Swans is a American experimental rock band from New York, United States, ac… Read Full Bio ↴Swans is a American experimental rock band from New York, United States, active from 1982 to 1997, reformed in 2010, led by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gira.

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.

Little Mouth
Swans Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Please open my mind and take what is left
Please fill this cup with senseless bliss
Let me sup oh let me suck upon that which does not exist
Teach the weak oh teach me please to cease to resist
Through halls of glass through tunnels of chrome
Through corridors of burnished stone
Through fields of crystal and the shards of my bones

May i open my eyes, but not see what I am shown
May I carry your burden may i follow you blind
May I burn your picture onto the face of my mind
Through endless pleasures, beyond all measure, shared by creatures most unkind
Through the hating and through the raging, through the years now left behind
May i find my way to the reason to come home
May i find my way to the foot of your throne

May I find my arms around your neck
And may I find your little mouth inside of this bed.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of the song "Little Mouth" by Swans are complex and can be interpreted in a number of ways. At its core, the song seems to be about surrender, about giving oneself over completely to someone or something else, becoming one with it and subsuming oneself entirely. The opening lines, "Please open my mind and take what is left / Please fill this cup with senseless bliss" suggest a willingness to let go of all control and allow oneself to be completely filled with something else, to be taken over entirely by another force.

The next section of the song continues this theme, with the singer asking to be taught how to "cease to resist" and to be led through various environments - "halls of glass," "tunnels of chrome," and "corridors of burnished stone" - that suggest a sense of confinement and entrapment. This is followed by a line that seems to be both a plea and a warning: "May I open my eyes, but not see what I am shown." The singer seems to recognize that what awaits them on this journey may be difficult or painful, but they are willing to follow anyway.

The final lines of the song suggest that the journey has led the singer to a place of intimacy and connection with another person. They are seeking physical contact ("May I find my arms around your neck") and a sense of closeness ("And may I find your little mouth inside of this bed"). Throughout the song, there is a sense of surrender and submission, but also of a desperation for connection and intimacy.

Line by Line Meaning

Please open my mind and take what is left
I am asking you to help me let go of all my thoughts and beliefs that are holding me back.

Please fill this cup with senseless bliss
I am asking you to give me an experience of pure joy and pleasure, without any logical or rational meaning behind it.

Let me sup oh let me suck upon that which does not exist
I am willing to indulge in imaginary pleasures that are not based on reality or facts.

Teach the weak oh teach me please to cease to resist
I am admitting my own weakness and asking you to help me overcome my resistance to change or surrender.

Through halls of glass through tunnels of chrome
I am willing to explore different dimensions or realities that are strange and artificial, not natural or organic.

Through corridors of burnished stone
I am willing to face the hard and cold truth about myself and the world, without flinching or denying it.

Through fields of crystal and the shards of my bones
I am willing to endure both the beauty and the pain of life, and to accept the consequences of my actions and decisions.

May i open my eyes, but not see what I am shown
I am asking for the gift of insight without the burden of responsibility, so that I can see the truth without being held accountable for it.

May I carry your burden may i follow you blind
I am offering to share your pain and suffering, and to trust you completely even if I cannot see where you are leading me.

May I burn your picture onto the face of my mind
I am asking for a memory or an image that will stay with me forever, and that will inspire me or haunt me as I move forward.

Through endless pleasures, beyond all measure, shared by creatures most unkind
I am willing to indulge in any kind of pleasure, no matter how strange, perverse, or harmful it may seem to others.

Through the hating and through the raging, through the years now left behind
I am asking for forgiveness and redemption, for myself and for others, for all the mistakes and wrongs of the past.

May i find my way to the reason to come home
I am seeking a purpose or a goal that will motivate me to return to my true self or my original place of belonging.

May i find my way to the foot of your throne
I am seeking a higher power or authority that can guide me and protect me in my journey, and that can offer me the ultimate reward or salvation.

May I find my arms around your neck
I am seeking a physical or emotional connection with you, that will reassure me of your presence and your love.

And may I find your little mouth inside of this bed.
I am seeking an intimate and erotic encounter with you, that will unite us in ecstatic pleasure and fulfillment.

Contributed by Matthew W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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