Post-modern ironists cloaked behind a veil of buoyantly melodic and lushly romantic synth pop confections, Pet Shop Boys offer wry yet strangely affecting cultural commentary communicated by the Morse code of synth washes and drum machine rhythms. After first emerging in the mid-'80s with "West End Girls" and "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)," Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe quickly established themselves as hitmaking singles artists who were also able to craft emotionally resonant albums, like 1988's Introspective and 1990's Behaviour. The duo navigated the constantly shifting landscape of modern dance-pop with grace and intelligence, moving easily from disco to house music to thoughtful synth pop without losing their distinctive style in the process. Continuing to evolve artistically, Pet Shop Boys incorporated Latin music on 1996's Bilingual, expanded into theater and ballet, and morphed into elder statesmen of electronic pop, still able to release interesting albums after more than 30 years, as evidenced by highlights like 2016's Super and 2020's Hotspot.
Pet Shop Boys formed in London in August 1981, when vocalist Tennant (a former editor at Marvel Comics who later gained recognition as a journalist for Smash Hits magazine) first met keyboardist Lowe (a onetime architecture student) at an electronics shop. Discovering a shared passion for dance music and synthesizers, they immediately decided to start a band. After dubbing themselves Pet Shop Boys in honor of friends who worked in such an establishment -- while also obliquely nodding to the sort of names prevalent among the New York City hip-hop culture of the early '80s -- the duo's career first took flight in 1983, when Tennant met producer Bobby "O" Orlando while on a writing assignment. Orlando produced their first single, 1984's "West End Girls." The song was a minor hit in the U.S. but went nowhere in Britain, and its follow-up, "One More Chance," was also unsuccessful.
Upon signing to EMI, Pet Shop Boys issued 1985's biting "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)." When it too failed to attract attention, the duo's future appeared grim, but Tennant and Lowe then released an evocative new Stephen Hague production of "West End Girls," which became an international chart-topper. Its massive success propelled Pet Shop Boys' 1986 debut LP, Please, into the Top Ten, and when "Opportunities" was subsequently reissued, it too became a hit. Disco, a collection of dance remixes, was quickly rushed into stores, and in 1987 the duo resurfaced with the superb Actually, which launched two more Top Ten smashes -- "It's a Sin" and "What Have I Done to Deserve This?," a duet between Tennant and the great Dusty Springfield. Later that year, "Always on My Mind," a lovely cover of the perennial Elvis Presley standard, reached number one in several countries and the Top Ten in the U.S. A documentary film titled It Couldn't Happen Here was released one year later.
In October 1988, Pet Shop Boys issued their third studio LP, the eclectic Introspective. "Domino Dancing" and "Left to My Own Devices" both reached the Top Ten in Great Britain. The following year, Pet Shop Boys collaborated with a variety of performers, most notably Liza Minnelli, for whom they produced the 1989 LP Results. They also produced material for Springfield, and Tennant joined New Order frontman Bernard Sumner and ex-Smiths guitarist Johnny Marr in the group Electronic, scoring a hit with the single "Getting Away with It." Tennant and Lowe reconvened in 1990 for the muted, downcast Behavior, produced by Harold Faltermeyer. Their hit medley of U2's "Where the Streets Have No Name" and Frankie Valli's "Can't Take My Eyes Off You" was released in 1991, and was followed in 1993 by Very, lauded as one of the duo's finest efforts.
After a three-year absence, Pet Shop Boys resurfaced with Bilingual, a fluid expansion into Latin rhythms. Nightlife followed in 1999 and sparked the dance club hit "New York City Boy," whose success allowed the group to tour the U.S. for the first time in eight years. While on tour, the pair also collaborated with playwright Jonathan Harvey on a musical surrounding gay life and societal criticisms, which the three had been planning since 1997. Closer to Heaven made its West End debut in 2001 and had a successful run for most of the year; Pet Shop Boys' score of the original cast recording was also a hit in the U.K. They still had time to make a record for themselves, too: In April 2002, Tennant and Lowe issued Release and Disco 3 was compiled for release the following year.
