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.
Afterlife
Various Artists Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
so unlike what you seen
so unsure but it seen
Cause we've been waiting for you
Falling into this place
Just giving you a small taste
you'll be back here soon anyway
I see a distant light
My girl this cant be right
such a surreal place to see
So how this has come to be
Arrive too early
And when I think of all the places
I just dont belong
I comes to grips with life and realize this is going too far...
I dont belong here
We gotta move on dear
Escape from this afterlife
cause this time i might
to move on and on
Far away from here...
Place of hope and no pain
Perfect skies with no rain
Can leave this place but refrain
Cause we've been waiting for you
Falling into this place
Just giving you a small taste
Of your afterlife here so stay
you'll be back here soon anyway
This piece on earth not right(with my back aginst the wall)
No pain or sign of time(I'm much too young to fall)
so out the place dont wanna stay
I feel wrong and thats my time
I made up my mind
Gave me your hand and realize I just wanna say goodbye
Please understand I have to leave and carry on my own life
I dont belong here
we gotta move on dear
escape from this afterlife
cause this time I might to move on and on far away from here
got nothing against you
And surely I'll miss you
This place full of peace and light and I hope you might take me back inside when the time is right...
(violin instrument)
Loves ones back home all crying cause they're already missing me
I pray by the grace of god that theres somebody listening
Give me a chance to be that person I wanna be(I'm choking from this ectstasy)
Oh Lord, I try so hard but you gotta let go of me (I need another chance to LIVE!!!)
(Guitar Solo)
(repeat second)
The lyrics of the song "Afterlife" by Various Artists describe the experience of someone who has just entered the afterlife. In the first verse, the singer describes how surreal and dream-like this new place appears, but he is also unsure of what he is seeing. The chorus speaks to someone who has arrived earlier and is welcoming him, telling him to enjoy his time in this new place as he will be back soon enough. The second verse speaks to the singer's feeling of not quite belonging in the afterlife and his desire to move on from it. He wants to escape from this place and carry on with his own life. The bridge talks about the singer's loved ones back home, who are already missing him, while he prays for the chance to be the person he wants to be.
The song's lyrics offer a reflection on the concept of the afterlife, questioning whether it is truly a desirable end for a person's life, or whether they would want to move on from it. The lyrics describe the afterlife as a surreal and dream-like place that is not quite right, and the singer longs to escape from it and carry on with his own life. The song speaks to the idea that we may not always know or understand what we are getting ourselves into when it comes to the afterlife.
Line by Line Meaning
Like walking into a dream
Entering a surreal world, very different from reality
so unlike what you seen
Completely different from anything you've ever experienced before
so unsure but it seen
Despite the uncertainty, the dream-like experience is very real
Cause we've been waiting for you
Acknowledgement of a higher power or a welcoming presence
Falling into this place
Being consumed or overwhelmed by the new world
Just giving you a small taste
A small glimpse of what's to come
Of your afterlife here so stay
A promise of the continuation of the surreal experience
you'll be back here soon anyway
Assurance that one will eventually return to the new world
I see a distant light
Hope or a sign of a way out
My girl this can't be right
Acknowledging that the experience may not be good or desirable
such a surreal place to see
The new world is completely out of the ordinary
So how this has come to be
Questioning the origin or reasoning behind the new world
Arrive too early
Not being prepared for the afterlife experience
And when I think of all the places
Reflecting on one's past life or experiences
I just don't belong
Realizing that the new world is not where one belongs
I comes to grips with life and realize this is going too far...
Coming to terms with the fact that the afterlife experience may not be a positive one
We gotta move on dear
Realizing the need to move on from the afterlife and to carry on with one's own life
Escape from this afterlife
Trying to get away from the new world
cause this time i might to move on and on Far away from here...
The desire to leave the afterlife and move on to the next stage
Place of hope and no pain
The afterlife promises a place of optimism and peace
Perfect skies with no rain
A place of beauty and serenity where nothing can go wrong
Can leave this place but refrain
Even though the new world may not be desirable, it's hard to leave
This piece on earth not right(with my back against the wall)
The physical world doesn't feel right, stuck in a bad situation
No pain or sign of time(I'm much too young to fall)
The afterlife promises an absence of negative experiences or negative consequences
So out the place don't wanna stay
Wishing to leave the afterlife as soon as possible
I feel wrong and that's my time
The afterlife doesn't feel right or is not the right time
I made up my mind
The decision to leave the afterlife has been made
Gave me your hand and realize I just wanna say goodbye
Saying goodbye to the afterlife and returning to the real world
Please understand I have to leave and carry on my own life
Explaining the need to leave the new world to live one's own life
got nothing against you
No ill-will towards the afterlife, but wishing to move on
And surely I'll miss you
Acknowledging that there may be some longing for the afterlife
This place full of peace and light and I hope you might take me back inside when the time is right...
Appreciating the positive aspects of the afterlife and asking for the possibility of a return in the future
(violin instrument)
A musical interlude
Loves ones back home all crying cause they're already missing me
Realizing the impact that one's departure from the afterlife will have on loved ones
I pray by the grace of god that theres somebody listening
A plea to a higher power for help or guidance
Give me a chance to be that person I wanna be(I'm choking from this ecstasy)
Asking for a second chance to live one's life according to one's desires and dreams
Oh Lord, I try so hard but you gotta let go of me (I need another chance to LIVE!!!)
Struggling to leave the afterlife and pleading for another opportunity to live
(Guitar Solo)
Another musical interlude
(repeat second)
Repeating the previous line
Writer(s): Damon Gough, Steve Austin
Contributed by Tristan C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.