Gilmore is said to have become interested in music as a result of her father's record collection, which included work by Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Elvis Costello, and Tom Waits, among others. At 16 she left home and began working in a recording studio where she was discovered by her now long-time collaborator, producer and sometime co-songwriter Nigel Stonier, who became her husband in a ceremony in October 2005.
Thea recorded her debut album aged just 17 and then entered a spell of productivity which, in the four and a half years from January 1999 to August 2003, saw her record and release six albums including four "official" releases and two cult albums which were only intended for internet release but which have long since been available in the shops. In 2001, with the release of Rules For Jokers, she hit some kind of national nerve and garnered some attendant airplay but it wasn't until 2003's Avalanche that Thea finally began to make significant waves. Avalanche became Radio 2's Album Of The Week and spawned two hit singles including her first certifiable Top 40 hit Juliet. Thea has gathered countless plaudits over the years - "the best British singer songwriter of the last ten years - and then some" (Uncut), "so good its scary" (Mojo), and "Gilmore is already in a league of her own" (Q) immediately spring to mind - but Avalanche was truly a quantum leap forward and "a breakthrough record" (Times) to boot. And you can bet that Thea remains the only artiste to have her under-$50 video shown on Top Of The Pops.
Increasing radio support and acclaim from the music press led to a lucrative tour of the US in 2004, in support of legendary folksinger Joan Baez. During this time, Gilmore was diagnosed with clinical depression and also split from her personal relationship with Nigel Stonier after seven years, although they continued touring and working together.
In 2005, Gilmore continued touring commitments, for the first time not releasing a new album (the covers collection Loft Music was widely released during 2004). In October 2005, she and Stonier, who, in the light of Gilmore's depression diagnosis, re-started their personal relationship, married in a ceremony near their home in Cheshire.
Gilmore finally returned to recording with the release of Harpo's Ghost in August 2006, after a three-year absence of new material. The album was once again acclaimed in the music press and UK radio lent their support to the single "Cheap Tricks." Gilmore has been touted by Uncut magazine as "the best British singer-songwriter of the last 10 years...and then some" and has gained steady acclaim for each of her albums.
On November 14th, 2006, Gilmore gave birth to her first child with Stonier, a son named Egan, having conducted a UK tour in the autumn while heavily pregnant.
Thea Gilmore writes lyrics that somehow combine awesome poetic grace together with a 21st century barbed undercurrent. She also delivers razor sharp missives on life, love, sex, death, politics and wars (both personal and global) and all with an achingly-beautiful delivery which melts hearts in an instant. Someone once remarked that Thea is a hellraiser with a voice like honey and if you get to meet her you will know what this means. Barely out of her teenage daze, Thea was being compared to everyone from Joni Mitchell to Ryan Adams and Tom Waits and now at 31, Thea is going to make you think sweet somethings all over again.
www.theagilmore.net
Icarus Wind
Thea Gilmore Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It?s the Icarus wind, it?s telling me those lies
And its heart is like ice and its fingers are long
And it knows just who?ll be torn apart by that windsong
It?s the Icarus wind
It?s the Icarus wind, blowing through my hair
It?s the Icarus wind loosening the threads
If you?re just held together with hope and candle-wax
It?s the Icarus wind
It?s the Icarus wind
And the higher it pulls me up, the hotter it gets
It?s the end of the dream around, mid fire and cigarettes
It?s the Icarus wind whispering in my ear
It?s the Icarus wind dusting away those tears
Singing, baby the truth is that this won?t hurt at all
Soon there?ll just be feathers and the quiet of the fall
It?s the Icarus wind
It?s the Icarus wind
It?s the Icarus wind
Thea Gilmore's "Icarus Wind" is a cautionary tale of rising too high only to be taken down by the very thing that lifted you. The title refers to the Greek myth of Icarus, who flew too close to the sun with wings made of feathers and wax, causing the wax to melt and the wings to fail, leading to his tragic plummet. In the song, the Icarus wind is a metaphorical force that blows lies and lures the singer up into the skies, only to ultimately bring them down.
The lyrics suggest that the wind is a dangerous force, with a heart like ice and fingers that are long, seeming to knowingly tear apart anyone caught in its path. The wind is described as hot and oppressive the higher it pulls the singer, yet it whispers comforting lies in the ear, convincing her that the fall won't hurt at all. Ultimately, the message is one of caution against the seductive lure of ambition and the dangers of getting too carried away.
Line by Line Meaning
It?s the Icarus wind, it?s blowing in my eyes
The dangerous temptation that leads to destruction is all around me.
It?s the Icarus wind, it?s telling me those lies
The alluring deception is guiding me towards a tragic end.
And its heart is like ice and its fingers are long
The source of temptation is cold and calculated, creeping closer and closer towards me.
And it knows just who?ll be torn apart by that windsong
This temptation is fully aware of the people it will destroy, making its grasp all the more sinister.
It?s the Icarus wind
The repeated refrain emphasizes the overwhelming presence of this tempting wind.
It?s the Icarus wind, blowing through my hair
The temptation is inescapable and constantly present, surrounding every aspect of my life.
It?s the Icarus wind loosening the threads
The temptation is gradually unraveling everything I hold dear.
And, my God, it will stop you right there, dead in your tracks
The temptation is so overwhelming that it will completely halt any progress or growth in my life.
If you?re just held together with hope and candle-wax
If my foundation is weak, my resistance to temptation will crumble.
It?s the Icarus wind
Again, the repetition emphasizes the all-encompassing nature of this temptation.
And the higher it pulls me up, the hotter it gets
The more I give into the temptation, the more intense and dangerous it becomes.
It?s the end of the dream around, mid fire and cigarettes
The temptation will lead to the end of everything that I hold dear, bringing destruction and chaos into my life.
It?s the Icarus wind whispering in my ear
The temptation is constantly present, quietly urging me towards my own downfall.
It?s the Icarus wind dusting away those tears
Even if I am aware of the consequences of my actions, the temptation will cloud my judgment and make me forget.
Singing, baby the truth is that this won?t hurt at all
The temptation will deceive me into believing that there will be no negative consequences, even though the opposite is true.
Soon there?ll just be feathers and the quiet of the fall
Giving into this temptation will ultimately lead to my downfall, leaving me with nothing but emptiness and silence.
It?s the Icarus wind
Once again, the refrain emphasizes the overwhelming and all-encompassing nature of this temptation.
Lyrics © OBO APRA/AMCOS
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