After signing to Arista in 1988, they saw their largest international success with the album Starfish and the American Top 40 hit "Under The Milky Way" which resurfaced on the soundtrack of the cult movie "Donnie Darko". Whilst the band remain feted by their peers, subsequent commercial success proved elusive: 1990s follow-up album "Gold Afternoon Fix" failed to capitalise on their success, and the band weathered several line-up changes after its release, first losing long-term drummer Richard Ploog, then Peter Koppes following 1992s "Priest = Aura". That album baffled and confused many fans upon its release as to what band The Church was considered to be, but is now considered a seminal album and one of the most revered by Church connoisseurs. The vacant drum-stool on Priest=Aura being occupied by Jay Dee Daugherty of Arista labelmate Patti Smiths group, and it was produced by Gavin MacKillop of Moose.
Reduced to a two-piece, Kilbey & Willson-Piper re-grouped with the assistance of drummer/producer Tim Powles to record 1994's "Sometime Anywhere", concluding their obligations to the Arista and Mushroom labels. The commercial decline, combined with the Church being ignored again by a music press more focused on the Nineties' music trends, could have brought about the demise of the band, had it not coincided with the breakthrough of the internet, thus enabling direct communication from the band to its passionate cult fanbase.
This brought about a new beginning for The Church, with Peter Koppes rejoining the band for recording 1996s "Magician Among The Spirits". The band (with Koppes back into the fold, and Powles now as the permanent drummer ), hit a re-newed creative surge and with regained selfconfidence, released "Hologram Of Baal" 2 years later, and toured Australia, the USA and Europe.
The first decade of the 21st century found the band releasing severeal highly critically acclaimed albums, like 2002's aptly named "After Everything Now this" and 2003's "Forget Yourself", the latter breaking new ground with bandmembers swapping instruments in the recording process. Live performances stray from high profile events like the 03 concerts at Sydney Opera House and the opening ceremony of the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, to low-profile gigs for smaller audiences, often confusing old 80s fans, surprised to find the band still playing, wrongly assuming the band just being one in the never-ending string of reunion acts.
2009's album "Untitled#23" marked yet another highlight.. its essence represented in just 10 songs, and with a strong less-is-more approach, the albums core identity being on par with Starfish, it also finds Steve Kilbey breaking new ground as a vocalist.
2010 saw their 30th anniversary, with extensive touring in the US and Australia. Their unique position and importance in the australian music scene was recognized with an ARIA award.
Their album, "Further Deeper", was released in 2014, and "man woman life death infinity" in 2017.
It Could Be Anyone
The Church Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Within this city will come to your children identical sisters in mirrors of haze
Magnetic disturbance distorting the meters, unendurable silence sucked into the phase
The first of these daughters appears in the vacuum, the void that's created, an absence of light
Perpetually chanting the great Maha ? mantra, she heralds the current that holds back the night
Anyone, could be anyone
Anyone, could be anyone
When certain conditions fulfilled by the future, momentarily lucid, permanently fused
In the hills and mountains the hawks and the eagles hang on the breezes and glide on the clouds
They pull down a torrent that shorts out the circuit negating the fires and drowning the crowds
Anyone, could be anyone
Anyone, could be anyone
Without your succession ? the message transmitted is certainly altered, it's no longer true
BurstingBirthing ? in temples ? as it brings on the jungles breeds the doctors nobody knew ?
When north meets the south, when right meets the left, when parallel lines begin to converge
We're transcending factors transmit translate ? fake the arrangements,
Charge-positive sky, the monster submerged
And when this is over and when it is finished,
The mission accomplished, the purpose complete
Back at the beginning Eden prevails, back at the start, back on the street
Anyone, could be anyone
Anyone, could be anyone
Various electronic banshee and wailing noises
The Church’s “It Could Be Anyone” is a song that is ripe for interpretation. The lyrics appear to describe a dystopian future, where cities and electronics have become chaotic and hazardous for people. In the opening lines, the song describes “identical sisters in mirrors of haze,” which suggests a world where everything appears the same and is difficult to distinguish. The song goes on to describe two sisters who arrive, one in a vacuum of silence and darkness, and one with “distributing wings, they’ve never been used.” These sisters represent forces that can bring change to the world, although it’s not clear if that change is for better or worse.
The song also mentions a “great Maha” mantra, which seems to imply that there is some sort of spiritual force at work in the world. However, it is not clear what this force is or what its purpose is within the context of the song. The lyrics describe a world where people’s “succession” is essential to transmitting messages, implying that people are unable to communicate without these forces at work. As the song progresses, it becomes clear that the world is becoming more and more chaotic and hazardous for people, culminating in a final stanza that describes chaos and destruction.
