The term Various Artists is used in the record industry when numerous singers and musicians collaborate on a song or collection of songs. Most often on Last.fm, compilation album tracks appear under the name of Various Artists erroneously because the individual artist is not listed in the album's ID3 information.
Compilation albums, for example.
Sometimes, single releases may be credited to Various Artists when their profits are going to charity and, usually in high-profile cases, are sometimes known by a group name. Examples include Band Aid with their releases of Do They Know It's Christmas? and USA for Africa with We Are The World.
Various Artists is also an actual performance name for Torsten Pröfrock, who runs the German DIN label. Torsten performs also as Dynamo, Erosion, Resilent, Traktor besides some others. He's a good friend of Robert Henke and since the Fall of 2004, he is a member of Monolake.
Various Artists was also a short-lived Bristol punk band formed by brothers Jonjo and Robin Key (originally from Birmingham). Other members were also simultaneously in Art Objects who went on to become The Blue Aeroplanes, the latter the Key brothers also co-wrote some songs and were involved in. When Various Artists imploded, the Key brothers went on to form Either / Or.
Various Artists also appear on tracks from musical theater soundtracks, due to the nature of having many cast members on one song, as well as an ensemble in some cases.
A Foggy Day
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Conspiracy of peace
Only the master
Of the cold northern breeze
Twinsun sink fading
Behind the black lake
Asleep is the mountains
Yet the night is awake
Now black stars rise
And many moons circle
Through silent the night
Ahh
Ahh
Ahh
Ahh
Along the black mountainside scattered
By the campfires awaiting the dawn
Two times a hundred men in battles
Tried by the steel in the arrow
Axe and the sword
By battle worn hunger torn awaitening
For the sun to break through the cold haze
And for the banners of Ebal to appear
On the hill in the sun's first warm rays
The elder among the men
Looked deep into
The fire and spoke loud with pride
Tomorrow is a fine day to die
Now the morning advance from far east
Now the sun breaks through dust clouds and haze
Now a forest of spears appears on the hill
And the steel shines bright in the sun's first rays
Die
Die
Die
Die
The lyrics of "Orgy of silence, Conspiracy of peace" are cryptic yet thought-provoking. It seems to suggest that amidst a peaceful façade, a sense of mayhem and anarchy in silent and subtle ways are brewing. The next line, "Only the master of the cold breeze" could mean the only one who would be able to survive this anarchy would be someone as cold and remote as the northern breeze. The lyrics then paint a picture of the dark, quiet night, only illuminated by black stars and many moons. The words "Strange is the night" emphasises the eeriness of the scene. It is as if something unknown is moving beneath the surface of the silence. The haunting "Ahh" repeated four times adds to the ominous vibe of the song. The next verse narrates a scene where a hundred men are awaiting the dawn at a campfire scattered along the black mountainside. The elders are talking about how it is a good day to die, setting up the scene for battle. Then the word "Die" repeated four times is a stark reminder of the consequence of such a battle.
Line by Line Meaning
Orgy of silence
The surroundings are quiet or silent
Conspiracy of peace
The atmosphere is peaceful, but it seems undercover or manufactured
Only the master
The only person in control or with power is the cold wind from the north
Of the cold northern breeze
The only powerful entity present is the cold wind from the north
Twinsun sink fading
The two suns are setting and disappearing
Behind the black lake
The suns are setting behind a black lake
Asleep is the mountains
The mountains are dormant or inactive
Yet the night is awake
Despite the inactivity of the mountains, the atmosphere is still lively and active
Strange is the night
The atmosphere is odd, peculiar or unusual
Now black stars rise
Black-colored stars are appearing in the sky
And many moons circle
Multiple moons are rotating around the sky
Through silent the night
Despite the liveliness of the atmosphere, the night remains silent
Ahh
Sounds of pleasure, pain or excitement
Ahh
Sounds of pleasure, pain or excitement
Ahh
Sounds of pleasure, pain or excitement
Ahh
Sounds of pleasure, pain or excitement
Along the black mountainside scattered
Objects or people are spread out on the black mountainside
By the campfires awaiting the dawn
People are waiting for the dawn and gathering around the campfires
Two times a hundred men in battles
Two groups, each with 100 men, are preparing for conflict or war
Tried by the steel in the arrow
The men are getting ready to fight with weapons
Axe and the sword
The weapons in use are axes and swords
By battle worn hunger torn awaitening
The men are hungry and tired from previous battles but still eager to fight
For the sun to break through the cold haze
The men are waiting for the sun to come up and dissipate the morning cold and foggy atmosphere
And for the banners of Ebal to appear
The men are waiting for their team's banners to show up before going to war
On the hill in the sun's first warm rays
Banners are raised on a hill where the sun shines the brightest
The elder among the men
The leader or oldest man among the group
Looked deep into
The elder is pondering or contemplating something deeply
The fire and spoke loud with pride
The elder is proud and loudly expressing his emotions around the fire
Tomorrow is a fine day to die
The elder is stating that they are ready for battle, even if it means facing death
Now the morning advance from far east
The sun is rising from the east, indicating that it's morning
Now the sun breaks through dust clouds and haze
The sun is breaking through clouds and haze
Now a forest of spears appears on the hill
On the hill where banners are hanging, many spears are visible, indicating a large gathering
And the steel shines bright in the sun's first rays
The weapons are glimmering in the sun's new rays of light
Die
The men are urging each other to kill the enemy
Die
The men are urging each other to kill the enemy
Die
The men are urging each other to kill the enemy
Die
The men are urging each other to kill the enemy
Writer(s): Ira Gershwin, George Gershwin
Contributed by Kylie N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.