanan (guitar) , and Grant McDowall (drums). The band was managed by Brian Guthrie, brother of Robin Guthrie of Cocteau Twins, and had recorded an album, Harmony in Hell (1982), that briefly hit the lower regions of the UK independent record charts.
In 1983, Steel left the Dead Neighbours in the middle of recording the band’s second album, Strangedays/Strangeways. Upon learning that Cocteau Twins founding member and bassist Will Heggie had recently departed that band (after a lengthy and reportedly difficult European tour), Guthrie asked Heggie to help Dead Neighbours out in finishing the album’s recording, and join them on a tour opening for Johnny Thunders. Heggie agreed and, after the album was completed and the tour was done, he stayed on and began rehearsing new material with the band. Guthrie noticed that with Heggie, the entire chemistry of the group suddenly changed and they began forging a completely new, atmospheric sound very different from their original Cramps-influenced beginnings. Apparently unhappy with the direction they were clearly aiming for, Buchanan abruptly departed the band. A new guitarist was brought in, Stuart Everest, who adapted quickly to the band’s updated vision. In 1984, the group retired the Dead Neighbours moniker for good and rechristened themselves as Lowlife.
Lowlife: 1980s
In 1985, Lowlife recorded Rain, a 6-song mini-album. It was released on Nightshift Records, a label formed by Guthrie specifically to release material by the band. All subsequent Lowlife LPs, singles, and EPs would appear on Nightshift, with the exception of their final album, Gush, which was released on the Anoise Annoys Records label. Rain was modestly successful, receiving generally positive reviews and sold well enough to appear on several independent charts in the UK, US and France.
In 1986, the band’s debut album, Permanent Sleep was released and received critical praise from several UK and US music publications. Trouser Press noted that the album “…delves deeper into instrumental and vocal textures, with layers of strummed and picked guitar and slippery bass chords (shades of New Order) dominating the sound. Despite Lowlife's concentration on ambience, the affecting "Wild Swan" is a lovely song, punctuated by repeated guitar triplets fluttering overhead.” [1] Melody Maker said “Lowlife practice a mystical form of musical alchemy, with crystalline perfection.” Sounds gave the album four stars and commented “Lowlife construct their deep atmospheres through hypnotically mysterious songs…”
An EP, Vain Delights, was released in late 1986. The production of the EP was financed by the band’s new association with Working Week, a recently formed publishing company run by Jeff Chegwin, twin brother of television presenter Keith Chegwin. Record Mirror called the release “Profound, melancholic, and reaches the parts other ephemeral pieces of plastic cannot reach.” A song from the EP, “Hollow Gut”, received airplay on BBC Radio by both John Peel and Janice Long, and a music video for the song made appearances on UK television, including DEF II.
The band took six months to record their second album, Diminuendo. Released in 1987, the album received extremely positive reviews and is generally considered to be the band’s finest full-length effort. Q magazine gave it four stars and observed, “A further phase in Lowlife’s refinement…Evocative and dramatic. But never overbearing.” Melody Maker noted, “Lowlife emerge from a distant eerie grace, out of an echo or pause with unworldly drama. The isolation, resonance of this music can bring to mind the notion of the Music of the Spheres.” Music Week said, “Diminuendo is a landmark album, bustling with feeling, dripping with emotion and soft to the touch.” Trouser Press stated, “The aptly titled and excellent Diminuendo reduces Lowlife's volume by stripping the arrangements of their thickening ingredients, leaving only the bass, simple drums and frugal bits of guitar and keyboards to support Lorentson's increasingly ambitious and musical vocals.”
Subsequent to the release of Diminuendo, the group underwent a lengthy UK tour as support to headliners The Go-Betweens. The tour helped bring Lowlife to a wider audience, and culminated in a critically well-received show at The Town & Country Club in London, a performance which Guthrie would later describe as “possibly the best set of their career.”
