In 1991, the year she released her first album Memories of a Colour, Nordenstam played at the Swedish parliament as part of the Year of Jazz. Her early work, including her second album, And She Closed Her Eyes, released in 1994, was significantly jazz-influenced, with only subtle elements of alternative rock. With 1997's Dynamite she started down a darker, more experimental path; most of the album was filled with processed, distorted electric guitars and unusual beats, but careful listening revealed her unique song-writing abilities.
An album of covers, People Are Strange, followed before she returned in 2001 with This Is Stina Nordenstam, an album with shorter songs and a more pop-like feel; ex-Suede vocalist Brett Anderson featured on two tracks. In 2003 Nordenstam appeared in a duet with Jonas Bjerre from Mew on Mew's third album Frengers, with a song called "Her Voice Is beyond Her Years". Between 2003 and 2004 she made the Swedish radio-theatre series called The Fears of the Ice, about one of the first polar expeditions.
Her 2004 album, The World Is Saved, continues the path set on This Is..., but presents a more realised sound and acknowledges her earlier jazz influences more.
In addition to being a musician, Nordenstam also works in other fields, such as photography and music-video directing.
Slightly reclusive, she gives very few interviews, rarely performs live and even alters her appearance using wigs and make-up for album covers and magazines. During the promotion for The World Is Saved, however, she gave more interviews than usual, and even talked about the possibility of future live performances.
In 2006, Nordenstam appeared on Snow Borne Sorrow, an album by the band Nine Horses, singing duets with the band's vocalist, David Sylvian.
Get On With Your Life
Stina Nordenstam Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It took them so long to find it
I can't get this pornfilm out of my head
Let's get on with it
It is banging inside
It is singing aloud
Get on with your life
All over the world they get out of bed
Love dies every second
I can't get this creature out of my way
Killing it is not an option
It is biting your nails
So as not to scratch
Get on with your life
It is counting aloud
'Til the battery dies
Get on with your life
And I try to get up and I try to move but
This thing won't let me
It's heavy as a man's body on you
And it's this close to get me
It is banging inside
It is singing aloud
Get on with your life
'Til the battery die
'Til the battery dies:
Get on with your life
The lyrics to Stina Nordenstam's song "Get On With Your Life" are cryptic and provoke curiosity in the listener. The first two lines suggest a medical procedure where the singer receives a needle in their spine, which took the medical team an extended period to locate. The line "I can't get this porn film out of my head" creates a contrast, seemingly unrelated to the song's previous lines. The chorus emerges, and the music intensifies, inviting the listener to "Get on with it" and move on from whatever has been keeping them stuck in the past.
In the second stanza, Nordenstam shifts the focus from the singer's experience to a more universal message. People worldwide get out of bed every day, but love dies continually. The creature in the line also seems metaphorical, conveying a block between the singer and their desired life path. The singer's thoughts of killing the creature reinforce a perception of being helpless, unable to move and, perhaps, feeling trapped.
The last part of the song sees the singer trying to "get up" and "move," but whatever is holding them back is heavy as a "man's body." This image conjures a sense of being burdened by someone else, possibly from an emotional or psychological perspective.
Overall, the song "Get On With Your Life" appears to be a commentary on the human experience of being trapped by events, thoughts, and feelings, which can prevent us from achieving our goals. The song's energy and intense instrumental arrangement reinforce the urgency of "getting on with our lives" and not letting circumstances hold us back indefinitely.
Line by Line Meaning
They put a needle once in my spine
A painful medical procedure was performed on me
It took them so long to find it
The procedure was complicated and took a lot of time
I can't get this pornfilm out of my head
I am unable to stop thinking about something inappropriate
Let's get on with it
It's time to move forward and stop dwelling on the past
It is banging inside
Something is causing a lot of internal turmoil
It is singing aloud
The turmoil is manifesting itself loudly and clearly
Get on with your life
It's time to stop wallowing and start living
All over the world they get out of bed
People all over the world start their days
Love dies every second
Love is constantly being lost and destroyed
I can't get this creature out of my way
Something is blocking my path and causing problems
Killing it is not an option
The problem cannot be solved through violence or destruction
It is biting your nails
Anxiety is causing physical tension and nervous behavior
So as not to scratch
The behavior is an attempt to avoid causing harm
And I try to get up and I try to move but
I am struggling to break free from something holding me back
This thing won't let me
Whatever is holding me back feels like an immovable force
It's heavy as a man's body on you
The weight of the problem is crushing and overwhelming
And it's this close to get me
The problem feels like it's about to consume and defeat me
'Til the battery dies
Until there is no more energy or life left in something
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: STINA NORDENSTAM
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Tommy Bohman
Why has this promotional video, directed by Amir Chamdin, continued to thrill me over the years since it was released? I don't know. Maybe because of a well thought-out aesthetics with threads stretching all the way back to the golden age of silent movies. During the silent era countless experiments of all kinds were the rule of the day. The song itself is very comforting to me and the album, released this very day - Oct. 11 - but in 2004, actually reached # 5 on the Swedish album charts. Like all her previous albums, this last one is pure and everlasting SN also ♡
Alicia Nieto
Stina,tan buenisima como siempre...y como pocas..
DismalBackwater
A fantastic song!
L Glez.
shes amazing hope a new album coming soon
barlow xx
she's a genius!
Constananas
a great video and the song is so nice! beautiful
James .M
I Loooove this song and the video is such a beautiful haunting companion.. what beautiful caamera work..poetry in moition! If i were a video/song i would like to be this.thanks.
portraitofjimmy
she's an absolute angel! mind... i wouldnt expect anything less from the promised lands of sweden :) jim xx
Eduardo Velasquez
Just thinking about this video on a random day in 2022! I miss you, Stina!
L Glez.
AMAZING!!!!!!!