Pet Shop Boys continued releasing material throughout the decade's latter half. In 2005, they put together a volume of the Back to Mine series and released their music designed to accompany the 1925 silent film Battleship Potemkin, a soundtrack they'd performed a year earlier at a free concert/screening in Trafalgar Square. A year later, they issued Fundamental, a mature, sometimes political album produced by Trevor Horn. The live album Concrete: In Concert at the Mermaid Theatre appeared at the end of the year, and Yes -- a collaborative effort with the production crew Xenomania -- marked the band's tenth studio effort in March 2009. While playing shows in support of that album, Pet Shop Boys also released a hits compilation, Party, to coincide with the Brazilian leg of their tour. In 2010, the tour was documented on the CD/DVD release Pandemonium, and another greatest-hits compilation, Ultimate, arrived.
Their 2011 effort, The Most Incredible Thing, was a two-disc ballet score composed for the Sadler's Wells Theatre in London, while 2012's Format rounded up the duo's B-sides and bonus tracks from the years 1996-2009. Also in 2012, Pet Shop Boys released the sports-themed single "Winner" and performed the track at the 2012 Olympics Summer Games, held that year in their hometown of London. The track landed on that year's album Elysium, which was produced by Kanye West affiliate Andrew Dawson. Stuart Price (Madonna, Seal, Kylie Minogue) was the producer of 2013's Electric, an album that featured no ballads, just dance tracks.
In May 2014, the duo announced more original music, this time with a concert piece scheduled for a July date at Royal Albert Hall commemorating British code breaker Alan Turing and including the BBC Concert Orchestra. Price returned as producer of 2016's Super, the second album in a row where Pet Shop Boys were "electronic purists," meaning no guitars, no orchestral support, and no organic instruments. The following year saw the band issue the Undertow EP, which featured two remixes of Super's "Undertow," a remix of "Burn," and a new version of "Left to My Own Devices," produced by Stuart Price. They were also awarded the Godlike Genius Award by NME.
The duo issued the Agenda EP in early 2019, and the live album CD/DVD/Blu-ray release Inner Sanctum appeared in April; it was recorded during Pet Shop Boys' four-day residency in July 2018 at the Royal Opera House in London. Later in the year, they started issuing songs from their next long-player, including "Dreamland," a collaboration with Years & Years, and "Burning the Heather," which featured Suede's Bernard Butler on guitar. The album, titled Hotspot, arrived in January 2020 and was their third LP to be produced by Price. Discovery (Live in Rio), a concert originally issued on video in 1995, was issued on DVD and CD for the first time in 2021. The duo also released a nearly ten-minute classical-inspired single titled "Cricket Wife."
In May 2022 Pet Shop and British pop duo Soft Cell released the album *Happiness Not Included - Soft Cell first studio album in nearly two decades. The colab included the song “Purple Zone”, blending the best of both Soft Cell and Pet Shop Boys, layering a dazzling synth riff and dance floor-ready beat with anthemic vocals. Appropriately for the pandemics, the track laments feeling stuck in the monotony of everyday mundanities: “Let’s get out of this life/ I’m afraid and alone,” goes the chorus. Paralyzed in the purple zone.”
Their much-anticipated “Unity Tour” of North America alongside New Order, rescheduled twice following pandemics delays, kicked off in Fall 2022 and included several venues in Canada and the United States, featuring Paul Oakenfold as special guest DJ.
http://petshopboys.co.uk
Integral
Pet Shop Boys Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here
Long live us
The persuaded we
Integral
To the whole project
It's brand new
Conceived solely
To protect you
One world
One reason
Unchanging
One season
If you've done nothing wrong
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here
You've had your chance
Now we've got the mandate
If you've changed your mind
I'm afraid it's too late
We're concerned
You're a threat
You're not integral
To the project
Everyone has
Their own number
In the system that
We operate under
We're moving to
A situation
Where your lives exist as
Information
One world
One life
One chance
One reason
All under
One sky
Unchanging
One season
If you've done nothing wrong
You've got nothing to fear
If you've something to hide
You shouldn't even be here
You've had your chance
Now we've got the mandate
If you've changed your mind
I'm afraid it's too late
We're concerned
You're a threat
You're not integral
To the project
The lyrics of "Integral" by Pet Shop Boys explore the idea of a society ruled by an overbearing government that claims to act in the best interest of its citizens. The first verse mentions the concept of "nothing to hide, nothing to fear" which implies that if someone has done nothing wrong, they shouldn't worry about being monitored or being under constant scrutiny. However, as the song progresses, it reveals that even innocent people may be considered a threat if they do not comply with the government's ideals or to be essential to the project. The chorus reiterates the sentiment that a unified world, under one season, with one reason and one justification is at the expense of individuality and free will. The second verse alludes to the idea of a person's worth being measured solely by their "number" in the system and that their lives exist as "information" that can be manipulated by those in power.
