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.
Ride Into the Sunset
The Church Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Blue fields of sky where the West is one
I fell into town and I covered up my wings
Yet to get a taste for everything
I guess you can count me in
Don't feed the fire in here
Don't tell a soul
This uniform and war
Well it's all been done before
I'm nervous playing someone else's role
Take a look around you these walls aint real
There's nothing behind these facades
Get our gifts exchanged, why do you think that's strange
Why do you make it so hard
The Church's song "Ride Into the Sunset" talks about the struggle of fitting in and conforming to societal norms. The lyrics paint a picture of an open and expansive space, where one can feel free and unbound. The singer of the song, who had previously flown high with his wings but had to cover them up in town, desires to experience everything the new place has to offer. The metaphorical sunset also stands for an end to something, perhaps his old life, and the beginning of something new. The line "Take a look around you these walls aint real, there's nothing behind these facades" suggests that the character, despite feeling like an outsider, can see through the superficiality of society and recognizes that the walls and facades of the town are just illusions. The character struggles with his identity and role in the world, and doesn't want to be just another "uniform in war," ultimately expressing the desire to break away from the status quo.
The chorus of "You're gonna ride into the sunset, I guess you can count me in, Don't feed the fire in here, Don't tell a soul," suggests a desire to join the singer on his journey but at the same time, keep things secret and not conform to the expectations of others. The final lines "Our gifts exchanged, why do you think that's strange, Why do you make it so hard" further emphasize the struggle of being different and not quite fitting in, despite the attempts to do so.
Line by Line Meaning
Out in the open high in the sun
We are in a big, open area under a shining sun
Blue fields of sky where the West is one
The sky is vast and blue, making the West feel like a single entity
I fell into town and I covered up my wings
I arrived in this place and decided to hide my true self
Yet to get a taste for everything
I am still inexperienced and have not experienced everything in this new place
You're gonna ride into the sunset
You are going to leave and move on to the next adventure
I guess you can count me in
I want to join you on your journey
Don't feed the fire in here
Don't stir up trouble or cause drama
Don't tell a soul
Don't share this secret with anyone
This uniform and war
The conflict and division we experience in society is nothing new
Well it's all been done before
We are merely reliving a cycle that's already occurred in the past
I'm nervous playing someone else's role
I feel uneasy pretending to be someone I'm not
Take a look around you these walls aint real
The barriers and boundaries we encounter are artificial and can be overcome
There's nothing behind these facades
There are no true realities behind the false appearances we often see
Get our gifts exchanged, why do you think that's strange
Let's share with one another, why would that be considered odd?
Why do you make it so hard
Why do you complicate what should be simple?
Contributed by Elizabeth H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
BittersweetSymphony
on You're Still Beautiful
Sometimes I wonder if he is writing about himself