With the release of the seminal Telemetry of a Fallen Angel (existing in a few incarnations prior to Dancing Ferret Discs' version in 1997), The Crüxshadows enjoyed their first defining moment courtesy of the infinitely catchy dance floor anthem "Marilyn My Bitterness." With additional strong releases including The Mystery of the Whisper (1999), Until the Voices Fade (1999) and Paradox Addendum (2000) backed by lengthy tours, The Crüxshadows were able to build a legion of diversified fans consisting of everything from jarheads to gamers to anime & role playing enthusiasts.
While the lineup has indeed changed over the years, one constant has remained the same; Rogue, the vocalist, leader and mastermind of The Crüxshadows has directed his troupe towards an unconventional and lofty goal. "I want to change the world with music, I want people to find hope within themselves. I want them to know that anything is possible if you believe and follow through. I think that music has the power to inspire and move people to do amazing things" he muses. He is not alone in his belief. Their fans seem to believe it too. The bands motto "live love be believe" is everywhere, and many of their supporters will tell you that the lyrics have changed their lives in some way. This isn't exactly typical for a band most often identified as gothic or dark-wave. The Crüxshadows are not concerned. "Goth isn't about being a stereotype" the front-man complains, "its about being who you want to be... about not running from yourself or your emotions." The charismatic singer/songwriter/producer understands an audience and tends to deliver his dramatic croon right in their laps. Nothing they do is exactly new, but how they do it is completely unique. The lyrics are deep and meaningful, the stage show is dynamic and entertaining, and the music is hooky and inspired by pop. But pop it is not. It is a hybrid music that exists in a place just left of everyday, and just right of never-ever.
The band has maintained a surprising consistency despite the personnel turnovers that have plagued it in recent years. Jessica Lackey, a singer/dancer who married Rogue in 2007, and keyboardist Jen Jawidzik, who was once Rogue and Jessica's roommate, have stuck with it for the better part of the last decade. "When we have to find someone new, I feel like sometimes they don't understand all the hard work that was necessary for us to get to that point" Jessica states flatly, "It is not difficult to under-appreciate everything the band has accomplished, so people move on because they have not invested the same energy into the project." While the shows and the music continues to get better, that magically 'permanent' combination of personalities has continued to elude them. The band has had a difficult time keeping guitar players and dancers in particular, but has seen turnover in almost every position. These days Crüxshadows has Rogue backed by a mostly female band of new wave latex clad gypsies, and boasts an original mix of violins, dancers, guitars, and electronics. Tight and well-practiced, the seven performers interact on stage with clockwork like precision. The audience is captivated. Some of them scream. Some of them sing along. A few others stare at the stage dumbfounded.
Although The Crüxshadows maintain a strong fan base in their native United States, their most perceptible success seems to be focused in Europe. It is not uncommon for the band to share stages with the likes of Ladytron, Prodigy, The Cure, or even Bjork. The 2002 Tears EP topped the Deutsche Alternative Charts for months, a practice that has continued with all subsequent releases soaring to the DAC's Top 10. "I don't think we're actually more popular there (In Europe)" says Rogue, "It just seems like there is more access to our fans. What we do has more acceptance by the powers that be. In America it feels like all of our victories are covered up or are unacknowledged by the media." 2002 also saw the release of their fifth full-length album Wishfire; a fan favorite that featured the Euro hit "Tears" and a number of other dark dance mainstays. Similarly the follow-up album Ethernaut (released in 2003) brought the band what has become one of its most notable tracks, the European club anthem entitled "Winterborn (This Sacrifice)."
Remixes and special versions of songs have kept there fans satiated when no new traditional album lay on the horizon. In 2004 Fortress In Flames was released featuring a cover by the popular American artist Chad Michael Ward. There The Crüxshadows' material was remixed by peers like the Dutch legends Clan of Xymox and German industrial giants In Strict Confidence. Each year has seen some new disc from the band, and they come in a variety of formats. The year 2005 witnessed the release of their first DVD Shadowbox. The DVD is highlighted by a 2004 performance before a rabid crowd of 15,000 at the Wave-Gotik-Treffen in Leipzig Germany, where the ‘call and response' raw energy the band delves out is served right back by an adoring audience.
In 2006 the band would seem to breakaway from their underground moniker. The addictive single "Sophia" impressively debuted on the Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales Charts in September at position #1, replacing Beyoncé in the top spot while landing #7 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales Chart. "We couldn't believe it, doors began to open. It was as if we couldn't be ignored anymore, after a decade and a half we seemed to be getting some respect. The local news in Florida even put us on the nightly news to get our take on the whole thing", the frontman recalls. The following year was pivotal for The Crüxshadows; in May the band successfully toured China performing at the Midi Open-Air Festival in Beijing, in the presence of many thousands of new fans. Later that year the band released the highly anticipated Dreamcypher album that contained yet another Billboard #1 Dance Single with the song "Birthday." This time the band climbed into the #2 spot on the Hot 100 Singles Sales Chart. With Dreamcypher, The Crüxshadows melded their fondness for 1980s Synth Pop/New Romantic sounds with modern Euro dance nuances into perfection. Dreamcypher joins the aforementioned shimmering "Sophia" and "Birthday" with the guitar fronted "Defender" and the majestic sounding "Eye of the Storm." The infectious disc would become The Crüxshadows' best selling album to date both in the United States and abroad.
