Recently Parkes has been more and more active in producing music for film, having worked on a number of scoring projects for upcoming features from his new home base in Los Angeles (most notably for The Animatrix and The Italian Job). His dedication to film scoring is evident, and his perfectionist attention to detail and tireless work ethic are quickly leading him to success in Hollywood.
(2) Though Goldie became the first superstar of jungle, the recordings of Rupert Parkes -- as Code of Practice, Aquarius, Studio Pressure, the Truper, and Sentinel, but most famously as Photek -- made him an easy pick for the style's most artistic and intelligent producer. Working his way through street-level hardstep (on early productions for Certificate 18 and Street Beats) and airy, sub-aquatic "dolphin" tunes for L.T.J Bukem's Good Looking label, Parkes finally arrived at a sound that pushed the bounds of drum'n'bass from the dancefloor into the realm of breakbeat head space. His incredibly intricate rhythm programming -- often requiring weeks of computer preparation -- and the unmissable aura of paranoid menace on recordings such as "The Hidden Camera" and "UFO" exerted quite an influence on the return of dark-style drum'n'bass during the late '90s.
As a teenager, Parkes listened to electro, techno, and hip-hop as well as the more free-form side of jazz and fusion. Thanks to a sampler bought with a £2000 loan from the Trust of the Prince of Wales, he began producing tracks and first appeared on Paul Solomon's Certificate 18 Records with singles as Studio Pressure. He also recorded for Basement (as Sentinel) and Street Beats (the Truper) before initiating a series of 12" singles for his own Photek Records, which gave him credentials and led to releases on Goldie's Metalheadz label and L.T.J. Bukem's Good Looking, as well as a remix of the Therapy? single "Loose."
After Parkes had released more than 80 tracks of drum'n'bass on half-a-dozen labels, he was approached by Virgin and signed to a five-album deal with the label's Science imprint (provided he was allowed to continue recording for other independent labels as well). Parkes' first release on Science was the Hidden Camera EP, which appeared in May 1996. The second Science single Ni-Ten-Ichi-Ryu displayed an increasing interest in applying the lessons of martial arts to his programming (the title is Japanese for "two swords, one technique"). Virgin compiled the latter two releases on 1997's Risc vs. Reward, then released the debut Photek album Modus Operandi in September 1997. Much-hyped though little-praised, the album was followed by 1998's Form & Function, a compilation including several original Photek Records tracks plus remixes and new tracks. During the next two years, Parkes focused on his new Photek Productions label, and finally released a second LP, Solaris, in 2000. A couple exceptions aside, the album departed from drum'n'bass and was deeply indebted to early Chicago house. Heavyweight house vocalist Robert Owens was featured on two tracks.
Throughout the next decade, Parkes was sporadically active, at least when it came to 12" releases. He became involved with composing music for films and assisted Trent Reznor with some programming on Nine Inch Nails' 2005 album With Teeth. Some of his 2000-2007 output was compiled for Form & Function, Vol. 2 (Sanctuary, 2007). Across 2011 and 2012, he was prolific once more, with several singles and EPs for Photek Productions, a collaboration with dubstep producer Pinch, and an installment in the !K7 label's long-running DJ-Kicks series. Featuring several of his own tracks, Parkes' mix focused on contemporary techno, downtempo, and atmospheric dubstep, with no drum'n'bass whatsoever. ~ John Bush & Andy Kellman, Rovi
Thunder
Photek Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Thunder!
Feel
This love ya found came crashin' down
Like thunder!
I wonder?
This feeling that came over me
I never saw us happenin'
So unexpected, you and me
'Cause when it hit our love came down
Like thunder!
Thunder!
The lyrics to Photek's song "Thunder" convey a love that takes hold unexpectedly and powerfully, like a force of nature. The repetition of the word "thunder" emphasizes the intensity of the feeling, and the comparison to a crashing sound emphasizes the suddenness and surprise of the experience. The singer of the lyrics expresses wonder and amazement at the strength and speed of this love, suggesting that they did not anticipate such a strong connection.
The lyrics also convey a sense of inevitability - the love "came over" the singer, suggesting a lack of control or agency in the experience. The line "I never saw us happenin'" reinforces this point, indicating that the singer did not anticipate or plan for this level of attachment. However, the use of the word "us" suggests that the love is mutual and shared between two people.
Overall, the lyrics to "Thunder" convey a sense of powerful, unexpected love that takes hold quickly and forcefully. The use of sound-related imagery emphasizes the intensity of the experience, while the sense of inevitability suggests that the love is meant to be.
Line by Line Meaning
Crashin' down like...
This moment is crashing down on me with such force
Thunder!
It's like a thunder clap in its intensity
Feel
To sense and recognize
This love ya found came crashin' down
This relationship you found has ended and fallen apart so quickly
Like thunder!
It ended as abruptly as a loud clap of thunder
Didja feel this way, jus' yesterday
Did you anticipate that our love would end so suddenly yesterday?
I wonder?
I'm left questioning what went wrong and how we got here
This feeling that came over me
This unexpected and powerful emotion that took over me
I never saw us happenin'
I never could have predicted that we would be together
So unexpected, you and me
Our romance was a great surprise that caught us both off guard
'Cause when it hit our love came down
When our relationship ended, it ended hard and suddenly
Like thunder!
The end was as shocking and intense as a thunder clap
Contributed by Jake V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Alex Luke
Quality release, both sides pure heat
Dan Vez
banger, sure i had this on vinyl, gonna have to dig it out!
SATORI0320
Out-fucking-standing