The band is one of the few outfits still burning with the fire of punk, but managing to combine it with the ideals and knowledge of English folk music - a balancing act they've made into a fine art over the years. And they have deep roots in the U.K. folk scene, emerging from both the Whitstable Oyster Co. Ceilidh Band, which formed in 1975, and Fiddler's Dram, a group put together in 1973 by Dave Arbus, whose fiddle work had graced releases by East of Eden and the Who.
Prosser, Telfer, and Taylor were also in Fiddler's Dram, whose moment of fame arrived in 1979 with the British hit single "Day Trip to Bangor" - released after they'd split up. They reconvened for a last album when Kearey joined them. He also became part of the band's alter ego, the roots-oriented Oyster Ceilidh Band, as they'd now become. With Fiddler's Dram no longer extant, the members put their energies in the newly renamed Oyster Band in 1981, playing gigs around England and self-releasing albums on their own Pukka label.
The band returned in 2003 after the longest recording layoff of its career with Rise Above, which included eight originals and two English traditional numbers, and featured the work of Irish piper James O'Grady throughout.
In 1990, the band collaborated with renowned folk singer June Tabor for the album Freedom and Rain and a tour.
Current Lineup:
Chopper - bass guitar, cello, vocals
John Jones - melodeon, lead vocals
Alan Prosser - guitars, viola, vocals
Ian Telfer - fiddle, English concertina, vocals
Dil Davies - drums
http://www.oysterband.co.uk/
Here Comes the Flood
Oysterband Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cutting holes in brand new jeans,
For cutting edge consumers,
Rich kids in the West you see,
They have no sense of irony,
And i'm losing my sense of humour,
All across the ruined sky,
Vapour trails multiply, trade winds are getting stronger,
They bring us apples from Brazil,
New diseases from the Congo,
I haven't prayed since god knows when,
My teeth are un-American,
Socialism's orphan child,
Unimpressed, unreconciled
Some people think I'm crazy... but I'm not
Here comes the flood
Here comes the flood
A million t.v. dishes crown the skyline of shanty town,
Everywhere our apsiration,
The word from CNN arives,
We watched the headlines of our lives,
Each movement in isolation,
The cool blue line of isolation...
I haven't prayed since god knows when,
My teeth are un-American,
Socialism's orphan child,
Unimpressed, unreconciled
Some people think I'm crazy... but I'm not
Here comes the flood
Here comes the flood
Democracy for planet earth,
They roll it out like Astroturf,
Easy men they're all in a hurry,
So you can wear a stupid grin,
Watch 'em roll the bankers in,
Only the bad guys amongst us need to worry
I haven't prayed since god knows when,
My teeth are un-American,
Socialism's orphan child,
Unimpressed, unreconciled
Some people think I'm crazy... but I'm not
Here comes the flood
Here comes the flood
The lyrics of Oysterband's "Here Comes the Flood" criticize the exploitation of workers in developing countries to satisfy the demand of rich consumers in developed nations. The first verse specifically calls out the practice of manufacturing brand new jeans in the Philippines, where factory workers endure poor labor conditions and low wages. The songwriter suggests that Western consumers who purchase these products lack self-awareness and don't appreciate the irony of their actions. The second verse describes the isolation and disconnection felt by individuals in a world where information is readily available through technology, yet people remain separated and detached from one another. The song argues for greater awareness and compassion for those whose lives are impacted by capitalism's inequalities, and a move towards a more equitable distribution of resources. The chorus, "Here comes the flood," suggests that change is imminent, and that it may be time to face the consequences of our actions.
Line by Line Meaning
Factories in the Phillipines,
There are factories in the Phillipines which are cutting holes in brand new jeans.
Cutting holes in brand new jeans,
These factories are cutting holes in brand new jeans for cutting edge consumers.
For cutting edge consumers,
These holes are being made for rich kids in the West who have no sense of irony.
Rich kids in the West you see,
The rich kids in the West have no sense of irony and the singer is losing his sense of humour because of this.
They have no sense of irony,
And i'm losing my sense of humour,
All across the ruined sky,
Vapour trails are multiplying and trade winds are getting stronger.
Vapour trails multiply, trade winds are getting stronger,
While he says she has to chill,
Someone is telling someone else to calm down or relax.
They bring us apples from Brazil,
We are being brought apples from Brazil.
New diseases from the Congo,
New diseases are coming from the Congo.
I haven't prayed since god knows when,
The singer hasn't prayed for a long time.
My teeth are un-American,
The singer's teeth are not typical of Americans.
Socialism's orphan child,
Socialism is being referred to as an orphan child, possibly because it is not being embraced as it should be.
Unimpressed, unreconciled
The singer is unimpressed and unreconciled.
Some people think I'm crazy... but I'm not
Some people consider the singer crazy but he does not agree.
Here comes the flood
Something is coming, perhaps a crisis or problem.
Here comes the flood
A million t.v. dishes crown the skyline of shanty town,
There are many TV dishes on the skyline of a shanty town.
Everywhere our apsiration,
Everywhere we look, we have aspirations.
The word from CNN arives,
We are getting information from CNN.
We watched the headlines of our lives,
We are watching the headlines of our lives.
Each movement in isolation,
Each movement is happening in isolation or independently.
The cool blue line of isolation...
There is a cool blue line of isolation.
Democracy for planet earth,
There is a push for democracy on planet Earth.
They roll it out like Astroturf,
This push for democracy is being rolled out like Astroturf, or in a superficial way.
Easy men they're all in a hurry,
Men are in a hurry and taking the easy way out.
So you can wear a stupid grin,
People can wear a stupid grin, or be blissfully unaware of the larger problems at hand.
Watch 'em roll the bankers in,
Bankers are being brought in, possibly to solve the problems at hand.
Only the bad guys amongst us need to worry
Only the bad guys need to worry about the situation at hand or the solution being proposed.
Contributed by Jonathan N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.