The band was formed by Roger Miller (guitar), Clint Conley (bass), Peter Prescott (drums) and Martin Swope (tape manipulator/sound engineer). Miller, Conley and Prescott share singing and songwriting duties. Like many of their post-punk contemporaries, Mission of Burma's efforts are largely concerned with extending punk's original vocabulary without losing its essential rebellious spirit. Using rapid shifts in dynamics, unconventional time signatures and chord progressions along with tape effects, Mission of Burma challenges the prevailing idioms of punk while attempting to retain its power and immediacy.
In early years the band's audience was limited to the Boston area, with all their recordings released on the small Boston-based record label Ace of Hearts. Despite initial success, Mission of Burma disbanded in 1983 due to Miller's development of tinnitus caused by the volume of the band's live performances. The band released only one album in its original form, Vs.. Mission of Burma reformed in 2002, with Bob Weston replacing Swope, and has since recorded two more albums, ONoffON and The Obliterati.
Their wall-of-noise musical sound extended the vocabulary of punk while continuing to hold clear its sense of power and abandon. They used a number of tape effects, different chord progressions, and time shifts to highlight their formal training in music. Not only that but they are seen now as a highly influential band to both post-punk and experimental music to come after; many bands cite Burma as an inspiration, including Nirvana, Superchunk, Creed, The Grifters, R.E.M. (who regularly covered "Academy Fight Song" on their Green tour), Sonic Youth, Throwing Muses, Yo La Tengo, Soul Asylum, Pixies, Sugar, Catherine Wheel, Guided by Voices, Graham Coxon and Moby - the last two of which have covered ""That's When I Reach For My Revolver."
The band were due to tour in 1980 with Joy Division but the suicide of Ian Curtis, Joy Division's singer, canceled the tour. In 1983, after releasing their only full-length studio record Vs., the group disbanded due to Miller's worsening tinnitus.
The band found increasing relevance throughout the 90s, culminating in the publication of Michael Azzerad's essays Our Band Could Be Your Life which featured Mission of Burma. In 2002, they reunited and began playing reunion shows with Bob Weston of Shellac (and formerly Prescott's Volcano Suns bandmate) replacing Swope at the mixing board and tape manipulation. In an interview Miller relates that "when we approached Bob Weston to fill Martin's position, we told him he could use current digital technology which accomplishes Martin's antics in an easier fashion. However, Bob opted for maintaining the original integrity, and uses a tape deck."
A new album, ONoffON, was produced in 2004 by Weston with Rick Harte and the band, and released by Matador Records.
In 2009 the band recorded 14 tracks for their fourth full-length studio album, The Sound The Speed The Light. Matador released a two non-album songs on a 7″ single in August and the full album in October of that year.
In 2012 Mission of Burma parted ways with Matador and recorded their fifth full-length album, "Unsound", for Fire Records. The album saw release in July 2012, preceded by the single "Dust Devil".
In a 2019 Facebook post, it was revealed that the band has no plans to make further albums. As of June 2020, the band was officially finished.
See also:
Birdsongs of the Mesozoic
Volcano Suns
Kustomized
The Peer Group
Consonant
Weatherbox
Mission of Burma Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Then he...?and he's holding the weatherbox
Every night...?
Then he...?and he's holding the weatherbox
Holding the weatherbox
Holding the weatherbox
Sun is falling down
Sky is falling down
Air is falling down
Falling...
The air is round and the world is flat
And everything is clearly impossible
Clearly impossible
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
The lyrics of Mission of Burma's song Weatherbox are open to interpretation. However, one interpretation is that it is about humans' perceived control over their environment. The lines "Every man thinks he does what he can/Then he...?and he's holding the weatherbox" suggest that people believe they have some control over the weather or the environment. The repetition of the phrase "Holding the weatherbox" emphasizes this point. But the following lines "Every night...?/Then he...?and he's holding the weatherbox" suggest that this perceived control is not consistent, and maybe even illusionary.
The lyrics then shift to describe the falling of the sky, seasons, and air, which may mean how people cannot prevent or change natural phenomena. The line "The air is round and the world is flat" is a juxtaposition of ideas, highlighting the discrepancy between how people perceive the world and its actual shape. The phrase "everything is clearly impossible" is ambiguous, but may suggest a realization that there is much beyond human control.
Overall, Weatherbox is a thought-provoking song that raises more questions than it answers. It may be about humans' struggle to control their environment or their realization of the limits of their control.
Line by Line Meaning
Every man thinks he does what he can
People believe that they are doing their best
Then he...? and he's holding the weatherbox
Unknown action is taken and the individual is controlling the weatherbox
Every night...?
Unclear what happens each night
Then he...? and he's holding the weatherbox
Unknown action is taken and the individual is controlling the weatherbox
Holding the weatherbox
Holding the weatherbox
Emphasizing that the individual is holding the weatherbox
Sun is falling down
Sky is falling down
Seasons falling down
Air is falling down
Falling...
Everything is falling apart
The air is round and the world is flat
And everything is clearly impossible
The laws of nature don't make sense and it seems impossible
Clearly impossible
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Inside the weatherbox
Reiteration of how impossible the situation is inside the weatherbox
Lyrics © BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT US, LLC
Written by: HERBIE MILLER, MANLEY BUCHANAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind