Inspired by the groundbreaking music of Chrome, Kraftwerk, Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle, Portion Control, The Legendary Pink Dots, and others, Skinny Puppy experimented with electronic recording techniques and methods. the band composed multi-layered music generally using keyboards, synthesizers, found sounds, drum machines, live percussion, tape splices, samplers, and conventional rock music instruments. Whereas many contemporary remixes and re-edits of songs were created in order to make a song more suitable for dancing or different radio formats, Skinny Puppy approached remixing and re-editing as an artistic process of reinterpreting compositions, often using remixes to push their sound into styles of ambient, dub and techno. Skinny Puppy's often informal, improvisational approach to musical composition is indicated by use of the term brap, coined by them and defined as a verb meaning "to get together, hook up electronic instruments, get high, and record".
Skinny Puppy's first two proper releases, Bites and Remission, fall somewhere between the found-sound chaos of early Cabaret Voltaire and the abrasive, futuristic synthpop of the Units or Crash Course in Science. While the intense synth programming, abstract rhythms, and surreal samples--all Puppy trademarks--are present here, the albums owe as much to new wave as to industrial.
A subsequent EP, Chainsaw, featured a remix of Bites's "Assimilate" that earned the band some attention from club DJs. 1986's Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse earned Skinny Puppy greater attention, as "Dig It" and "Stairs and Flowers" became alternative club and college radio hits; the video for the former was played occasionally on MTV. The album is arguably less club-friendly than its predecessors, as the band continues to refine a claustrophobic, almost surreal sound that buries rhythm and melody. The follow-up, Cleanse, Fold, and Manipulate treads similar territory.
VIVIsectVI was a breakthrough for the band, with "Testure" becoming their biggest club hit to date, and the album itself was received warmly by college radio. The title of the album was a pun intended to associate vivisection with Satanism (ie. the "666 sect"). The album shows SP integrating more political and social themes: "Testure" is an animal rights song; "VX Gas Attack" concerns the use of chemical weapons; "State Aid" promotes sexual abstinence to stop the spread of AIDS/HIV.
Ogre had become very interested in Ministry and Al Jougensen's side projects, and he persuaded the rest of the band to allow Jourgensen to produce Rabies. While "Worlock" (a track Jourgensen didn't produce) remains an industrial club classic, the album was received coolly, as many thought Jourgensen's heavy metal guitar-based signatures did not compliment SP's more complex, intricate sonic sculptures. The band briefly disbanded afterward.
They reformed and returned to their electronic roots with Too Dark Park, a hallucinogenic album that owes as much to psychedelia as industrial music. Two years later, "Last Rights" covered similar territory, culminating in the epic sound sculpture "Download." Although their sound had moved away from industrial dance, these albums expanded the band's audience, and provided the template for many industrial bands of the 1990s.
Following "Last Rights", the band, poised for a major breakthrough in the wake of Nine Inch Nails' commercial success, left their longtime label Nettwerk for American Recordings. Their highly anticipated followup was unfortunately marred by personal tragedy - the death of Dwayne Goettel - and the band's inability to agree on a direction for the record. Numerous producers, including Martyn Atkins (PigFace/Invisible Records founder) and Roli Mosimann (Swans), came and went without success; finally the band regrouped with longtime collaborator Dave "Rave" Ogilvie to finish "The Process". The band expanded their range, working with gothic pop and heavy metal, alongside their familiar electronic textures. While seemingly rushed to completion following Goettel's death (it sounds half-finished in parts), it is an interesting change for the group. Unfortunately American Recordings, tired of waiting for the record, did little to promote it. Skinny Puppy broke up afterward.
With interests in filmmaking, they made a number of music videos, each attempting to further the theme and concept of the composition at hand. Most of these videos received little air play by major music video networks such as MTV (USA) and MuchMusic (Canada) and some were outright banned. For example the video for "Worlock" was universally banned because it is a "non stop gore fest" of clips from various horror movies. Because none of these clips were authorized for usage in the video it has never been commercially available.