The following year witnessed another single marching up the Billboard charts. "Immortal" continued the bands musical string of hits, despite the loss of violinist Rachel McDonnell. David Wood and JoHanna Moresco stepped in as an electric violining duo who not only safe-guarded the signature instrument of the band, but expanded it by way of rich layering and counterpoint melodies impossible in previous years. 2008 also saw the band's label Dancing Ferret Discs, withdraw from actively releasing new material. This left the band to deal with a large number of new and unforeseen issues, and delayed their plans to release a new full length album.
While The Crüxshadows spent most of 2009 touring in Europe, the band still managed to release yet another successful Billboard charting single in America. "Quicksilver" debuted just in time for their annual appearance at Atlanta's famed Dragon*Con Convention before an impressive capacity crowd of several thousand of their most loyal fans. "I think the new single, and really the most recent releases in general, are our most polished and well written work" says Rogue, "but there are still those in the scene, and in the business in general, that just think the whole thing is just dumb luck." The single was the first release from Wishfire Records, a new label founded by the band, and eventually reached #1 on The Billboard Hot Dance Singles Sales Charts and #2 on The Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales Charts. Seemingly too pop for many critics and too underground for the industry, the band has apparently found the perfect balance for the people who matter the most to them; their fans.
The Crüxshadows have played by their own rules, and who is to say in a world of declining sales and illegal internet downloads that they haven't gotten the balance right. Time will tell. For now, The Crüxshadows continue to defy as well as define the odds, and their dark yet positive machine continues to roll.
Pygmalion's Dream
The Crüxshadows Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And chiseled stone
Rises from beneath the striking
Hidden here below the fracture
The beautiful is corporal
The beautiful is real
To make this world
Something more
Than hate and greed
I cast a vision
To change the tides
To give this world
What I have seen
Find the face within the stone
The Cyphered dreams
Of love enduring
No winds shall come
To move this stone
For here I plant
My gift to you
A monument
Within the mind
The stone is breathing
The heart is beating
And my soul is present
In every word
Galatea lives
And she will love you
While angels comfort
Should you fall
The lyrics to Pygmalion's Dream by The Cruxshadows are a tribute to the myth of Pygmalion, the sculptor who fell in love with a statue he had created and begged the goddess Aphrodite to bring it to life. The song talks about the power of creation, of giving life to something that was previously inanimate. The first few lines refer to the act of chiseling a stone, and the wonder that comes from seeing something beautiful rise up from it.
The chorus brings up the idea of writing dreams to create a better world, to fight against hate and greed. The dreamer in the song casts a vision to change the tides, to make the world a better place. And yet, the most powerful image in the song is that of the statue come to life. The stone is breathing, the heart is beating, and the soul is present in every word. The dreamer has given life to something that was previously lifeless, and fashioned a monument within the mind that will endure.
Overall, Pygmalion's Dream is a celebration of the power of dreaming, of creation, and of the ability of art to inspire us and make us feel alive. It is a call to action for all dreamers and creators to use their talents and imaginations to make the world a better place.
Line by Line Meaning
The hand creates
The power of creation lies within human hands
And chiseled stone
The medium of creation is physical materials, such as stone
Rises from beneath the striking
A beautiful creation can emerge from the act of striking or cutting into raw materials
Hidden here below the fracture
Beauty can be found even in the broken or damaged parts of life
The beautiful is corporal
Beauty is a tangible, physical entity that can be seen and touched
The beautiful is real
Beauty is not just an abstract concept, but a concrete reality that exists in our world
I write these dreams
The power of creation can also be found in the written word
To make this world
The power of creation can be used to change the world around us
Something more
The world can be improved beyond its current state
Than hate and greed
The current state of the world is plagued by negative emotions and behaviors
I cast a vision
The act of creation requires having a vision or goal in mind
To change the tides
By creating something new and positive, the negative tides of the world can be turned
To give this world
Creation is a gift to the world
What I have seen
Creators have a unique perspective on the world that can lead to new and innovative ideas
Find the face within the stone
Beauty can be found in unexpected places and requires looking beyond the surface
The Cyphered dreams
Unspoken or hidden dreams can be part of the creative process
Of love enduring
Creation can be fueled by the desire for love that lasts
No winds shall come
The creation will be durable and withstand the tests of time
To move this stone
The creation will remain steadfast and unchanging
For here I plant
Creation can be viewed as a form of planting a seed for the future
My gift to you
Creation can be a gift to others
A monument
Creation can be a lasting legacy or tribute
Within the mind
The power of creation can be a mental process as well as a physical one
The stone is breathing
The creation is alive and full of vitality
The heart is beating
The creation is filled with passion and emotion
And my soul is present
The creation is a reflection of the creator's inner being and spirit
In every word
The written word can be just as powerful as the physical creation
Galatea lives
The creation takes on a life of its own, separate from the creator
And she will love you
The creation can inspire love or admiration in others
While angels comfort
The creation can provide comfort or solace to those who need it
Should you fall
The creation can be a source of support or encouragement in difficult times
Contributed by Madelyn W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.