Marginally associated with the no wave scene at first, their original sound was slow and extremely heavy, with live performances that were often so brutal and physical that in a number of instances certain audience members were made ill, police were called and venues were shut down. This early physical sound is possibly best heard on the live album Public Castration Is A Good idea.
Their initial style shifted a little by the time Swans released seminal twin albums Greed and Holy Money. The music had sped up, at times being even more punishing than their earlier output. Drum machines and samples were slightly more prominent. Michael Gira was joined vocally by Jarboe which gave the band a broader sonic range. Tracks featuring Jarboe were often quieter, even pretty, acting as counterpoint to the more harrowing themes on the albums. Over time, this style would come to dominate Swans' output, although they somehow seem to have been able to make a strummed acoustic guitar seem as brutal as their earlier amped-up assaults. The lush instrumentation of their albums from the late 1980s and the 1990's anticipated the birth of post-rock.
Swans eventually broke up in 1997; Gira went on to release some solo work, later forming the band The Angels Of Light, who continue many of the themes and styles found in (later) Swans. Jarboe releases solo work and frequently works with other bands and artists; recently she released an album with Neurosis, a group clearly heavily influenced by Swans.
The influence of Swans upon the music world is profound. Across their 15 years of existence, the various styles they explored gave birth to grindcore (Napalm Death, Nasum) modern "cinematic" post-rock (Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Mono), and atmospheric sludge metal (Isis, Neurosis).
In January 2010, Michael Gira reactivated Swans and released a new album, My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky on September 2010, and the band simultaneously embarked on a world tour scheduled to last eighteen months. The band had been chosen by Portishead to perform at the ATP I'll Be Your Mirror festivals that they curated in July 2011 at London's Alexandra Palace and in September 2011 in Asbury Park, New Jersey.
On August 28, 2012, Swans released The Seer, a double-album running almost 2 hours in length. Frontman Michael Gira described the album as taking "30 years to make. It's the culmination of every previous Swans album as well as any other music I've ever made, been involved in or imagined. But it's unfinished, like the songs themselves. It's one frame in a reel. The frames blur, blend and will eventually fade." Describing the songwriting process, Gira said, "The songs began on an acoustic guitar, then were fleshed out with (invaluable) help from my friends, then were further tortured and seduced in the studio, and now they await further cannibalism and force-feeding as we prepare to perform some of them live, at which point they'll mutate further, endlessly, or perhaps be discarded for a while."
On May 12, 2014, Swans released their thirteenth LP, To Be Kind. Produced by Michael Gira and recorded by John Congleton. It received positive reception from critics which made the group continue to make more albums that have also have received positive reviews.
It was announced on July 22, 2015, that the band was releasing their fourteenth studio album, titled The Glowing Man. The album was released on June 17, 2016.
After The Glowing Man released, the band took a hiatus lasting nearly a year in 2017 and ending in 2018. The band released their fifteenth studio LP Leaving Meaning the next year. The same year, a documentary about Swans was released titled “Where Does A Body End?”.
In March 2021, Michael Gira released a tracklist of an upcoming Swans album, titled The Beggar. It was released on June 23, 2023.
Eden Prison
Swans Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There is a mark upon a stone.
And in this place a life was written,
And there a stain was laid where I was born.
Now moving through the roots of trees
Deep may their fingers reach,
The substance of a mind that feeds,
Up to become the walls of Eden prison.
The supine wild beast upon the slab,
Would gladly rip the throat from God if only he could reach up to his white ass.
And I, I am free and will never breathe again,
Within the greasy ochre walls of Eden prison.
The supine wild beast upon the slab,
Would gladly rip the throat from God if only he could reach up to his white ass,
and I, I am free and will never breathe again,
within the greasy ochre walls of Eden Prison,
I am free, I will begin again,
I am free, I will begin again,
I am free of the chocking hold that began in Eden prison.
We are free! We are free!
But the ships they sail a sea of glistening, turning crimson,
They are carrying a cargo to unload at Eden Prison
The song "Eden Prison" by Swans describes a prison within the supposed paradise of the Garden of Eden. The lyrics suggest that the mark upon a stone within the prison represents the beginning of a life that is predetermined and controlled by the prison's confines. The singer describes the trees within the prison as having roots that reach deep enough to feed the mind and give life to the stones that make up the walls. The wild beast lying on a slab within the prison is described as being willing to harm even God if it were able. Ultimately, the singer proclaims that they are free from the prison's hold and will never be trapped there again.
The use of religious imagery and symbolism in the song is powerful. The Garden of Eden is often seen as a place of purity and innocence, but Swans' lyrics portray it as a prison that holds humanity captive. The wild beast could represent the base instincts and desires of humanity, suppressed by the walls of the prison. The singer's proclamation of freedom suggests a rejection of the predetermined fate handed down by Eden's walls, and a desire to break free from the constraints of religion and society.
Line by Line Meaning
Within the walls of Eden Prison,
Inside the confines of this metaphoric prison called Eden, where we are trapped.
There is a mark upon a stone.
A symbol carved on a rock that represents the life that was written within these walls.
And in this place a life was written,
Someone's fate was determined within these walls of Eden Prison.
And there a stain was laid where I was born.
The memory of my birth is stained by the fact that it happened in this oppressive place called Eden Prison.
Now moving through the roots of trees
As we venture out of Eden prison, we see the natural world outside and its trees and roots.
Deep may their fingers reach,
The tree roots seem to go deep, which implies there's more to the world than what we experienced within the walls of Eden Prison.
The substance of a mind that feeds,
The nutrients the trees absorb from the soil below suggest life and thinking beyond Eden's walls.
The bodies of the living stones that lead,
The rocks and stones that we walk upon outside of Eden prison are made rich by the trees' feeding and growth. They guide us through this new world.
Up to become the walls of Eden prison.
The walls that once confined us are now a memory as we build new walls, metaphorically, to keep us safe from this new world.
The supine wild beast upon the slab,
The powerful animal lying motionless, harnessed, and defenseless within Eden Prison.
Would gladly rip the throat from God if only he could reach up to his white ass.
Given the opportunity, even the caged animal would attack a higher power like God, metaphorically represented as a white ass (a biblical allusion).
And I, I am free and will never breathe again,
I am no longer trapped within these walls called Eden Prison, and the thought of returning to it suffocates me.
Within the greasy ochre walls of Eden prison.
The greasy, earthy-yellow colored walls that once separated us from the world beyond Eden.
I am free, I will begin again,
I have been liberated, and I can now start anew and experience life beyond the walls of Eden Prison.
We are free! We are free!
There are others who have also been freed, and we shout in unison, celebrating our liberation.
But the ships they sail a sea of glistening, turning crimson,
There is beauty in the ships sailing, but there's also danger (glistening crimson waters).
They are carrying a cargo to unload at Eden Prison
There are still people and things going in and out of Eden Prison even though we have escaped.
Contributed by Muhammad D. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Alex Cavanaugh
thank you for making music that is about the absolutes in life.....been a fan since 91 ....thank you for keeping your music fresh. Minimalism......no.....maximum
Boyo
Alex Cavanaugh Maximalism?
Otto Beumelburg
I approve, Llama.
Christian Le Surf - Music
Totalism.
Dingo pictures
This song made me feel like my arms and hands were moving while they weren't and i couldn't see anything in my surroundings besides the album cover. I have never felt anything like that
EndOfSmallSanctuary
Absolutely god-tier song
Gerard Leckey
I am physically and emotionally moved by this!
rodmac81
I am physically and emotionally offended by this. Wish i could see it live.
Sighbot2966
What a driving force.
Boyo
No dislikes, just how it should be.