Their concerts have been marked by their bizarre and bloody conceptual performance art, which for every concert was planned with the intention of challenging the notions of all who observed. Their music had some acceptance in dance clubs because of its danceable beats, but had little play on commercial radio. Skinny Puppy had little commercial success outside of Canada, but their influence on industrial music is immense.
The band began with the intention of doing something "raw" and "real." Ogre's vocals, one of Skinny Puppy's most recognizable features, are typically roughly growled snarls of half-sentences and fragmented stream of consciousness. Lyrical themes included animal rights, politics, religion, horror, drug abuse, disease, and environmental degradation; these themes were often lyrically and conceptually intertwined. Other core aspects of the Skinny Puppy sound include the mixture of heavy sampling and experimental noise with softer musical styles sometimes approaching synthpop.
Post-punk politics are a recurring theme utilised by Skinny Puppy. Some say the meaning of their name is that their music and lyrics give a view of the world from the eyes of a starving animal. They have long had an interest in animal rights; this is most obvious in their song Testure, which is about vivisection and other animal testing being scientific fraud. During many of their concerts Ogre would take the role of "scientist" and experiment on a stuffed animal. In 1988 they were arrested for their mocked-up vivisections, and found it ironic to be arrested for a parody of what was happening for real across the street from their concert. During their TGWOTR tour, criticism of the Bush regime was a recurring theme, particularly during their performance of VX Gas Attack, a song about atrocities perpetrated by Saddam Hussein, originally released while he was still considered an ally of the United States.
The last two studio albums are points of contention for old school Puppy fans. During the recording of The Process, the band broke up. Even more tragically, Dwayne Rudolph Goettel died, from an apparent heroin overdose at his parent's home, soon afterwards. Some people say that cEvin, Nivek, and Dwayne didn't connect as well on this album as they had earlier because their respective musical interests were diverging at the time, others claim it was the heroin.
Key and Ogre later reunited as Skinny Puppy for a one-off concert in Germany in 2003. Afterwards, they decided Skinny Puppy should continue as an ongoing project. The newly reconstituted Skinny Puppy released The Greater Wrong of the Right in 2004, their first studio album in 8 years, and have been continuing since, constantly evolving their sound.
There have been a number of Skinny Puppy side projects, both before, and after the breakup in 1995. The Tear Garden is a collaboration between cEvin and Edward Ka-Spel (and later most band members) of The Legendary Pink Dots. Other noteable side projects include Download, Hilt, Plateau, Cyberaktif (a collaboration between Key & Goettel and Bill Leeb, a.k.a. Wilhelm Schroeder), Rx (one-off collaboration between Ogre and Martin Atkins), ADuck (Goettel's side project), A CHUD Convention (one-off collaboration with a;GRUHM...), Ogre's contributions to Pigface, Ogre and Mark Walk's band ohGr and solo releases from cEvin Key.
Deadlines (Live At LOGO Bochu
Skinny Puppy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
at best
all is nothing less
run for more
I can't decide
Love
in the grass
rather
you look me in the eye
Your face is creeping in
your caring thankless grin
immobilize the setting sin
create the mood that's dark and grim
[chorus]
Aortic
high arctic part
mood altered
my paradise is lost
maskover
no one left to dock
hide the trap
caution
deadline remark
Aortic
matches my grey skin
known so long
feels like the next of kin
Aortic
high arctic part
past the trap
caution
deadline remark
[/chorus]
Jaded whip
rosehip
shallow kiss
chauvinistic
go look inside
Whilst in the back
a gold to lead
to resurrect
what's left to die
[chorus]
Jaded pain(?)
breathes faint
tarnish and elevate
Wipe the
kiss goodbye
overuse
blank card rendezvous
understand bells mourn the tired
[chorus]
Simple test
at best
all is nothing less
run for more
i can't decide
Love
in the grass
is nothing less
rather
you look me in the eye
Your face is creeping in
your caring thankless grin
immobilize the setting sin
create the mood that's dark and grim
[chorus (but this one ends with "Your skin is such a sin
Just cut
When I cut, I cut my"]
Match my skin (x2)
The lyrics of Skinny Puppy's "Deadlines" present themselves as cryptic and desolate. The song talks about the complexities of relationships and the loss of self that can come with love. These ideas are conveyed through enigmatic verse and haunting melodies, with lines like "Simple test at best, all is nothing less" and "Jaded whip, rosehip, shallow kiss." The song seems to lament the futility of trying to find meaning in the world, with "tarnish and elevate" indicating that even the good things can be corrupted.