Also in 1987, a live performance of the band specifically shot for BBC Scotland was broadcast on television, and a single (“Eternity Road”) and an EP (Swirl It Swings) were released.
In 1988, Lowlife rehearsed new material and Guthrie presented demos of some songs to Working Music, which was associated at the time with Chappell Music. Stephen Fellows, vocalist and guitarist of the Comsat Angels, heard the demos and agreed to produce the album, but this was dependent on whether Working Music and Chappell Music would commit to finance the recording. However, while discussions were underway, Warner Bros. Records absorbed Chappell Music, and the Warner regime passed on the option of signing Lowlife. Working Music subsequently dropped the band.
The band started undergoing a level of internal strife. Guitarist Everest was asked by the other band members to leave, for reasons never made clear. Hamish McIntosh was brought into the group as Everest’s replacement.
In 1989, the band’s third album, Godhead was released. Critical response was slightly less effusive this time, with Music Week noting that the album “…takes us back to that classic case of a band who never reap enough acclaim because they won’t play the game. But they deserve serious attention.” Trouser Press was unimpressed: “The misnamed Godhead lacks the emotional drive that sparks all of Lowlife's other albums and winds up labored and dull, a collection of unaffecting songs that plod — even at brisk tempos.”
Lowlife: 1990s
In early 1990, following a soccer match accident in which he lost a finger, McDowall decided to retire from the music business and left the band. McIntosh also left, to pursue a career with his own band, Fuel. New guitarist Hugh Duggie and drummer Martin Fleming were brought in as replacements. That same year, while the band adjusted to these most recent personnel changes, Nightshift issued a compilation album, From a Scream to a Whisper, consisting of previously released songs taken from the band’s earlier singles and albums.
In 1991, Lowlife and Nightshift Records began experiencing a series of financial problems, brought on by the collapse of Rough Trade Distribution, which left small independent labels with far less options to have their various titles distributed to record stores. Guthrie had to borrow a substantial amount of money to finance the recording of the band’s fourth album, San Antorium. The album received positive but unspectacular reviews, and the sales were no better or worse than their previous offerings. There were no live shows to support the release. The band’s momentum had clearly stagnated.
It would be four years later before the group got around to recording their fifth, and final, album, Gush. The recording sessions were apparently by a very professional but unenthusiastic band, and the extremely muted critical reviews reflected this lack of excitement. As with San Antorium, Lowlife did not tour to support Gush.
In 1997, after playing fewer and fewer shows to progressively smaller audiences, and with family commitments an ever growing concern for all band members, Lowlife effectively called it quits, although there was never any “official” announcement of a breakup.
In 2006, all of Lowlife’s back catalogue was re-released on CD, augmented with multiple bonus tracks and featuring extensive liner notes by Brian Guthrie.
Craig Lorentson passed away in the hospital on June 4, 2010. the funeral was held on June 11, 2010. Lorenston was 44 years old.
2. Lowlife is a redneck rebel rock 'n' roll band from USA.
3. LOWLIFE is a new powerviolence band from Long Island.
South Shore Scum Violence.
http://lowlife631.bandcamp.com/
4. LOWLIFE is comprised of Liam Haygarth, Nathan Mortimer, Harry Todd and Jordan Cardy, operating out of a dilapidated studio lock-up on a farm in Essex. The project commenced at the height of the first wave of lockdown, with the four members collaborating via Zoom.
5. Lowlife is a queencore/punk band out of Winnipeg, Canada. They are comprised of Brooke, Caitlin (also from Epirus and Co Komono), Anya and Meghan. Sometimes Zach from Co Komono/A Grizzly Fate plays guitar with them. They released their debut single, 'Nice Guys Finish Fast' in December of 2022 with Ian Ingram as producer/engineer.
