Before Underworld, Hyde and Smith started out in 1979 on The Screen Gemz band while working together in a diner in the city of Cardiff, where both had been studying. In 1983 they recorded two albums for CBS Records with a new wave synthpop band whose name was a graphic squiggle, later entitled Freur.
In 1986 Hyde and Smith formed Underworld, after disbanding of Freur. They tried a more guitar-oriented funky electropop sound on their two albums released on Sire Records: Underneath the Radar (1987) and Change the Weather (1989). This initial lineup (also called Underworld Mk1) consisted of Karl Hyde, Rick Smith, Alfie Thomas, Bryn Burrows, Baz Allen and Pascal Consoli before sinking back into obscurity and disbanding in 1990.
British DJ Darren Emerson hooked up with Hyde and Smith in 1992 and helped them refine their sound into something more sleek and beat-oriented, yet still shot through with tinges of blues, rock and spoken-word streams of consciousness. After several releases on Junior Boy's Own as Lemon Interupt, the trio re-adopted the Underworld name in 1992. Two songs from this era are Rez and Spikee.
In addition to their music, Hyde and Smith are members of Tomato, a graphic design company which has done high-profile work for clients around the world as well as art for all of Underworld's releases. Hyde, along with former Freur keyboardist John Warwicker, has also published two typographic journals, Mmm... Skyscraper, I Love You (1994) and In The Belly Of Saint Paul (2003).
Their first full-length, dubnobasswithmyheadman, was released in 1994 to rave reviews and is still considered a landmark. It spawned several hit singles (Dark & Long, Cowgirl, Dirty Epic) and was followed a couple years later by the Born Slippy single.
The sophomore album Second Toughest in the Infants was released in 1996. This album showed Underworld maturing as a trio, mixing elements of techno, house, drum and bass and pop music to spectacular effect. The first track Juanita/Kiteless/To Dream of Love (three parts) is one of the longest songs recorded by Underworld, with a length of over 16 minutes.
In the same year they issued an EP Pearl's Girl, containing various mixes of the song Pearl's Girl and five new tracks (one of them is Cherry Pie, an early version of Rowla). Underworld's much-praised remixography also grew, including Björk, Saint Etienne, Simply Red, Massive Attack and Leftfield.
After licensing out a remix of Born Slippy (entitled Born Slippy .NUXX) for the 1996 cult classic film Trainspotting, Underworld gained instant worldwide fame and found themselves touring the world. Their fame continued to run high into the release of Beaucoup Fish in 1999. Five singles were released: Moaner, Push Upstairs, Jumbo, King of Snake, and Bruce Lee.
Underworld issued a live set and a DVD named Everything, Everything in 2000, after which Emerson left the group to concentrate more on his DJ career. The mellower album A Hundred Days Off followed in 2002. It was promoted by two singles: Two Months Off and Dinosaur Adventure 3D.
In 2003 Underworld released a 2 CD compilation entitled 1992-2002, comprising some of their best songs. Also since 2003 the group has been trickling out new music on their official website www.underworldlive.com via a series of downloadable mp3s dubbed "The Riverrun Project". Each mp3 bundle features 25-or-so-minute of mixed new material, hundreds of photographs and traditional album art.
In 2005 the band issued another live album, Live in Tokyo 25th November 2005, a recording of Underworld's live performance at the Electraglide festival in Tokyo on 25 November 2005. There were apparently only 7000 copies of the album made.
Oblivion with Bells, their fifth studio album was released in October 2007, the first with additional collaboration with Darren Price who joined the band's live setup in 2005. It spawned four singles: Crocodile, Boy, Boy, Boy, Beautiful Burnout, and Ring Road.
On 13 May 2010, Underworld released a new single Scribble (Radio Edit), available for free download on their official site. This single was followed by a new album later that year, called Barking, which is still in the process of releasing singles, beginning with the aforementioned Scribble, Always Loved a Film and finally Diamond Jigsaw. Also released on a beatport remix contest was Bird 1 where amateur producers were able to put their take on Underworld's collaboration with Dubfire. As of 2011, the duo can also attach to their resumes soundtracking a live stage play. Frankenstein, produced and directed by Danny Boyle, starring both Johnny Lee Miller & Benedict Cumberbatch who are, on alternating nights, both Frankenstein, or the Creature. The Soundtrack is available through Underworld's Website.
