Beginning as a big-haired, black-clad garage punk outfit and soon morphing … Read Full Bio ↴Beginning as a big-haired, black-clad garage punk outfit and soon morphing into something more experimental, the Horrors featured singer Faris Badwan, bassist Tom Furse, guitarist Joshua Hayward, drummer Joe Spurgeon, and keyboardist Rhys Webb. The Horrors formed in the summer of 2005 and quickly gained notoriety around London for their look, sound, and brief but frantic live shows. Loog soon signed them, and the Horrors released their official debut single, "Sheena Is a Parasite/Jack the Ripper," in spring 2006. That summer the Horrors released their second single, Death at the Chapel. They also reissued "Sheena Is a Parasite" as a limited-edition DVD single. The song's startling video was directed by Chris Cunningham and featured actress Samantha Morton as Sheena. Late that summer, the band signed to Stolen Transmission in the U.S. and released a self-titled EP that fall. They also issued the Count in Fives single in the U.K. around that time.

The Gloves single arrived early in 2007, heralding the release of the Horrors' full-length debut, Strange House, which arrived in the U.K. that March and in the U.S. in May. In 2008, Webb and Furse formed the analog synth project Spider & the Flies, and released the album Something Clockwork This Way Comes. For 2009's Primary Colours, the band worked with Cunningham and Portishead's Geoff Barrow as co-producers, opting for a very different sound that mixed shoegaze, post-punk, and goth; the album was released by XL that spring and earned several critical raves, including NME's Album of the Year. In between albums, Badwan teamed with Canadian opera singer Rachel Zeffira for the hazy pop project Cat's Eyes, which released its self-titled debut in early 2011. The Horrors self-produced their follow-up, 2011's Skying, which featured a lighter yet still atmospheric sound that drew comparisons to My Bloody Valentine and the Psychedelic Furs. In 2012, they released the remix companion album Higher and embarked on an extensive tour. In 2013, they began recording new material with producer Craig Silvey. Early the following year, the single "I See You" reflected the more expansive direction of their fourth album, Luminous, which arrived in May 2014. The Horrors began work on their next full-length with Paul Epworth at London's Church Studios in 2015, and forged a darker, rawer yet still danceable sound that borrowed from '80s post-punk, synth-pop, and '90s dance. The result was V, which arrived in September 2017.

Biography by Heather Phares

There are other artists with the same name:

2) A garage rock/punk band from Cedar Rapids, Iowa, which formed in 1997 and broke up in 2003. They released two albums, The Horrors (2000) and Vent (2003). Singer/guitarist Paul Cary recently released his debut album, Ghost of a Man, on Candy Dinner Records in 2010.

3) An American psychedelic rock group active in the 1960s, best known for their single "Briar Patch".

For much more information, go to the band's official forum, "The Horum", and official Myspace.

First Day of Spring
The Horrors Lyrics

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As the whirlwind sets
You will stand on the edge of the world
As the cold wind blows
You will slip through the air like a ghost

Fear sleeps in every corner,
Every darkened door, every sound
Quiet lies and hidden rhythm,

Silent repetitions going 'round

And you hide yourself away
So you don't have to run not anymore
And you hide yourself away
So you don't have to run not anymore
And you don't have anyone
But you don't have to run.

Eyes that seem to know
Follow you to the ledge of the world

Fear sleeps in every mind,
There are people long since left behind
Our lives are spent preoccupied,
Some will learn to hide it very well

And you hide yourself away
So you don't have to run not anymore
And you hide yourself away
So you don't have to run not anymore

And you don't have anyone
But you don't have to run.

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "First Day of Spring" by The Horrors seem to express the feeling of being trapped and haunted by fear. The imagery of standing on the edge of the world while a whirlwind sets in and slipping like a ghost through the air when the cold wind blows entails the overwhelming feeling of being fragile and powerless in a world full of unknowns. The lyrics further depict how fear is everywhere and can be found in every corner, every door, and every single sound. The repetition of the phrase, "So you don't have to run not anymore," emphasizes the urge to hide from all that is scary and to seek refuge from the world.

The lyrics also touch on the idea of being alone and frightened, but also free from the need to run away from the overwhelming sense of being afraid. The song seems to suggest that hiding away from everything may appear to be the solution but is not a sustainable approach to life. There is a sense of hope and lightness in the poetic depiction of the experience of overcoming fear and the understanding that the world is full of beauty and wonder for those who dare to face it.

Line by Line Meaning

As the whirlwind sets
You are about to face a storm.

You will stand on the edge of the world
You will be pushed to your limits.

As the cold wind blows
The chill of loneliness will surround you.

You will slip through the air like a ghost
You will feel invisible and untethered.

Fear sleeps in every corner,
Anxiety is constantly present in everything.

Every darkened door, every sound
Every little thing can set off your fears.

Quiet lies and hidden rhythm,
Patterns of deception and dishonesty surround you.

Silent repetitions going 'round
The same patterns keep repeating without any change.

And you hide yourself away
You isolate yourself to avoid facing your fears.

So you don't have to run not anymore
You don't want to keep running away from your problems.

And you don't have anyone
You feel alone in your struggles.