The band’s key member is guitarist/singer/composer Kevin Shields, a reclusive perfectionist and radically inventive guitarist/engineer. The band’s other original member is drummer/studio maven Colm Ó Cíosóig; during their heyday MBV also included singer-guitarist Bilinda Butcher and bassist Debbie Googe. Their band shares its name with a low-budget Canadian slasher film.
MBV influences include The Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, Cocteau Twins, late-1970s Wire, The Jesus and Mary Chain, and independent artists such as The Pastels. Kevin Shields has also named The Beach Boys and The Ramones as a personal influence.
After leaving Creation Records in 1992 and signing with Island Records, the band fell into a creative black hole. Rumors spread among their fans of albums being recorded and then shelved. Debbie Googe left the band to form Snowpony; she had not played bass on their recordings since You Made Me Realise. Colm Ó Cíosóig eventually left and formed a band with Hope Sandoval, formerly of Mazzy Star, called Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions. Kevin Shields sporadically collaborated with other artists, most notably Experimental Audio Research, Curve, and Primal Scream. He revealed in a fall 2003 National Public Radio interview that Island Records quit financing his My Bloody Valentine endeavors after he spent half a million pounds of their money.
As of 2006, many rumors mentioned the possible reformation of MBV for a new studio album, but none of these were true. On November 15 2007, My Bloody Valentine announced three upcoming live gigs in the UK for 2008. On June 13 and 14, the band played in public for the first time in thirteen years, offering a pair of "Live Rehearsal" presentations at the ICA in London and officially starting their series of comeback performances. The band went on to play a slew of festivals in Summer and Fall of 2008. Following their appearance at the 2008 All Tomorrow's Parties festival, the New York Times reported that Shields was planning to complete the unfinished album.
On 2 February 2013 they self-released the self-titled album m b v as a download with both vinyl and CD copies shipping on 22nd Feb 2013. The Huffington Post reported that it caused such a public stir that the official MBV website crashed when fans attempted to access the site to purchase a copy.
Clair
My Bloody Valentine Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Climbing through the clouds
The world is changing, colours clash
Ohhhhhhh
See me
Climbing down the stairs
I cut you with a piece of glass
Ohhhhhhh clair
And I'm walking through the long wet grass
Ohhhhhhh
Tear up clothes you used to wear
And you act as if you just don't care
Ohhhhhhh, clair
The lyrics to the song Clair by My Bloody Valentine seem to be cryptic and symbolic, much like many of the band's other songs. The opening lines suggest a sense of liberation and transcendence, as the singer seems to be ascending above the world and experiencing a heightened sense of awareness. However, this newfound clarity is quickly undercut by the line "I cut you with a piece of glass," which indicates that the singer is not entirely disconnected from reality or immune to pain. The reference to "clair" is also intriguing, as it is unclear who or what is being addressed by this name. It could be a person, a concept, or some other form of entity.
As the song progresses, the imagery becomes increasingly surreal and impressionistic. The line "Now I catch the shining sun" suggests a moment of bliss or enlightenment, but it is immediately followed by a more ambiguous line about walking through wet grass. The final lines, "Tear up clothes you used to wear / And you act as if you just don't care," suggest a sense of ennui or nihilism, as the singer seems to reject the trappings of the past and embrace a more apathetic worldview.
Line by Line Meaning
See me
Acknowledge my presence
Climbing through the clouds
Navigating through the chaos of change
The world is changing, colours clash
The world is transforming and everything seems uncertain
Ohhhhhhh
Expression of feeling
See me
Acknowledge my presence
Climbing down the stairs
Descending into the depths of emotions
I cut you with a piece of glass
I hurt you with my actions
Ohhhhhhh clair
Expression of apology
Now I catch the shining sun
I see the brighter side of things now
And I'm walking through the long wet grass
Enjoying the beauty and wonder of the world
Ohhhhhhh
Expression of joy and wonder
Tear up clothes you used to wear
Destroying the memories of the past
And you act as if you just don't care
You pretend to be unaffected by the changes
Ohhhhhhh, clair
Expression of regret and remorse
Lyrics © Wixen Music Publishing, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Colm Michael O'Ciosoig, Kevin Patrick Shields
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
July
No comments? Wtf this is a masterpiece
blurry123 bob
I know right!
Saturn Jr
That’s a sample of an audience cheering at a Beatles concert according to Kevin
thefeelcompany
@Saturn Jr Hopefully you’ll get to see/hear them live! They’ve been talking about a double record fir 2021/2022....but we won’t hold our breath!
I don’t believe you’ll ever get tired of them! Thirty years on and I still love Loveless.
os_mutante
@o1000ir just saw the same bit in the same interview and am also awestruck. i thought it was just guitar hum
and now i can't un-hear the screaming
Saturn Jr
@thefeelcompany Damn thats awesome you got to hear loveless live. I've only been listening to them for 2 years but I still haven't gotten bored
thefeelcompany
Yup. Despite listening to them since I was 13 and seeing them on tour with Loveless I’ve deliberately left some of the back catalogue to ‘discover’ and I’m here from the same article! I can see what he was aiming for!!!!!
Igor Amaral
@o1000ir Me as well. After all these years I am still surprised by MBV
worldwidehey
The cheering Beatles crowd morphed into screaming feedback is perfect.
Brandon Fernandez
Beautiful and happy