January 2016 saw the release of I Exhale, in advance of Barbara Barbara, we face a shining future, released in March 2016.
In April 2018, Underworld released a standalone single, Brilliant Yes That Would Be, an ambient piece with its accompanying video inspired by the Icelandic landscape and their first performance in Reykjavík since 1994.
In May 2018, Underworld unveiled the World of Underworld project, which focuses on reflecting and re-imagining their nearly 30 year body of work. It also serves as an outlet for experimentation, new releases and spontaneous creativity. Brilliant Yes That Would Be was the first track to be released through the World of Underworld, which was recorded and mixed just days before it was released.
Later in that same month, Underworld debuted a new collaboration with Iggy Pop titled Bells & Circles, live at the BBC Biggest Weekend 2018. Shortly after, a four-track collaborative EP with the two artists was released, Teatime Dub Encounters.
On November 1st, 2018, Underworld announced the Drift project, an ongoing music-and-video experiment that publishes new Underworld material on their official website every week. The first instalment began with Another Silent Way, also released on the same day.
On November 1st, 2019, Underworld released Drift Series 1, their tenth studio album. It is the conclusion of the first year of the band's year-long music-and-video experiment Drift. Underworld announced the Drift project will continue on for another year. The now-renamed Drift Series 1, was released exactly one year after the launch of the series, as a box set featuring 7 CDs, a Blu-ray, and an 80-page book documenting the creative process around Drift. A single-disc Drift Series 1 Sampler Edition was also released simultaneously.
Bruce Lee
Underworld Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Life kid suck
Drink from the box
The juice kicks up
Life give suck the box drink
Yeah
Life kid drink from the box
Life kids sucker
Box drink
Yeah
Bruce Lee
Life kid seen from the box
Seen from the box
The juice from the box
Kids suck life
Kid get suck from the box
Drink
Bruce Lee
Life kid suck from the box
Drink from the box
The juice kicks up
Life kid suck from the box
Drink
Yeah
Bruce Lee
Life gets in from the box
Seen from the box
The juice from the box
Kids suck life
Kid get suck from the box
Drink
Bruce Lee
Life kid suck from the box
Drink from the box
The juice kicks up
Life kid suck from the box
Drink
Yeah
Bruce Lee
(yeah yeah yeah yeah)
Life kid suck from the box
Drink from the box
The juice kicks up
Life kid suck from the box
Yeah
Bruce Lee
Life kid ?? from the box
Seen from the box
Drink from the box
The juice kid suck
Life kid suck the box
Drink
Yeah
Bruce Lee
Tanglon
Life kid suck the box [Repeat x8]
From the box
(skin hard sails in jail)
(hair always cut with a blunt tool)
(muscular but thin like springs)
(but not steel)
(for ford men)
(four ford men)
(they sell it into vaporizing rulers)
(each way up in his own head)
(hold up in its fly flicking markses)
(piggy little piggy little eyes)
(holds and scape)
(hole in skin)
(just enough to let in light)
(bullet got the wrong bloke)
(but he don't die anyway )
(its nothing mortal if you don't move)
(you still have slot the wall in a blanket)
(I have been this way for days)
Stiff stiff stiff stiff stiff
(bullet got the wrong bloke)
(it's happenned mortuary, you die it means)
(skin has it off the wall and it goes like this)
(I have been this way for days)
(oh no, there's a gun)
(over there under the bed)
(turn, let's see what's in the other room)
(he grew up faster)
(just the disco with the one get my rope)
(pull through again)
(a third rat a fourth to his head is calm the sheets of calm)
(bullet got the wrong bloke)
(he's out of the eyes now)
(strained gas on his head)
(It's dark, he comes up with his darkness)
Life kid suck from the box
Drink from the box
The juice kid suck
Life kid suck the box
Yeah
Bruce Lee
Tanglon
The lyrics of Underworld's song "Bruce Lee" are abstract and obscure, leaving much room for interpretation. The repeated phrases "life kid suck" and "drink from the box" suggest a sense of disillusionment with life and a reliance on mind-altering substances to escape it. The mention of Bruce Lee, a legendary martial artist and film star, could be interpreted as a symbol of strength and resilience in the face of adversity.
