Neko Case (born September 8, 1970, in Alexandria, Virginia) is an American … Read Full Bio ↴Neko Case (born September 8, 1970, in Alexandria, Virginia) is an American singer and songwriter, best known for her solo career and her contributions as a member of the Canadian indie rock group The New Pornographers.

Case moved around often as a child, spending the largest part of her youth in Tacoma, Washington. She left her parents at age 15 and three years later she started playing drums for several bands around the Northwest's punk rock scene. In 1994, she moved to Vancouver, BC to enter art school, and simultaneously joined the punk group Maow, who released a record on the Mint label. She also played with roots rockers the Weasles, and eventually formed her own backing band, the Boyfriends, which initially featured alumni of the Softies, Zumpano, and Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet.

Case released her solo debut, The Virginian, in 1997, delving wholeheartedly into traditional country via a mix of covers and originals. She went on to perform with Carolyn Mark in the old-timey side project the Corn Sisters, and recorded with the Vancouver indie supergroup the New Pornographers, which she continues to be a member of. In 1998, Case completed her studies and, with her student visa expired, returned to Washington and began work on her second solo album. The lovely, melancholy Furnace Room Lullaby was released on Bloodshot Records in 2000 and won high praise from most critics.

Case subsequently relocated to Chicago, home of a thriving alt-country scene, and released the home-recorded Canadian Amp EP in 2001. Its moody, late-night ambiance carried over to 2002's Blacklisted, a darker yet more eclectic affair; it garnered Case her strongest reviews up to that point, making many year-end critics' polls, and landed her a tour slot opening for Nick Cave. Blacklisted was recorded at Wavelab Studio in Tuscon AZ, where Case had moved to in 2002.

In 2004, Case signed with Anti Records in the United States, and that year she released a live album, The Tigers Have Spoken, recorded during several dates with Canadian surf-country band the Sadies.

Fox Confessor Brings the Flood, hailed by critics as an instant classic and Case's most realized work yet, followed in 2006. Calexico's Joey Burns and John Convertino contributed guitar, cello, bass, and drums to the album.

On March 3, 2009, Case released Middle Cyclone. It was her first album to reach the top ten's on the Billboard charts in the US.

Middle Cyclone was followed by "The worse things get, the harder I fight, the harder I fight, the more I love you" which came out September 4th 2013.

Case now lives on her farm in Vermont.

Stinging Velvet
Neko Case Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Rain falls
I fix my eyes
I let go of the focus
And I blur out all the lines
Just to remember
Remember

Crying

'Cause it's not my fault
Water through my lashes
Look just like Christmas lights
And I still remember
Remember

Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering warm

Sing please
Rock me to sleep
Quiet as a canyon
Up under heaven's eaves
I surrender
Surrender

Downstairs
The furnace swells
Safe from all the horrors
In your stinging velvet arms
And I surrender
Surrender

Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering warm

Cold and shivering

Cold and shivering
Cold and shivering warm

Overall Meaning

"Stinging Velvet" is a song by Neko Case that speaks to the power of memories and the intense emotions they can evoke. The song begins with the sound of rain falling, a perfect metaphor for the feeling of being overwhelmed by one's thoughts and emotions. As the rain falls, Case stares out into the blurry landscape, blurring out all the lines in order to force herself to remember something important. This idea of blurring out lines is a powerful one, as it suggests that memory can be an elusive thing, one that we have to work hard to hold onto.

The song then moves into a slow, intense section where Case cries out in frustration, unable to shake the memories that are haunting her. She describes the tears falling from her eyes like Christmas lights, a beautiful yet melancholy image. The idea of crying and feeling intense emotions over something that is not one's fault is a universal one, and most listeners will be able to relate to this feeling. Case then moves into a section where she speaks of being cold and shivering, a physical manifestation of the emotional turmoil she is experiencing.

Line by Line Meaning

Rain falls
The rain is falling down from the sky

I fix my eyes
I concentrate and focus my eyes

I let go of the focus
I stop concentrating and let my eyes blur out

And I blur out all the lines
I can't see the lines or shapes clearly anymore

Just to remember
I do this in order to remember something important

Remember
I keep trying to remember something

Crying
I am sobbing and upset

'Cause it's not my fault
I am upset about something that wasn't my fault

Water through my lashes
My tears are falling from my eyelashes

Look just like Christmas lights
My tears and the Christmas lights look similar

And I still remember
Even though I am crying, I still remember something important