The Cribs are an English 3-piece indie band from Wakefield, West Yorkshire,… Read Full Bio ↴The Cribs are an English 3-piece indie band from Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England which formed in 2001 and consists of twins Gary and Ryan Jarman and their younger brother Ross. In August 2008 Johnny Marr, former guitarist for The Smiths and Modest Mouse, became the official fourth member of the band. On April 11th 2011, Marr's departure from the group was announced on their website, and The Cribs now continue as a 3-piece again.

They are signed to the Wichita Recordings label, and have currently released 5 albums through this imprint - 'The Cribs' (2004), 'The New Fellas' (2005), 'Mens Needs, Womens Needs, Whatever' (2007), 'Ignore The Ignorant' (2009), and 'In The Belly Of The Brazen Bull' (2012).

Despite starting off as an underground band, The Cribs have experienced commercial success with 'Mens Needs, Womens Needs, Whatever' charting at #13 in the UK album charts, and 'Ignore The Ignorant' achieving the band their first Top Ten album, charting at #8. They also have 7 top 40 hit singles to their name, the most successful of which being 'Men's Needs' (#17). In 2008, Q magazine described The Cribs as "The biggest cult band in the UK".
The Chi-Town Songfacts says that The Cribs' fifth studio album, In the Belly of the Brazen Bull, was recorded at London's Abbey Road and Chicago's EAR studio with famed lo-fi rock engineer Steve Albini and Tarbox Road studio in New York with David Fridmann (Mercury Rev, The Flaming Lips).

After some hard times during which they were (according to an interview in DIY Magazine) "nearly losing the rights to their entire back catalogue, and coming close to calling time on the group entirely," in 2020 they released the album "Night Network."

Back to the Bolthole
The Cribs Lyrics

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You follow aurora and hope no-one saw you,
Peel back the screen door like everyone before,
Cartoons run on repeat in the room across the street,
So you go out to find her in some crappy roadside diner.

You're a long long way from home.
And as the room goes cold you're…

Crying in secret about the things you're thinking
On a night.
That you, one day will die.
Just try to think it's the one thing
That makes it all worthwhile.
That i, one day will die.

So where do we go?

We go back to the bolthole.
Crack open the rainiers.
The oxygen makes you thin here.
A cascadian rainfall.
The couch has gone awol.
It's as good place as any to forget about your family.

You're a long long way from home.
And as the room goes cold you're…

Crying in secret about the things you're thinking
On a night.
That you, one day will die.
Just try to think it's the one thing

That makes it all worthwhile.
That i, one day will die.

Overall Meaning

The Cribs's song Back to the Bolthole tells the story of a person who is running away from their problems, most likely back home, to a place where they feel safe and can forget about their issues. The beginning of the song sets the scene of the person trying to leave without being noticed, as they follow a light (aurora) and sneak out like everyone else before them. The line "cartoons run on repeat in the room across the street" sets the tone of escape as if the person hasn't grown up and is looking for a place to hide.

The chorus of the song consists of the person crying in secret about the things they are thinking, particularly about the fact that they will die one day. However, they try to tell themselves that this is the one thing that makes it all worthwhile. The verses capture the feeling of displacement that comes with running away, as the person finds themselves a long way from home and is seeking refuge in a roadside diner. The lines "crack open the rainiers" and "the couch has gone awol" depict the person's search for comfort in things they are familiar with, as they seek to forget about their family.

The message of the song seems to be about escapism, the human condition and accepting the inevitability of death. The chorus suggests that even in the face of our mortality, we have to find ways to live and make our lives worthwhile. The song also touches on the idea of home and how it can provide a sense of security and solace when things are difficult.

Line by Line Meaning

You follow aurora and hope no-one saw you
You're trying to be discreet as you follow aurora, hoping nobody will catch you

Peel back the screen door like everyone before
Like many others before you, you open the screen door to enter

Cartoons run on repeat in the room across the street
Across the street, cartoons play on a loop in a room

So you go out to find her in some crappy roadside diner
You leave in search of her, heading to a poor quality diner along the road

You're a long long way from home.
You're far away from where you call home

And as the room goes cold you're…
As the room chills, you feel…

Crying in secret about the things you're thinking
You're silently weeping over the thoughts running through your mind

On a night.
This is happening on a particular occasion

That you, one day will die.
You're focusing on your mortality

Just try to think it's the one thing
You attempt to view mortality as a necessary aspect of life

That makes it all worthwhile.
Viewing death in that light makes the journey of life seem significant