The song's overall mood is ominous and dystopian, with a robotic-like voice and a repetitive beat that reinforces the themes of conformity and control. The lyrics encourage listeners to question the morality of a government that continually strips people's identities and values in the name of security. The song implies the need for people to be vigilant about their rights and freedoms and to resist oppression and dehumanization.
Line by Line Meaning
If you've done nothing wrong
If you have not committed any wrongful acts
You've got nothing to fear
You have nothing to worry about
If you've something to hide
If you have something to conceal from the authorities
You shouldn't even be here
You should not be present in this situation
Long live us
We proclaim our superiority and longevity
The persuaded we
We are the people who have been convinced or won over
Integral
We are an essential part of the project
Collectively
Working together as a group towards our common goal
To the whole project
We are dedicated to the entire undertaking
It's brand new
The project is a new concept
Conceived solely
The idea for the project was created only for the purpose of protecting people
To protect you
The project's ultimate objective is to keep people safe
One world
All human beings share one planet
One reason
We all have a common motive
Unchanging
Things remain the same
One season
There is only one time of year
You've had your chance
You were given an opportunity
Now we've got the mandate
We have a clear indication of what the public wants
If you've changed your mind
If you have altered your prior views
I'm afraid it's too late
I regret to inform you that it is too late to change your position
We're concerned
We are worried
You're a threat
You pose a danger
You're not integral
You are not a vital component
To the project
You are not crucial to the plan
Everyone has
All individuals possess
Their own number
Each person has a unique identifier in the system
In the system that
Within the infrastructure
We operate under
We function according to the system's regulations
We're moving to
We are progressing towards
A situation
A condition or circumstance
Where your lives exist as
Where your existence is recorded as
Information
Data stored within the system
One life
Each of us has one life to live
One chance
We only have one opportunity
All under
Everyone is under
One sky
We are all gazing at the same sky
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: LAUREN CHRISTY, GRAHAM EDWARDS, SCOTT SPOCK, LACEY LEE EVIN, TASHA RAY EVIN, LOUISE BURNS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Jonathan Warner
This is merely a copy, word for word, of what
was published this morning in the State newspaper:
"In another hundred and twenty days the building of
the Integral will be completed. The great historic hour
is near, when the first Integral will rise into the limitless
space of the universe. One thousand years ago your heroic
ancestors subjected the whole earth to the power of the
United State. A still more glorious task is before you: the
integration of the indefinite equation of the Cosmos by
the use of the glass, electric, fire-breathing Integral. Your
mission is to subjugate to the grateful yoke of reason the
unknown beings who live on other planets, and who are
perhaps still in the primitive state of freedom. If they will
not understand that we are bringing them a mathemati-
cally faultless happiness, our duty will be to .force them
to be happy. But before we take up arms, we shall try the
power of words.
"We" Yevgeny Zamyatin
Miloš Vasin
This is by far the best version of what is probably the best song of Pet Shop Boys.
Linkonpark100
This version is way more better because of how powerful it is.
James Simon
I didn't even know this video existed until now. PSB still cutting edge.
David Bull
This has been re edited from the proper video. Same footage but chopped and changed.
Liam Ordner
one of their best songs
Conspiracy of Truth!
This is SO AMAZING!!! I’ve never seen it before today May 26, 2019 and it is time less. Thank you my favorite dynamic duo for continually raising your own visual and musical standards!!! BMM (blow my mind!)...
Patrizia Taranto
Grazie per aver pubblicato questo splendido capolavoro... Non riesco a smettere di ascoltarlo!! Per sempre nel cuore ❤️PetShopBoys❤️
Marcos Camargo
Esses caras de Londres sabem fazer a melhor música tecno futurista do Universo. Muita genialidade e profissionalismo. Cada show é um capítulo à mais na composição de uma obra de arte fantástica. 👏👏👏👏🇧🇷
Marsmensch 1972
Yes, this one is much better than the poor single version. And great video cut as well.
Michael Wilson
This is so great! Exactly what is happening now!