The prototype was Dunedin punk rock band The Enemy. Then there was Toy Love, formed late '78, first gig early '79, they played 500 plus gigs in 19 months, then they were gone. They made an indelible impression on the New Zealand music scene though, upping the theatrics and giving the punters something to dance about. High hopes of making the big time, via Australia, gave way to tougher times ... Toy Love's dissolution soon followed.
Chris Knox, Toy Love's vocalist, was a key player in the foundation of iconic New Zealand record label Flying Nun, mastering some of the first recordings for the likes of The Clean. Knox has been a persistent figure in the NZ music scene and worked alone and on various projects such as Tall Dwarfs and Chris Knox & The Nothing, or simply The Nothing. He also ran his own label, cunningly called Major Label.
The members of Toy Love are said to have hated the sound of the Toy Love LP ("all tops, no bass"). The passage of twenty five years saw the release of Cuts (Flying Nun, 2005) - two discs of reconditioned tracks drawn mostly from previously unknown master tapes along with mixes from 45 singles, the AK79 compilation (Ripper Records, 1980), and demo versions.
Toy Love was:
Mike Dooley - Drums and Cymbals
Paul Christopher Kean - Stereo original with Di Marzio through Holden Graphic (and JBL K145) and Fender Jazz pickup through Jansen Combo.
Chris Knox - A throat, a body and a mind beyond repair.
Jane Walker - Hohner Clavinet, DG-EKO organ, bits of foam plastic, bits of 4x2, Holden graphic amp, speakers, phaser, electricity.
Alec Bathgate - Ibanez 59'er and Rockit 130
After Toy Love broke up, Bathgate and Knox remained together as the Tall Dwarfs. Kean was later a member of The Bats.
In 2012, Toy Love was inducted into the New Zealand Music Hall of Fame and given the Legacy Award at the Vodafone New Zealand Music Awards.
Bride of Frankenstein
Toy Love Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
The air is dripping with impending doom
Now all these faces looking down at me
Readying me for surgery
They're all saying it'll all be sweet
I'll be back on my feet in about a week
But I don't hear a single word they say
My mind is several million miles away
I want a bride he said
Make me a bride he said
From one who died he said
I'm lying on an operating table
I don't know nothing cos I'm not quite able
To see or hear or feel a thing
For my body's not finished or functioning
They're putting me together out of other peoples' bodies
But I don't mind and I haven't got a worry
As long as they give me what I really crave
A viable alternative to the grave
I wanna be six foot three
I want a bride he said
Make me a bride he said
From one who died he said
Sewn up, so fine
Bride of Frankenstein
I'm lying in a hospital bed
Don't know if I'm alive or dead
And is it really true or merely fantasy
That these so-called doctors made a monster out of me
I'm staring at a place where my body used to start
But it's been made a guinea-pig to surgical art
I'm lying here locked in someone else's skin
And heaben only knows the sorta state I'm in
And god I'm six foot three
I want a bride he said
Make me a bride he said
From one who died he said
Sewn up, so fine
Bride of Frankenstein
Toy Love's song "Bride of Frankenstein" tells the story of a man lying in a hospital room, preparing for surgery to create a monster bride for him from other people's bodies. Throughout the song, the singer expresses his desire to be six foot three and to have a bride made from the remains of the dead. He is willing to undergo surgery and be pieced together from other people's bodies as long as he gets the outcome he craves.
The lyrics convey a sense of disassociation from reality and a detachment from his current existence. He is not engaged with the doctors and nurses around him or the procedures they are undertaking. Instead, his mind is elsewhere as he longs for transformation and the fulfillment of his dream. The lyrics highlight the darkness within the singer's mind and a willingness to sacrifice his own body and life to fulfill his fantasy.
Overall, "Bride of Frankenstein" tells a dark story of obsession with physical transformation and ultimate fulfillment of a twisted fantasy.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm lying in a hospital room
The singer is in a hospital room.
The air is dripping with impending doom
The atmosphere in the room is scary and depressing.
Now all these faces looking down at me
The doctors and nurses surrounding the singer.
Readying me for surgery
Preparing the artist for surgery.
They're all saying it'll all be sweet
The medical team is assuring the artist that the surgery will be successful.
I'll be back on my feet in about a week
The medical team is predicting a quick recovery for the singer.
But I don't hear a single word they say
The singer isn't paying attention to the medical team's reassurances.
My mind is several million miles away
The artist's mind is far from the hospital room.
I wanna be six foot three
The artist desires to be six foot three inches tall.
I want a bride he said
The artist wants a companion.
Make me a bride he said
The singer asks for someone to make him the companion he desires.
