The band was formed in 1989 by bassist Mark Clayden with guitarist and programmer Johnny Carter, later joined by vocalist JS Clayden and Stuart Toolin. During this time, the band played with local bands and soon gained attention of the Peaceville Records. During this time, JS went to live in France to sell paintings.
During 1990, the band started recording their début album, Industrial, with the main vocalist being Mark Clayden instead of JS, who contributed with backing vocals. The band later went on a small tour with bands like Napalm Death.
Their first few releases had a distinctive industrial sound where the influential gaze of Godflesh was abundantly apparent.
The simplified 808 style drum tracks and sluggish drone guitars evolved over the next decade to produce some of the most intense loop based crunching metal/punk riffs and hard floor dance rhythm sections.
Throughout their highly acclaimed career although often commercially overlooked, Pitchshifter were often heralded with founding the Electro Punk genre with JS Claydon's 'sex pistols' barrages on the current state of the UK, simplistic chord driven guitar lines and the inclusion of more and more elaborate sampling and synth based elements.
Similar to previous attempts at this meld of minds such as Pop Will Eat Itself (PWEI) Pitchshifter created an intense and dedicated fan-base who still work hard to promote the outfit.
Although the band officially ceased to be after releasing the album PSI, they have continued to reform for the occasional festival appearance or one-off event each of which is accompanied by one-off releases for ticket holders.
Since shutting down the PSI-political propaganda machine, members have gone on to work on various projects together and solo, including This is Menace, a super group comprising of members of Amen, Hundred Reasons, Funeral For a Friend and Earthone9.
Mark Claydon is now a regular tutor at the Brighton Institute of Modern Music (BIMM), and runs a regular advice column for bands just starting out in the UK-based Total Guitar magazine (available through Future Publishing).
A Better Lie
Pitchshifter Lyrics
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Is that the best that you can do?
'Cause I don't believe you.
Is that the best that you can do?
'Cause you said it's something new.
And if I could be bothered I would think of a better lie,
(But I don't like you enough to even try).
The lyrics of Pitchshifter's "A Better Lie" are filled with conviction and contempt. The song starts with an immediate rejection of a misleading statement, "A better lie? Don't even try." The singer seems unimpressed with the falsehood laid out in front of him and questions the credibility of the person who made the claim. He then poses a challenge to the person to come up with better lies because the one they presented was subpar. The chorus repeats the question of whether that was the best lie and offers skepticism towards the person's claims. The shift in the song is in the verse when the singer acknowledges that they could give a better lie than the one presented, however, they do not consider the person worthy of the effort, "But I don't like you enough to even try." The song is an anthem for all the people who are tired of being fed lies and demands authenticity from those around them.
The song was first released as a single in 1999 and then later appeared on Pitchshifter's album "www.pitchshifter.com" in the same year. The song gained popularity due to its prominent position in the movie "The Matrix".
Line by Line Meaning
A better lie? don't even try.
Are you seriously suggesting that I should believe your lies? I'm not falling for it.
Is that the best that you can do?
'Cause I don't believe you.
You're not even trying to come up with something believable. I'm not buying it.
Is that the best that you can do?
'Cause you said it's something new.
You said that it was something different this time, but it's the same old thing. I'm not fooled.
"Come on."
I'm not swayed by your attempts to persuade me. I'm not buying your lies.
And if I could be bothered I would think of a better lie,
(But I don't like you enough to even try).
Even if I wanted to deceive you, it's not worth the effort because I don't care enough about you to even try. You're not worth it.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: JOHNATHAN CARTER, JON S. CLAYDEN, MARK CLAYDEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind