Originally, the Australian band was called The Boys Next Door, comprising Cave, Howard, Mick Harvey (guitar, drums, organ, piano), bassist Tracy Pew, and drummer Phill Calvert. After the Door Door album and Hee Haw EP under that name, the band moved to London and switched its name to the deceptively benign Birthday Party. Once they arrived in Britain, their demented, knotty post-punk began to gel. They released their first international album, Prayers On Fire, in 1981, earning critical praise in the U.K. and U.S. While the band was preparing to record the follow-up, Pew was jailed for drunk driving; former Magazine member Barry Adamson, Harry Howard, and Chris Walsh filled in for the absent Pew on 1982's Junkyard.
After the release of Junkyard, Calvert joined Psychedelic Furs and the band moved to Germany, where they began collaborating with such experimental post-punk acts as Lydia Lunch and Einstürzende Neubauten. Harvey left in the summer of 1983. The group briefly continued with drummer Des Heffner, but it soon disbanded after a final concert in Melbourne, Australia. Cave had the most successful solo career, recording a series of albums in the '80s and '90s that maintained his status as a popular cult figure; Harvey joined Cave's band Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds. Howard joined Crime & The City Solution, which also featured his brother Harry and Harvey. Tracey Pew toured with The Saints before dying of an epileptic seizure in 1986.
--Review from AMG Allmusic Guide
Deep in the Woods
The Birthday Party Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And dumps her honey-body in the mud
Her dress floats down the well
And it assumes the shape of the body of a little girl
Yeah, I recognize that girl
She stumbled in some time last loneliness
But I could not stand to touch her now
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods a funeral is swinging
Worms make their cruel design
Saying D-I-E into her skin
Saying dead into belly and death into shoulder
Well, last night she kissed me but then death was upon her
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods a funeral is swinging
Now the killed waits for the killer
And the trees all nod their heads--they are agreed
This knife feels like a knife that feels like it's feed
Yeah, I recognize that girl
I took her from rags right through to stitches (pray for me now)
Baby, tonight we sleep in separate ditches
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods
Deep in the woods a funeral is swinging
Love is for fools and all fools are lovers
It's raining on my house and none of the others
Love is for fools and God knows I'm still one
The sidewalks are filled with love's lonely children
The sidewalk regrets that we had to kill them
The Birthday Party's song "Deep In The Woods" is a haunting and unsettling piece that tells the story of a woman who meets a tragic fate in the forest, and the man who may have had a hand in her demise. The opening verses describe the woman's body being consumed by the woods, with her dress taking on the form of a young girl. This scene sets the tone for the rest of the song, as it becomes increasingly clear that this story is one of violence and death.
As the lyrics progress, it becomes apparent that the singer has a history with the woman in question. He recognizes her from a previous encounter, and notes that he "could not stand to touch her now." It is suggested that their relationship ended poorly, and that the singer may have played a role in her death. The imagery of worms carving "D-I-E" into her skin is particularly macabre, as is the final line that references the murder of "love's lonely children."
Line by Line Meaning
The woods eats the woman
A woman is consumed by the woods
And dumps her honey-body in the mud
Her decomposing body is discarded in the dirt by the woods
Her dress floats down the well
The woman's clothing falls into the well
And it assumes the shape of the body of a little girl
The dress appears to be a child's body from the well's perspective
Yeah, I recognize that girl
The artist recognizes the dress, realizing it's not a child but rather the woman's attire
She stumbled in some time last loneliness
The woman was in a vulnerable state when she crossed the singer's path
But I could not stand to touch her now
The singer wants nothing to do with the now-deceased woman
My one and only-ness
The artist has devoted himself solely to something, whether it be a person or an idea
Deep in the woods
Far from civilization and scrutiny
Deep in the woods a funeral is swinging
Some paranormal or supernatural ceremony is occurring in the woods
Worms make their cruel design
The woman's corpse is being consumed and damaged by the worms
Saying D-I-E into her skin
The worms appear to be taunting the dead woman with letters on her skin
Saying dead into belly and death into shoulder
The broken down body is progressively being riddled with physical afflictions
Well, last night she kissed me but then death was upon her
The singer had a fleeting moment with the woman before she died
Now the killed waits for the killer
The woman's body is waiting for the one who led to her downfall
And the trees all nod their heads--they are agreed
Nature seems to be acknowledging the events that are taking place
This knife feels like a knife that feels like it's feed
The blade is imbued with some kind of imprecise power
I took her from rags right through to stitches (pray for me now)
The singer played a significant role in the woman's life
Baby, tonight we sleep in separate ditches
The singer won't be rejoining the woman in the afterlife
Love is for fools and all fools are lovers
The idea of love is foolish and unrealistic
It's raining on my house and none of the others
The artist is feeling lonely and unsupported
The sidewalks are filled with love's lonely children
There are a number of people who are similarly seeking love and feeling isolated
The sidewalk regrets that we had to kill them
Metaphorical way of expressing regret over love's early termination
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@paddymullen6197
Highly underrated
@jamclarke
Scarily brilliant song I have to say.
Does that mean Im now on an Interpol list!!!!!!!!!