The chorus, with its repeated use of the word "Aortic," suggests a kind of medical or anatomical obsession - perhaps a reference to the heart, which is often associated with love and pain. The use of the terms "caution," "deadline remark," and "hide the trap" further contribute to the sense of danger and anxiety in the song. Overall, the lyrics of "Deadlines" are deliberately opaque, allowing listeners to project their own interpretations onto them.
Line by Line Meaning
Simple test
This experience is not complex or difficult.
at best
This experience, even at its highest potential, is mediocre.
all is nothing less
This experience is exactly what it seems and nothing more.
run for more
Despite the lackluster nature of this experience, there is a desire for something more.
I can't decide
Uncertainty exists over how to improve the situation.
Love
Affection or attachment to something or someone.
in the grass
The object of affection is hidden or obscured.
is nothing less
The affection is exactly what it seems and nothing more.
rather
The following statement is preferred or emphasized over what was previously said.
you look me in the eye
Direct, unwavering attention is being given.
Your face is creeping in
An image or presence is slowly becoming more apparent or unsettling.
your caring thankless grin
A look of concern or sympathy is being given without any true appreciation or acknowledgement.
immobilize the setting sin
The act of stopping, preventing, or halting a negative situation.
create the mood that's dark and grim
Establishing an atmosphere or emotion that is bleak or distressing.
Aortic
Related to the largest artery in the human body, symbolizing life and vitality.
high arctic part
A remote, extreme location that is difficult to access or survive in.
mood altered
A shift in emotional state.
my paradise is lost
The ideal or desirable location or state has been lost or destroyed.
maskover
Covering up or hiding the true nature of something or someone.
no one left to dock
No one left to judge or condemn.
hide the trap
Removing or concealing the danger or deception that is present.
caution
A warning to be careful and alert.
deadline remark
A statement or indication of the imminent end or conclusion.
matches my grey skin
A similarity or connection exists between two seemingly unrelated things.
known so long
Familiarity or awareness has been present for a significant period of time.
feels like the next of kin
An intense emotional closeness or bond is felt.
Jaded whip
An object that is both dull and harmful, symbolizing disappointment or frustration.
rosehip
A type of fruit that is beautiful on the surface but difficult to access, symbolizing an unattainable ideal.
shallow kiss
A kiss that lacks genuine depth or affection.
chauvinistic
Holding a prejudiced belief in one's own superiority or importance.
go look inside
Suggesting that a deeper exploration or inspection is necessary for understanding.
whilst in the back
While not actively in focus, still present or affecting the current situation.
a gold to lead
Something valuable or desirable that can guide or direct.
to resurrect
To bring back to life, revive or restore.
what's left to die
The remaining parts of something have been neglected or disregarded, leading to eventual failure.
Jaded pain(?)
A feeling of disappointment, frustration, or disgust that has become an integral part of one's self.
breathes faint
Weak or nearly imperceptible breathing.
tarnish and elevate
To damage or blemish, yet still raise the level or perception of the object being tarnished.
Wipe the
To remove or clean away.
kiss goodbye
To say farewell or bring an end, often to an intimate or romantic relationship or experience.
overuse
To use excessively or inappropriately, leading to negative consequences.
blank card rendezvous
Meeting or interaction that is devoid of meaning or significance.
understand bells mourn the tired
The bells of understanding or realization chime mournfully over the weary or drained.
Your skin is such a sin
The physical presence or appearance of someone is considered morally or ethically wrong or corrupt.
Just cut
Suggesting that the best course of action is to simply remove or sever ties with something or someone.
When I cut, I cut my
If I choose to sever ties or remove something from my life, it is a personal decision that affects me deeply.
Contributed by Jake J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.