The various unrelated snippets of lyrics that follow add to the song's mystique rather than providing more clarity. References to hard skin, blunt haircuts, muscular yet thin bodies, and vaporizing rulers paint a picture of a dystopian world where conformity and control reign. The repeated line "bullet got the wrong bloke" hints at a sense of injustice or mistaken identity, while the closing lines "it's dark, he comes up with his darkness" suggest a sense of darkness within oneself that cannot be escaped.
Overall, "Bruce Lee" is a bleak and cryptic song that invites the listener to project their own interpretations onto it. Its repetitive, trance-like quality and enigmatic lyrics make it an intriguing and thought-provoking piece of music.
Line by Line Meaning
Life kid suck
Life is tough for young people
Drink from the box
Turning to alcohol as a coping mechanism
The juice kicks up
The alcohol provides temporary relief
Life give suck the box drink
Life is hard, so people resort to drinking from a box
Yeah
Expression of agreement or affirmation
Life kid drink from the box
Young people turn to alcohol
Life kids sucker
Young people are struggling
Box drink
Alcohol from a box is commonly consumed
Yeah
Expression of agreement or affirmation
Bruce Lee
A reference to martial arts and finding inner strength
Life kid seen from the box
Young people feel trapped and hopeless
The juice from the box
Alcohol as an escape from reality
Kid get suck from the box
Alcohol becomes a destructive cycle
Drink
Continuing to turn to alcohol
Bruce Lee
Finding strength and purpose
Life gets in from the box
Life is overwhelming
Kid get suck from the box
Alcohol becomes a crutch
Yeah
Expression of agreement or affirmation
Bruce Lee
Encouragement to find inner strength
Life kid ?? from the box
Youth are seeking escape and relief
Seen from the box
Viewing the world through an unhealthy lens
The juice kid suck
Alcohol has a hold on young people
Life kid suck the box
Alcohol addiction and desperation
Drink
Continuing to turn to alcohol
Yeah
Expression of agreement or affirmation
Bruce Lee
Encouragement to find strength and courage
(yeah yeah yeah yeah)
Expression of affirmation
Stiff stiff stiff stiff stiff
Being stuck or paralyzed by life's challenges
(skin hard sails in jail)
Feeling trapped and weighed down by life
(hair always cut with a blunt tool)
Struggling to find effective solutions to problems
(muscular but thin like springs)
Having strength and potential, but feeling stretched thin
(but not steel)
Having vulnerabilities and weaknesses
(for ford men)
Referencing Ford Motor Company
(four ford men)
Possibly referencing a group of men who work for Ford
(they sell it into vaporizing rulers)
Selling the idea of control to those in power
(each way up in his own head)
Everyone is lost in their own thoughts and struggles
(hold up in its fly flicking markses)
Stuck in routine or repetitive behaviors
(piggy little piggy little eyes)
Feeling watched or judged
(holds and scape)
Holding on and trying to escape at the same time
(hole in skin)
Feeling exposed and vulnerable
(just enough to let in light)
Hope in the midst of darkness
(bullet got the wrong bloke)
Feeling like a victim of circumstance
(but he don't die anyway )
Surviving against the odds
(its nothing mortal if you don't move)
Stagnation can be fatal
(you still have slot the wall in a blanket)
Retreating from the world in despair
(I have been this way for days)
Feeling trapped in a negative cycle
Tanglon
Unknown reference
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Mute Song Limited
Written by: Darren Paul Emerson, Karl Hyde, Richard David Smith
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Seiki Tomomi
That moment when you, your significant other, and your kid are all bumping your heads to the beat in the family car with this playing...
...yes, that moment was glorious. Bruce Lee!
Byd Sawret
Props!!! One cool family unit!!!!
Jonny Sun
will you adopt me?
Dùn Èideann AER
Man I’d give anything to experience my kids digging their dads sounds........
Elwyn Reynolds
Indeed.
Baron Cruelty
F***ing still love this badass track. Never get bored with it.
Alan Reid
Those who know know 🎎
J VH
So fresh. People don't experiment anymore. Who cares if you got a good voice. Can you make an interesting sound? These boys could
PilferMusic
can
Andrew
@PilferMusic jar