With their debut, Yerself Is Steam, the band gained an underground following, particularly in the UK. 1993's Boces was critically acclaimed for its alternative sound, and the band's next album, See You on the Other Side, begins a shift away from the extremes of sonic experimentalism towards the elaborately-orchestrated classic rock blueprint of their later work.
With their early records, Mercury Rev offered experimental, psychedelic rock, which gradually shifted to a melodic, ornate sound. Mercury Rev is often compared to The Flaming Lips, and in fact share close ties: soon after the band's formation, Donahue also joined the Flaming Lips as second guitarist and appeared on two of their albums; and since the 1990 album In a Priest Driven Ambulance, Dave Fridmann has co-produced every Flaming Lips studio album to date except 1993's Transmissions from the Satellite Heart.
Despite considerable critical acclaim, their early releases never gave Mercury Rev more than cult popularity, though they appeared on the smaller second stage at some 1993 Lollapalooza stops. Baker left after their second record, Boces (1993), citing musical and personal disputes; he later recorded an album as Shady. With his departure, the darker, more experimental and less accessible features of their music began to disappear.
The band's first post-Baker album, See You on the Other Side (1995), found them in transition, and the 1998 release of the acclaimed Deserter's Songs (which featured appearances by Garth Hudson and Levon Helm of The Band) made Mercury Rev unexpected pop stars. In the UK, NME Magazine made Deserter's Songs their Album of the Year. Donahue's earnest, high-pitched vocals and concentration on relatively concise, melodic songs gave the band's material an entirely new feel and much increased popularity (Deserter's Songs spawned three UK top 40 singles).
All Is Dream was issued in 2001. It managed a UK top 20 single, "The Dark is Rising," which reached #16 in the UK Top 40.
Mercury Rev's much-anticipated The Secret Migration was released on January 24, 2005. This was followed up in 2006 by a compilation album called The Essential Mercury Rev: Stillness Breathes 1991-2006 and the film soundtrack album Hello Blackbird. More recently, the band released a pair of albums on September 29, 2008: Snowflake Midnight, and a free MP3 album of instrumentals, Strange Attractor.
In 2011 the band performed Deserter's Songs in it's complete form live at several festivals in the UK.
Syringe Mouth
Mercury Rev Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Glittering as you arrive
High half as long and twice as bright
See you burning from both sides (from both sides) [x2]
you come slipping down the slide
Dragging me by your side
Phony colors in your eyes
You're so obscene but I don't mind (don't mind)
Yea yea yea yea yea yea
you come whipping [ripping?] through my life
Flipping out like some old wife
Your syringe mouth is open wide
You go insane I go inside
The opening lines of Mercury Rev's Syringe Mouth alludes to someone (the subject) who is coming out of a hive in a somewhat fantastical, surreal manner. The language used suggests that the subject is possibly under the influence of drugs, as they arrive glittering, high and twice as bright. The chorus 'See you burning from both sides' could be a reference to the subject being affected both mentally and physically. The second verse seems to suggest that the subject is a destructive force in the singer's life. The line 'You go insane I go inside' suggests that while the subject is perhaps falling apart, the singer is finding solace in their inner world. It could also be interpreted as the singer trying to reach out to the subject who is too far gone to be reached. Overall, the song appears to be about unhealthy relationships or the destructive influence of drugs.
Line by Line Meaning
So you come dripping from the hive
You enter my life in an abrupt and unexpected manner, oozing out from a place of busyness and activity.
Glittering as you arrive
You have an alluring quality to you as you show up, shining and gleaming in the light.
High half as long and twice as bright
Your presence is fleeting, but it is intense and bright while it lasts.
See you burning from both sides (from both sides) [x2]
It appears that you are burning up, or causing chaos, from within yourself as well as from external forces.
you come slipping down the slide
You come into my life in a slippery and tricky way.
Dragging me by your side
You are pulling me along with you, whether or not I want to go.
Phony colors in your eyes
There is a fakeness, a lack of sincerity, in the way you present yourself to me.
Soul's obscene but I don't mind (I don't mind)
Although there are aspects of you that seem immoral or distasteful, I am still drawn to you and accepting of you.
You're so obscene but I don't mind (don't mind)
Once again, I acknowledge your questionable nature, but I am still willing to engage with you.
Yea yea yea yea yea yea
This is an exclamation of excitement, indicating a willingness to continue along with this wild ride.
you come whipping [ripping?] through my life
You are moving through my life rapidly and with force, maybe even causing destruction along the way.
Flipping out like some old wife
You are acting irrational, like an old woman who has lost her temper.
Your syringe mouth is open wide
Your words, or possibly your literal mouth, are like a needle injecting something dangerous into me.
You go insane I go inside
As you become more erratic and lose control, I retreat inside myself to protect myself from the emotional turmoil.
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: DAVID FRIDMAN, JONATHAN DONAHUE, JOSEPH CHAMBERS, SUZANNE THORPE BRIAN BAKER, THOMAS SEAN MACKOWIAK
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@marceluv
Sick tune, love it! This entire album was a huge influence on myself & fellow bandmate friends growing up in the NY Hudson Valley. Absolutely Epic Album!!! Actually hung out with Jonathan Donahue a few times, great chap!
@MsMiguel70
I worked with him for like six months at an OKC record store where the Lips manager was. Not great at customer service. 🙂 Remember he would bring some orange flavored powder nutrition thing and just eat it dry. We got along fine and I still credit him for 4 band recs I love today. 🪡
@flavirostris1972
Mercury Rev were really groundbreaking in terms of avante garde art rock. I still believe the 1991 debut is the greatest thing they ever did, although commercial success eluded them up until 1998 and Deserter's Songs.
@valerieyates1427
Great track - love the atmosphere/vibe it conjures up.
@bengrimwood2053
Takes me back to some messy festival days, powerful track..
@MsMiguel70
WTF! Forgot how awesome this song is. Damn!!! Great post.
@toyaquiyvoyaya
The Noise Pop masterpiece!
@valerieyates1427
When I first got this track - (can’t remember the format, it might’ve been a Flexi disc) I played at the wrong speed - I played it at 45 instead of 33, and I’m still not sure which speed I prefer it at, I recommend listening to it speeded up (if you can).
@duncanfrosi2436
Masterpiece Lp
@pashedmotatos
I don’t like it