Swing
Lowlife Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
somewhere that we could swing
I could do with going anytime
as long as I could swing
sometimes I see almost anywhere
the prostitution of talents
but I'm so busy trying to bury this
when almost everyone has been stripped
but still must suckle the young
I can not impose upon myself
or even get a grip on my tongue
we have lost what we can not renew
that which I care for and regard
regarded as the most precious thing
we've lost the reason to swing
The lyrics of "Swing" by Lowlife express the desire to escape from the difficulties and monotony of life, and finding a place where one can simply "swing." The song starts with the singer expressing his desire to go anywhere, as long as there is a place to swing. The idea of swinging refers to finding joy and freedom in life, much like a child does on a swing set. The lyrics also suggest that the world has become too cynical, and the idea of talent or skill has been reduced to prostitution, indicating a sense of lost innocence.
The second verse of the song deals with the theme of personal struggle. The lyrics suggest that the singer is struggling to bury something and that almost everyone has been stripped of something, probably a reference to the challenges of life. The idea of being stripped and starved of stature further underlines the helplessness and vulnerability of individuals in the face of life's difficulties. The lyrics suggest that even the youngest members of society have to struggle and "suckle" in this harsh world. The singer admits that he cannot impose on himself and is unable to control his tongue, indicating a sense of personal weakness.
The final verse refers to the loss of what is precious in life. The singer suggests that society has lost what cannot be renewed, referring to a sense of loss of innocence and hope. The idea of swinging, which previously represented joy and freedom in life, has lost its meaning. The singer mourns the loss of what he regards as the most precious thing, but he still wants to swing, indicating that the desire to find joy and freedom still remains.
Line by Line Meaning
We could do with going anywhere
We feel like we need to escape and go somewhere else.
somewhere that we could swing
We want to go somewhere where we can let loose and have fun.
I could do with going anytime
I'm willing to leave at any moment to find what I'm looking for.
as long as I could swing
As long as we can find that energy and joy we're looking for.
sometimes I see almost anywhere
I see corruption and exploitation all around me.
the prostitution of talents
I see people selling out their skills and abilities for money or success.
but I'm so busy trying to bury this
I'm distracted and overwhelmed by everything I see.
when almost everyone has been stripped
When almost everyone has lost their dignity and value.
now stripped and starved of stature
We've been robbed of our worth and dignity.
but still must suckle the young
We still have to raise and care for the next generation.
I can not impose upon myself
I can't force myself to feel something I don't.
or even get a grip on my tongue
I can't control what I say or how I express myself.
we have lost what we can not renew
We've lost something that is irreplaceable.
that which I care for and regard
Something that I deeply value and cherish.
regarded as the most precious thing
It's something that is incredibly valuable and important to me.
we've lost the reason to swing
We've lost the motivation and joy that makes life worth living.
Contributed by Avery D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Rufuslowlife
we could do with going anywhere
somewhere that we could swing
i could do with going anytime
as long as i could swing
sometimes i see almost anywhere
the prostitution of talents
but i'm so busy trying to bury this
when almost everyone has been stripped, everyone has been stripped
now stripped and starved of stature
but still must suckle the young
i can not impose upon myself
or even get a grip on my tongue, or even get a grip of my tongue, i don't have to
hold my tongue
we have lost that cannot renew
that which i care for and regard
regarded as the most precious thing
we've lost the reason to swing
@pile333
Lots of bands haven't had the success they deserved. Lowlife is one of them.
@HeliomasterAtrox
We have lost what we can not renew... This is poetry!!! It reflects the sad behavior of our days. Another hit!!! Thanks for uploading ;) See you at Fascination Street.
@crdr35
Idk what it is about Craig's voice that's so damn enchanting but I love it <3
@johndavies8728
Utterly beautiful
@rudiohneu2198
Great Bass Line, i love it, Craig's Voice so beautiful
@junayala9401
Oh Craig! Very beautiful; but, at the same time... so sad.
@inshreds66
Hey you sure have good taste. Lowlife great band.
@beatrixsaghat235
Etéreo Sublime Viceral Trágico Emocionante
@Rich27014
they were just a wonderful band
@MockEmpire
how are lowlife so good