From the sleeve notes for the latest release End Titles...Stories For Film released in July 2008, the current line-up is stated as James Lavelle and Pablo Clements, also a member of the Psychonauts.
The original line-up was James Lavelle, Tim Goldsworthy (now a member of DFA) and Kudo (Major Force West, Skylab). This incarnation released several EPs and singles, usually involving collaborations with other Mo'Wax affiliated artists.
In 1998, after the departure of Goldsworthy and Kudo, Lavelle enlisted US producer DJ Shadow to help complete UNKLE's debut album, "Psyence Fiction". On this album they collaborated with a variety of guest artists including Thom Yorke (Radiohead), Mike D (Beastie Boys), Badly Drawn Boy and Richard Ashcroft (The Verve). The album contained songs which merged indie-rock with hip hop.
In 2003 UNKLE released "Never, Never, Land". At this time UNKLE consisted of Lavelle and new collaborator Richard File, and the album also featured Ian Brown (The Stone Roses), Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age), Robert Del Naja (Massive Attack), Mani (The Stone Roses, Primal Scream) and others.
A third album entitled "War Stories" was released in July 2007. It features collaborations with Josh Homme (Queens of the Stone Age), Ian Astbury (The Cult), Autolux, Robert Del Naja (Massive Attack), The Duke Spirit, and Gavin Clark, and is far more strongly rock-influenced than previous releases. The album was preceded by an EP, Nights Temper, of which a limited pressing was released in May 2007.
Lavelle has also released several mix albums and remixes under his own name and under the name UNKLEsounds (together with Richard File).
UNKLE is known for remixing music from artists such as Explosions in the Sky, Massive Attack, and Oasis.
Burn My Shadow
UNKLE Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And I stand inside today
At the edge of the future
And my dreams all fade away
And burn my shadow away...
I faced my destroyer
And you judged me once for falling
This wounded heart arise
And burn my shadow away...
The opening lines of UNKLE's "Burn My Shadow" are indicative of the song's overall message of confronting the uncertainties and fears of the future. The singer recounts how they have foregone worrying about tomorrow and are instead focused on the present, standing at the threshold of what lies ahead. However, despite their efforts to remain stoic, their dreams are slowly slipping away, and they are left with a sense of emptiness and longing.
In the second verse, the singer references their encounter with their "destroyer," which could possibly be interpreted as a physical, mental or emotional antagonist. The notion of being "ambushed by a lie" suggests that the singer has been deceived, with the truth of the situation only coming to light through their own pain and suffering. Despite this indignity, the singer remains steadfast in their determination to pick themselves back up and challenge those who would judge them unfairly.
The chorus of the song, "burn my shadow away," seems to be a call for renewal, a plea to the universe to rid them of their troubles and help them start anew. This is a theme that runs through many of UNKLE's songs, with the lyrics often exploring the tension between self-reflection and self-improvement.
Line by Line Meaning
I have burned my tomorrows
I have wasted my future, and now I am living in the present.
And I stand inside today
I am rooted in the present moment because the future is inaccessible.
At the edge of the future
I am on the brink of a path that is unknown and uncertain.
And my dreams all fade away
My hopes for the future are slowly disappearing.
And burn my shadow away...
I want to leave my past behind me and start anew.
I faced my destroyer
I encountered the force that was destroying me, the source of my pain.
I was ambushed by a lie
I was caught off guard by a falsehood that I believed to be true.
And you judged me once for falling
You criticized me for my downfall and made me feel inferior.
This wounded heart arise
Despite my emotional injuries, I must rise above and continue to move forward.
And burn my shadow away...
I want to overcome my past and see it disappear.
Lyrics Ā© Wixen Music Publishing, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: CHRISTOPHER ALLEN GOSS, IAN ROBERT ASTBURY, JAMES GABRIEL LEO LAVELLE, RICHARD LEIGH FILE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@DeepThinkingGPU
that moment when you want to share this masterpiece with a friend you know will be able to appreciate the depth and meaningfulness of this, and realize you don't have such friends around.
@jahphooey1594
Yes
@mariejimpowerful
You need new friends! lol
@mikeprince4169
Sad but true š š
@zeromt3577
I'm here for you bro! (Downside, I only average about one message every three or four years... but, ... good with the bad?)
@tenchimisaki20011
And Burn My Shadow away
@DMethod13
One of the most under-recognized, under-rated and under-appreciated music videos on Youtube.
@ireneleegibbs
This song should have 10 million views
@triplehelix3207
You know, this song just popped back into my head and i still like it 10 years later
@betariffs
Who's just here for UNKLE?