The band's members expressed a fascination with vampires and anything connected to them, earning themselves and their music the title "vampiric metal" from their contemporaries. The band created a coherent image of vampirism in their stage performance and within the lyrical themes and atmospheres of their music, which contributed heavily to the gaining of their fan-base.
During their career, the band was first primarily influenced by symphonic black metal, but later tended to include differing influences, including: classicalmusic, opera, darkwave, deathrock, gothic rock and several electro-industrial sub-genres. Throughout this stylistic deviation, a few characteristics of the band's music have remained consistent; melancholic atmospheres and lyrics, vocal styles of akin to gothic metal, and their vampiric image.
The band has produced ten albums in ten years with the English label Plastic Head, and has gained more recognition within the metal scene in Europe, South America and Russia, partially due to the band's participation in various festivals around the world. These include: Vampyria III in London in 1999, Gods of Metal in Italy in 2000, Wave-Gotik-Treffen in Leipzig in 2003 and in 2006, Gotham in London in 2004, Female Voices Festival in Wieze, Belgium in 2006.
In 2003, the band toured with Christian Death throughout Europe, and recorded an album with Valor of Christian Death and Gian Pyres of Cradle of Filth as special guests.
The band's shows have always seen a reasonable level of attendance, and have become more dramatic over the band's career, incorporating fireworks and "out of line" appearances by Scarlet.
Since 2004, Sonya Scarlet has remained the solo vocalist and front of the band, replacing her previous role as backing vocals.
Scarlet sometimes cuts herself with razors at performances, freely letting fans drink her blood, promising them the gift of immortality. In 2005 several English clubs forbade her performing the display of bloodletting, because it violates English laws against the incitement to commit suicide.
On 28 November 2005, Aural Music released the album Pleasure and Pain. Distributors throughout Europe bought the album and it was published with permission in Europe, South America, the USA, Russia, and Japan.
On 19 March 2007, they released their album Desire of Damnation. Desire of Damnation is a double CD, with live songs from The Addiction tour 2006 and some new studio songs and remixes.
Guitarist Robert "Morgoth" left the band in 2006 and was replaced by Stephan Benfante.
On 2 May 2008, they released their 8th studio album Anima Noir. With this album their sound evolves once again, taking the route of electronic/industrial gothic metal while still retaining vampiric lyrics.
In November, 2008, Theatres des Vampires announced that they would go on a temporary hiatus due to both personal and health related issued of vocalist Sonya Scarlet.
On 14 January 2011 Aural Music released the album Moonlight Waltz, their ninth studio album. A music video for the song "Carmilla" was filmed on August 28 and 29, directed by David Bracci, who worked on most of Dario Argento's films in the past decade, and has also directed the "Lilith Mater Inferorum" music video.
The name "Théâtre des Vampires" was inspired by a fictional location created by Gothic fantasy writer Anne Rice of the same name. Rice's Théâtre des Vampires is a Parisian theater, in which vampires pretend to be mortal actors, their performances consisting of the feeding on mortals disguised as part of a play and staged in front of human audiences. The location is mentioned in several of Rice's books, including Interview With the Vampire and The Vampire Lestat.
Official site: http://www.theatres-des-vampires.net
Your Ragdoll
Theatres Des Vampires Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Broken and left to myself
You could not ever think
My eyes began to blink
Alive and cold
I'm here alone
I'm coming there to hold you
With you again
And you'll be
Cold as me
I was your special rag doll
But one day, you made me fall
My angel face half broke
One eye, one empty hole
I'm alive, I'm here
I'm coming to get you
Forgotten on this shelf
No more a thought for me
I was your favorite
No more, no more, no more
Broken, I'm broken
The lyrics to "Your Ragdoll" by Theatres Des Vampires convey a sense of heartbreak and abandonment. The singer is portrayed as a discarded toy, left broken and alone on a shelf. The opening lines indicate that they were once cherished by someone but now feel neglected. Their eyes begin to blink, suggesting a fading hope for attention and affection.
The chorus further emphasizes the singer's loneliness and longing. They express a desire to hold the person who abandoned them, offering the image of scars and pain as evidence of their suffering. The line "And you'll be cold as me" indicates that they believe the person who left them will eventually feel the same loneliness and emptiness.
The second verse reveals that the singer was once the listener's "special rag doll," someone who held significance in their life. However, something happened that caused them to fall out of favor. The mention of the singer's face being half-broken with one eye, one empty hole not only describes physical damage but also symbolizes the emotional pain they have endured.
The final lines of the song express the singer's determination to reclaim their life. They assert that they are alive, present, and coming to get the person who abandoned them. The repeated phrase "broken, I'm broken" reinforces their state of emotional devastation.
Overall, "Your Ragdoll" speaks to themes of loneliness, abandonment, and the desire for validation and connection. It portrays the painful journey of a discarded toy seeking redemption and reclaiming their place in someone's life.
Line by Line Meaning
I was sitting on the shelf
I was neglected and abandoned, left unattended in a lonely place
Broken and left to myself
Left shattered and without support, forced to deal with my pain alone
You could not ever think
You were oblivious and never considered
My eyes began to blink
Tears welled up in my eyes, reflecting my sadness
Alive and cold
Existence, devoid of warmth and emotion
I'm here alone
I remain solitary and isolated
I'm coming there to hold you
I will arrive to embrace you and provide comfort
My scars, my pain
The visible marks and internal suffering I bear
With you again
In your presence once more
And you'll be
And you shall become
Cold as me
As devoid of warmth and emotion as myself
I was your special rag doll
I held a unique and cherished role in your life
But one day, you made me fall
Yet one day, you caused my downfall and destruction
My angel face half broke
My innocent countenance was left partially shattered
One eye, one empty hole
I lost one eye, leaving an empty void in my appearance
I'm alive, I'm here
I am still living, existing in the present
I'm coming to get you
I am approaching to claim you
Forgotten on this shelf
Abandoned and no longer remembered in this place
No more a thought for me
You no longer consider me or think of me
I was your favorite
I once held the highest regard in your eyes
No more, no more, no more
But now, there is nothing left, nothing more
Broken, I'm broken
Shattered, I am irreparably damaged
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: Fabio Varesi
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind