School of Seven Bells (often abbreviated as SVIIB) was a dream pop/shoegaze… Read Full Bio ↴School of Seven Bells (often abbreviated as SVIIB) was a dream pop/shoegaze/electronic band formed in 2007 in Brooklyn, New York, United States. The initial lineup consisted of Benjamin Curtis (guitar, synthesizers, vocals, production), Alejandra Deheza (vocals, guitar), and her identical twin sister Claudia Deheza (vocals, keyboards).

In October 2010, Claudia Deheza left SVIIB for personal reasons and the band continued as a duo. In 29 December 2013, Curtis (aged 35) died of cancer. School of Seven Bells is named after a mythical South American pickpocket training academy.

The Deheza sisters are former members of On!Air!Library! and Curtis was a former member of Secret Machines and Tripping Daisy. Curtis and the Deheza sisters met when both were opening on an Interpol tour. The three decided to end their commitments to their old bands, move in to a shared space, and create a home recording studio together.

The single "My Cabal" was released in May 2007 on the UK label Sonic Cathedral. A 12"/digital EP, Face to Face on High Places, was released in September 2007 on Table of the Elements. The band toured with Blonde Redhead in September of 2007 and with Prefuse 73 in November of 2007.

School of Seven Bells' debut album, Alpinisms, was released by Ghostly International in the U.S. on 28 October 2008.

Their second studio album, Disconnect From Desire, was released on 13 July 2010. Three singles were released from this album: "Heart Is Strange," "Windstorm," and "I L U."

On 28 February 2012, the band issued their third album, Ghostory. The singles "The Night," "Lafaye," and "Scavenger" helped to promote the album. On 13 November 2012, School of Seven Bells released the EP Put Your Sad Down.

On 29 December 2013, Benjamin Curtis died in New York City. He had been diagnosed with T-Cell lymphoma earlier in the year.

In October 2015, Alejandra Deheza announced that the band's fourth and final album, SVIIB, would be released in February 2016. In November, the band released the first single from the album, "Open Your Eyes."

Official site: http://www.sviib.com

Joviann
School of Seven Bells Lyrics

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Joviann, I have no use for histories
My mind catches only the loudest of
The brightest storms
It's no mystery
That the night begins as a roving wind that
Summons the earth
From under my feet
And I see the grains one after another

Go up in the drift
Encircling me

I used to love
The end of the night
When the sun would break through
The seam of the horizon
but now
Joviann
Things aren't the same
No day is complete
Because with the moon
Love fades away from me

I used to love
I used to love

Joviann, how can I sustain moments like these
Oh how the time crumbles out of existence
When something has changed
And become a need
My heart is weighted with a resistance
That deadens the pain
When you're not with me
And I feel the grains one after another
Are slipping away

I used to love
I used to love

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to School of Seven Bells' song "Joviann" are a plaintive reflection on the ephemerality of time and love. The opening line "Joviann, I have no use for histories" immediately sets the tone for a song that is more concerned with the present moment than the past. The singer's mind is caught up in the raw power and beauty of the natural world, as symbolized by "the loudest of the brightest storms". Yet despite this reverence for nature, there is also a sense of anxiety and uncertainty, as suggested by the imagery of the earth being "summoned" from under their feet.

As the song progresses, the focus shifts to the experience of love and how it changes over time. The singer speaks of how they used to love watching the sunrise ("the end of the night"), but now can't find the same satisfaction in daily life. The chorus repeats the refrain "I used to love" as a way of emphasizing this sense of loss and longing. The final verse brings these themes together, as the singer struggles to "sustain moments like these" and finds that time is slipping away from them. Yet even in the face of this uncertainty and impermanence, there is a sense of stoic acceptance - the heart is "weighted with a resistance that deadens the pain".

Overall, "Joviann" is a poignant meditation on the fleeting nature of human experience, set against a backdrop of natural beauty and emotional turmoil.

Line by Line Meaning

Joviann, I have no use for histories
The singer is no longer interested in the past.

My mind catches only the loudest of the brightest storms
The singer is focused on the present and only pays attention to what stands out.

It's no mystery that the night begins as a roving wind that summons the earth from under my feet And I see the grains one after another Go up in the drift encircling me
The singer is describing the feeling of being swept away by the night, as if the ground is slipping away from beneath them.

I used to love the end of the night when the sun would break through the seam of the horizon but now Joviann things aren't the same No day is complete because with the moon love fades away from me
The artist used to find joy in the morning, but now they feel that love only exists in the absence of the moon.

Joviann, how can I sustain moments like these Oh how the time crumbles out of existence When something has changed And become a need My heart is weighted with a resistance That deadens the pain When you're not with me And I feel the grains one after another Are slipping away I used to love I used to love
The artist is struggling to hold onto the moments that make life worth living. They feel that love has become a need and their heart is heavy with the pain of separation.

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, SC PUBLISHING DBA SECRETLY CANADIAN PUB., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: ALEJANDRA DEHEZA, BENJAMIN DAVID CURTIS, CLAUDIA DEHEZA

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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