Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (often abbreviated to OMD) is a synthpop … Read Full Bio ↴Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark (often abbreviated to OMD) is a synthpop group whose founding members are originally from the Wirral, United Kingdom.

The group was founded in 1978 by Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys, after they had been involved in several bands, including The Id. Later drummer Malcolm Holmes and saxophonist Martin Cooper joined. McCluskey and Humphreys formed the core of the outfit until 1989, when the group split in two. McCluskey retained the name and continued to record and tour as OMD with a new line-up until 1996, while Humphreys, Holmes, and Cooper formed "The Listening Pool".

According to Songfacts, Enola Gay was the first of 7 Top 10 UK singles for the group; their only US hit was If You Leave, which was written for the 1985 movie Pretty In Pink.

In late December 2005, OMD's official website announced a 2006 reformation, for both live performances and a new album, with rehearsals beginning in summer 2006. The line up features the original 1980's members (Andy McCluskey, Paul Humphreys, Malcolm Holmes and Martin Cooper). The "Architecture & Morality" tour for late 2006 was postponed until the beginning of 2007.

The tour finally took place in the spring of 2007 featuring "Architecture & Morality" played in its entirety plus a 'greatest hits' set, although each concert famously ended with stirring rendition of B side/album track and fan favourite "The Romance of the Telescope".

Plans are now ahead for the release of a documentary DVD (since released and available here), a live DVD of the 2007 tour (release postponed until 2008) and a new studio album released in 2010, entitled "History of Modern".

The group's 12th studio album, English Electric, was released on 5 April 2013. The group's 13th studio album, The Punishment Of Luxury, was released on 1 September 2017. The group's 14th studio album, Bauhaus Staircase, was released on 27 October 2023.

Official OMD website: http://www.omd.uk.com

I Betray My Friends
Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Now it's the way, all the time
Life's not fair, it's just melted away
Sorrow to hell, all the time
Choose death
And this song is dead
How do they stand to be with you?

Just, just, just the way

Just the way, just the way to be
Just the way, just the way you treat me all the time
Just the way, just the way all the time

You've never seen me
You've never hoped, too fair to say
You just can't explain yourself

You can't explain yourself
I can't explain this pain

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark's "I Betray My Friends" explore themes of betrayal, unfairness, sorrow, and death. The opening lines, "Now it's the way, all the time/Life's not fair, it's just melted away," express a sense of hopelessness and resignation to the difficulties of life. The chorus repeats the phrase "just the way" four times, with slight variations each time, suggesting that the singer is trapped in a cycle of mistreatment and unable to break free.

The final lines, "You've never seen me/You've never hoped, too fair to say/You just can't explain yourself/You can't explain yourself/I can't explain this pain," suggest that the singer feels unseen and misunderstood by someone who has betrayed them. The repetition of "you can't explain yourself" underscores the frustration and incomprehension of the singer, who cannot understand why someone they trusted would hurt them. The final line, "I can't explain this pain," is a powerful expression of the singer's emotional turmoil and highlights the deep hurt and confusion caused by betrayal.

Overall, "I Betray My Friends" is a haunting meditation on the pain of betrayal and the difficulty of understanding why someone would turn against you. The lyrics are simple, yet powerful, and the repeating chorus emphasizes the sense of stuckness and repetition that the singer feels in their situation.

Line by Line Meaning

Now it's the way, all the time
Things have changed permanently and we are stuck in this new reality

Life's not fair, it's just melted away
Life is tough and it's slipping away from us

Sorrow to hell, all the time
We are constantly experiencing misery and pain

Choose death
Death seems like a better option to escape the pain

And this song is dead
The music and emotions have faded away

How do they stand to be with you?
I can't understand why anyone would want to be close to you

Just, just, just the way
Exactly, precisely, and undeniably the manner in which

Just the way, just the way to be
This is the expected way to behave or act

Just the way, just the way you treat me all the time
This is how you consistently treat me

Just the way, just the way all the time
This is how it always is

You've never seen me
You don't know me at all