Angels of Light is a musical entity formed in 1997 by singer Michael Gira a… Read Full Bio ↴Angels of Light is a musical entity formed in 1997 by singer Michael Gira after he disbanded Swans, the group he'd founded in 1982. The band has marked a distinctly different style for Gira since he left Swans, most noticeably being musically more melodic and less brutal than his previous efforts, though no less emotionally draining.

Angels of Light include many New York City collaborators, including Dana Schechter of Bee and Flower, Kid Congo Powers of The Cramps, Larry Mullins aka Toby Dammit, Bliss Blood of The Moonlighters and Pain Teens, Thor Harris of Shearwater, and most recently the Brooklyn band Akron/Family.

Gira talks about the Angels project :

I write the songs on acoustic guitar, then gather musicians and friends, and build up the orchestrations with them in the studio and in live performances. I guide the process, but solicit their creative contributions actively. Each recording contains the contributions of an ever-changing plethora of amazing musicians, whom I thank here heartily!

After many years (too many to comfortably contemplate!) of dwelling on "sonic overload" with Swans, I now concentrate on augmenting the songs I write with orchestrations that support the basic song, rather than the sound itself taking over.

My goal is to achieve the same sense of magic I experienced as a child listening to Burle Ives recordings of Brer Rabbit and other such marvels, including the early Disney children's records I listened to long ago.

I view the arrangements as little films created to make a context for the words and voice, so that one can drift off into the world the music creates. I produce the Angels recordings, and the production of the recordings is as important to me as the songs themselves.

Most of the instruments used in the recordings are acoustic, but not all. Electric guitars, bass and drums etc., are sometimes used (as well as an occasional electronic sound, or loop), but I intentionally steer clear of a "Rock" sound. It doesn't interest me at all any more.

However, I have no particular fealty to "The Song" as if it were some sacred codex. On the other hand, just sitting around my house, writing these things, and finally coming up with a statement that I think makes sense, I want to bring them to life as much as possible, in new and challenging ways for both myself and you, so I always strive to present them in a fresh and interesting context.

For this reason, I'm always changing the sonic approach from record to record.

All Angels of Light albums have been released on Michael Gira's label Young God Records.

The name Angels of Light was first used by the spiritual theater group founded by drag queen Hibiscus of The Cockettes. It is not known whether Gira's group was named in homage to Hibiscus's similarly metaphysically-minded group.

Song For My Father
The Angels of Light Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

When the warm wind blows
Through the corridors and tiled walls.
There you are,
The mad guardian of your empty room.
Your memories were tortured
By the scent of ocean through the halls -
And where was I,
The one that you loved best?

Now show me how
To hold the knife that cuts the page,
To crucify the weakness,
And the guilt I use for faking strength.
Now I remember,
I crawled naked across the broken stage.
And there was I,
The child that brought us shame.

So walk across
The blood red ocean,
Stand above
The broken glass and concrete towers.
An here I sleep,
Some guardian of my empty room.
Now I've become the child
That neither of us knew.

(Jetzt kannst du schlafen, jetzt kannst du immer ruhig träumen.)

Thank god you never knew,
The things that I've done.

Thank god you never saw,
The person I've become.

Overall Meaning

The Angels of Light's song "Song for My Father" is a powerful examination of self-reflection, guilt, and redemption. Through the lens of a son looking back on his relationship with his father, the song delves into themes of emotional trauma, the struggle to reconcile one's past mistakes with one's present self, and the ways in which we try to escape or overcome our traumas.

The opening lines of the song, "When the warm wind blows / Through the corridors and tiled walls. / There you are, / The mad guardian of your empty room," suggest a sense of isolation and loneliness. The singer's father is portrayed as being trapped within his own memories, unable to escape the pain of his past. Despite this, the son still feels a sense of guilt and longing for his father's affection, wondering "where was I, / The one that you loved best?" This sense of longing is mirrored in the second verse, where the son reflects on his own past mistakes and struggles, asking his father to "show me how / To hold the knife that cuts the page, / To crucify the weakness, / And the guilt I use for faking strength." Ultimately, the son acknowledges that he has become the "child that neither of us knew," struggling with the weight of his past and the need for forgiveness.

Overall, "Song for My Father" offers a raw and emotional exploration of the complicated relationships between parents and children, and the ways in which we try to overcome our past traumas.

Line by Line Meaning

When the warm wind blows
At times when the breeze is calm and pleasant

Through the corridors and tiled walls.
Moving through the paths and hard surfaces

There you are,
There, within view or imagination,

The mad guardian of your empty room.
The crazy protector of your vacant dwelling

Your memories were tortured
Your recollections were tormented

By the scent of ocean through the halls -
Due to the smell of the sea across the passages

And where was I,
And where was I located

The one that you loved best?
The person whom you adored the most?

Now show me how
Now teach me how

To hold the knife that cuts the page,
To grip the blade that slices the paper

To crucify the weakness,
To put an end to the vulnerability