Beginning in 1987 in London, England, Bill Drummond (alias King Boy D) and Jimmy Cauty (alias Rockman Rock) released hip hop-inspired and sample-heavy records as The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu and, on one occasion (the British number one hit single "Doctorin' the Tardis"), as The Timelords. As The KLF, Drummond and Cauty pioneered the genres "stadium house" (rave music with a pop-rock production and sampled crowd noise) and "ambient house". The KLF released a series of international top-ten hits on their own KLF Communications record label, and became the highest internationally selling UK band of 1991. The duo also published a book, The Manual, and worked on a road movie called The White Room.
From the outset, they adopted the philosophy espoused by esoteric novels The Illuminatus! Trilogy, gaining notoriety for various anarchic situationist manifestations, including the defacement of billboard adverts, the posting of prominent cryptic advertisements in NME magazine and the mainstream press, and highly distinctive and unusual performances on Top of the Pops. Their most notorious performance was at the February 1992 Brit Awards, where they horrified the formal audience with a hardcore thrash version of "3 A.M. Eternal" (performed with the justifiably named Extreme Noise Terror) that also included Drummond spraying the crowd with blanks from an automatic rifle and the post-performance announcement, "The KLF have left the music industry." Topping their already extreme actions, Cauty and Drummond delivered the carcass of a dead sheep -- plus eight gallons of blood -- to the lobby of the hotel after-party. In May 1992 the duo deleted their entire back catalogue.
With The KLF's profits, Drummond and Cauty established the K Foundation and sought to subvert the art world, staging an alternative art award for the worst artist of the year and burning a million pounds sterling. Although Drummond and Cauty remained true to their word of May 1992—the KLF Communications catalogue remains deleted—they have released a small number of new tracks since then, as the K Foundation, The One World Orchestra and most recently, in 1997, as 2K. Cauty has provided remixing services for bands as diverse as Hawkwind and Placebo, under the name Scourge of the Earth.
The KLF catalogue remained absent from digital platforms until January 1, 2021, when an 8-track compilation of their 7" hit singles 1988-1991 - Solid State Logik 1 was released on streaming platforms, marking the 1st installment of a series called Samplecity Thru Trancentral.
What Time Is Love
The KLF Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Rap is weak so I teach and I reach
A positive vibe, a way of life is how I'm livin'
So get hype to the rhythm
KLF is the crew, ya hear yeah
Design a rhyme I just won't fear
Back to react, enough is enough
What time is love?
What time is love?
What time is love?
What time is love?
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
Take the chance to advance you might hallucinate
Exaggerate I devastate we had to pass the pyramid blaster
The jam's a hit it's what you've been after
I'll make you shake to, break you, take two
Right in the path, with what they call the Mu Mu
KLF, boy we call rough, bring the break
What time is love?
W-what time is love? Love, love, love, love
What time is love?
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
Okay Houston
We'll give you a countdown
Four, three, two, one, fire
I wanna see you
The final chapter, prophetic, poetic
When I'm done, this calls for anesthetic
Get to, step to, let an MC
Come in effect with Kingboy D
A wanna be, gonna be, old time sucker
You know the time, I never stutter
A feat, a dream, a yes seem bright
Yeah, pass the mic
What time is love?
What time is love?
What time is love?
What time is love?
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you
I wanna see you
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
I wanna see you sweat
The lyrics of The KLF's song "What Time is Love?" are a call to action, an invitation to dance and let go. The song is dominated by a positive and energetic vibe, which reflects the band's intention to create a joyful and uplifting experience for their audience. The lyrics are delivered with a rap-like flow, accompanied by a simple yet catchy beat.
The verses start with the singer expressing their disdain for "flowless" rap and their intention to teach their listeners something new. The second verse contains several surrealistic and nonsensical lines, such as "Take the chance to advance, you might hallucinate, exaggerate, I devastate, we had to pass the pyramid blaster." These lines seem to be included for their sound and rhythm rather than their meaning.
The chorus, which repeats the question "what time is love?" four times, serves as a rallying cry for the audience to let go of their worries and engage with the music fully. The phrase "I wanna see you sweat" that follows the chorus is another way to encourage the audience to get lost in the rhythm of the song.
The final verses feature an introduction of another rapper, Kingboy D, who offers a more aggressive and confrontational style. The song ends with a repeated chorus and the final phrase "I wanna see you" repeated several times, emphasizing the song's central message of enjoying oneself and letting go.
Overall, "What Time Is Love?" is a catchy and upbeat song that reflects the KLF's desire to spread positive vibes through their music.
Line by Line Meaning
The lyrics are flow, yo for the words I speak
I'm spitting rhymes with a good flow, and I put a lot of thought into the lyrics I write.
Rap is weak so I teach and I reach
I think a lot of rap is not very original, so I try to bring something new to the table and inspire others.
A positive vibe, a way of life is how I'm livin'
I try to live my life in a positive way, and I want to spread that vibe to others through my music.
So get hype to the rhythm
Let's get pumped up and dance to the beat!
KLF is the crew, ya hear yeah
We're the KLF, and we're here to make some noise!
Design a rhyme I just won't fear
I'm not afraid to take risks with my rhymes and try new things.
Back to react, enough is enough
It's time to take action and make a change.
Let me ask you a question
What time is love?
I'm posing a deep philosophical question about what love really means and when it exists.
I wanna see you sweat
I want to see you get really into the music and dance your heart out.
Take the chance to advance you might hallucinate
Sometimes taking risks and pushing yourself can make you feel like you're in a dream.
Exaggerate I devastate we had to pass the pyramid blaster
We're taking things to the next level and blowing your mind with our music.
The jam's a hit it's what you've been after
Our music is exactly what you've been searching for.
I'll make you shake to, break you, take two
Our music will make you dance so hard you'll feel like you're breaking apart - but in a good way!
Right in the path, with what they call the Mu Mu
We're blazing our own trail and doing things our own way with our music.
KLF, boy we call rough, bring the break
We're tough and we're bringing the beats that will make you want to break dance.
Okay Houston
We'll give you a countdown
Four, three, two, one, fire
We're taking off like a rocket - get ready to blast off!
The final chapter, prophetic, poetic
Our music is epic and full of deep meaning.
When I'm done, this calls for anesthetic
Our music will leave you with a high you won't soon forget.
Get to, step to, let an MC
Come in effect with Kingboy D
Our music is collaborative and we're bringing in other artists to make it even better.
A wanna be, gonna be, old time sucker
We don't have time for haters or people who don't believe in our music.
You know the time, I never stutter
We're confident in our music and we know it's the right time to share it with the world.
A feat, a dream, a yes seem bright
Our music is a huge accomplishment and a dream come true, and the future looks bright.
Yeah, pass the mic
It's time for someone else to take the spotlight and share their message.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: James Francis Cauty, William Ernest Drummond, Ernest Drummond
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@scottmanley
Yet to be surpassed as the greatest tune ever.
@AnokkyPromotions
Too true Scott :D
Love your channel too mate
@coconinoco
Sparks flying like a rocket launch!
@oliverbarker920
Good to see that our resident space expert has got a great taste in music!
@tobiaseidem8033
Correct.
@jpinard
HA! Imagine my surprise to see you here Scott! KLF and Kerbal gonna rock you!
@sarahcellblockh1562
42 years old and this vibrates through every single cell in my body, I bloody miss these guys.
@user-if8tt1eh9g
Точно!
@Aforg209
Vibrates?
@MrLouis2865
3000 AD