Overall, “It Could Be Anyone” is a haunting and difficult song to interpret. It seems to be describing a world where confusion and chaos reign, and the only hope for change comes from supernatural forces that are difficult to understand. The song leaves many questions unanswered, but it is a thought-provoking piece that encourages listeners to think deeply about the world around them.
Line by Line Meaning
Within this city will come to your children identical sisters in mirrors of haze
In this city, your descendants may encounter identical sisters reflected in a foggy haze
Magnetic disturbance distorting the meters, unendurable silence sucked into the phase
Magnetic interference that disrupts measurements causes unbearable silence to be drawn into another dimension
The first of these daughters appears in the vacuum, the void that's created, an absence of light
The first of these sisters emerges from a vacuum, a space where light is absent and nothingness reigns.
Perpetually chanting the great Maha ? mantra, she heralds the current that holds back the night
She chants the great Maha mantra without end, announcing the force that holds darkness at bay.
Anyone, could be anyone
Anyone, regardless of identity or background, could experience these phenomena.
The second descends through electric attraction distributing wings, they've never been used ?
The second sister descends through an electrical attraction, distributing wings that have never before been unfurled.
When certain conditions fulfilled by the future, momentarily lucid, permanently fused
Under specific conditions yet to come, brief moments of clarity give way to permanent integration.
In the hills and mountains the hawks and the eagles hang on the breezes and glide on the clouds
Birds of prey soar on the air currents in the hills and mountains, gliding on clouds.
They pull down a torrent that shorts out the circuit negating the fires and drowning the crowds
They bring down a flood that disrupts the electrical currents, extinguishing fires and drowning out the crowds.
Without your succession ? the message transmitted is certainly altered, it's no longer true
Without passing on knowledge from generation to generation, the message conveyed is distorted and no longer accurate.
BurstingBirthing ? in temples ? as it brings on the jungles breeds the doctors nobody knew ?
In temples, there is a bursting birth that gives rise to hidden doctors, bringing new life to the jungle.
When north meets the south, when right meets the left, when parallel lines begin to converge
When various opposing forces intersect and when parallel lines converge, new possibilities emerge.
We're transcending factors transmit translate ? fake the arrangements, Charge-positive sky, the monster submerged
We are transcending limits by transmitting and translating messages in new ways, rearranging the status quo. A positive energy charges the sky, while a previously hidden monster is now submerged.
And when this is over and when it is finished, The mission accomplished, the purpose complete
When these experiences come to an end and the mission is complete, the purpose is fulfilled.
Back at the beginning Eden prevails, back at the start, back on the street
Returning to the beginning, Eden is still present, whether we go back to the street where it all began or elsewhere.
Various electronic banshee and wailing noises
Various electronic sounds resembling banshees' wails and cries.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: MARTIN HOWARD WILLSON-PIPER, STEVEN JOHN KILBEY
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Vast Imagined Empire
I think this is the best pairing of the church's music and visuals yet. Even though the video is of static images, those amazing collages set a torch to the mind. And the stunning music seems to flow directly out of the images. A perfect match-up. I'm in awe.
John S
Are you kidding me? That is awesome imagery. I feel so fortunate to have seen this video capture of a great Church song. Well done!! Bravo!!!
Brian I
Jeff,
I really love your art.
And your taste
In music
cheers,
Brian
Jeff Westover
Thanks Brian! I'm glad you dig this. I jokingly called this project the 'Cicada project'...it took 17 years to hatch.
Insidius 666
Within this city will come to your children
Identical sisters in mirrors of haze 🐍🩸
Magnetic disturbance distorting the meters
Unendurable silence sucked into the phase
The first of these daughters appears in the vacuum
The void that's created in an absence of light
Perpetually chanting the great Maha mantra
She heralds the current that holds back the night
Anyone, could be anyone
The second descends through electric attraction
Distributing wings, that've never been used
When certain conditions fulfilled by the future
Momentarily lucid, permanently fused
In the hills and mountains the hawks and the eagles
Hang on the breezes and glide on the clouds
They pull down a torrent that shorts out the circuits
Negating the fires and drowning the crowds
Anyone, could be anyone
Without a trace of suspicion the message transmitted
It's certainly altered, it's no longer true
Bursting in temples, it brings on the jungles
Breeds good doctors nobody knew
When north meets the south, when right meets the left
When parallel lines begin to converge
We're transcending factors, fake the arrangements
Charge-positive sky, the monster submerged
And when this is over, and when it is finished
The mission accomplished, the purpose complete
Back at the beginning Eden prevails
Back at the start, back on the street
Anyone, could be anyone
Grant Bartley
scary!