From one who died he said
The artist wants his companion to be created from deceased body parts.
I'm lying on an operating table
The singer is on the operating table.
I don't know nothing cos I'm not quite able
The singer is under anesthesia and is unaware of the surgery taking place.
To see or hear or feel a thing
The singer is unconscious and can't see, hear or feel anything.
For my body's not finished or functioning
The artist's body isn't complete yet and isn't functioning properly.
They're putting me together out of other peoples' bodies
The medical team is using body parts from other people to create the artist's body.
But I don't mind and I haven't got a worry
The singer doesn't care that his body is made up of different body parts from other people.
As long as they give me what I really crave
All the singer wants is the companion he desires.
A viable alternative to the grave
The artist wants the companion to be a replacement for death.
Sewn up, so fine
The artist's body has been sewn together perfectly.
Bride of Frankenstein
The artist's companion is similar to the Bride of Frankenstein.
I'm lying in a hospital bed
The singer is now in a hospital bed after the surgery.
Don't know if I'm alive or dead
The artist is not sure if he is alive or dead.
And is it really true or merely fantasy
The singer is uncertain if any of this is real or just a dream.
That these so-called doctors made a monster out of me
The singer feels like a monster because of his new body.
I'm staring at a place where my body used to start
The singer is looking at his body where the different body parts were sewn together.
But it's been made a guinea-pig to surgical art
The artist's body has been used as an experiment during the surgery.
I'm lying here locked in someone else's skin
The artist is in a body made up of other people's body parts.
And heaven only knows the sorta state I'm in
The singer is unsure of the state of his body, and only heaven knows what will happen.
And god I'm six foot three
The singer's new body is six foot three inches tall.
Sewn up, so fine
The artist's body has been sewn together perfectly.
Bride of Frankenstein
The artist's companion is similar to the Bride of Frankenstein.
Contributed by Caroline W. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Keir Mac Donald
Best NZ band ever. Best NZ album ever. When I heard Toy Love were playing at my big brothers Prom ( Xavier College ) I murdered him and wore his face just so I could see Toy Love ( just kidding, I didn't really, I just seethed with jealousy )
If Jane Walker is still single I would like to pledge my undying love for her and ask for her hand in marriage.
Seriously though. If the NZ Music Quota ( God Bless Helen Clark ) was in place when this album was released. Toy Love would have been straight up billionaires.
Also "No Idea". When I die Toy Love will play the first set at my funeral and then "No Idea" will play second. I don't care about the logistics. After they play all of "Wotsoever" and "Class War" then they'll do a couple of Angelic Upstart covers and my funeral will officially fuck*ng rule.
Anybody disagree ?
Keir Mac Donald
Best NZ band ever. Best NZ album ever. When I heard Toy Love were playing at my big brothers Prom ( Xavier College ) I murdered him and wore his face just so I could see Toy Love ( just kidding, I didn't really, I just seethed with jealousy )
If Jane Walker is still single I would like to pledge my undying love for her and ask for her hand in marriage.
Seriously though. If the NZ Music Quota ( God Bless Helen Clark ) was in place when this album was released. Toy Love would have been straight up billionaires.
Also "No Idea". When I die Toy Love will play the first set at my funeral and then "No Idea" will play second. I don't care about the logistics. After they play all of "Wotsoever" and "Class War" then they'll do a couple of Angelic Upstart covers and my funeral will officially fuck*ng rule.
Anybody disagree ?
pbaylis1
Literally NZ's best band. This song would work today.
sam stewart
I love this song.
Tony Speers
Great memories of the Cabana in Napier, A mate and I ended up singing (badly) some backing vocals with Chris on stage Made our Night, guess you wouldn't get away with that nowadays lol Thanks Chris if you read this !
Abdullah Drury
I loved this song when I was a kid. Used to play in on loop, on a n old audio tape cassette, to the extreme annoyance of everyone else in the Waikato I suspect.
tuskedbeast
Abdullah Drury
Even better! I hope Chris Knox reads what you wrote.
Abdullah Drury
***** My recollection was that I had it on audio tape. Somehow I'd filled a whole C30 (C60 ?) with the one song. I think we had it on video (?) and I'd just recorded, roughly, off the tv play. Something obtuse and unnecessarily complicated that nobody would dream of doing these days. It was Hamilton in the early 1980s after all.
tuskedbeast
This would be a great 45 to have as a kid. I'll bet you really did annoy everyone! Inspiring story.
Gregg McKenzie
R.I.P. Janeskis!
KCKALOHA
Anybody else here because they tried to find Pool of Frogs?