Wire's debut album, Pink Flag (1977), contains songs which are diverse in mood and style, but most use a minimalist punk approach, unorthodox structures, and several songs are under a minute in length; "Field Day For The Sundays" is only 28 seconds long.
Chairs Missing followed in 1978, and found Wire stepping back from the stark minimalism of Pink Flag, with longer, more atmospheric songs and synthesizer parts added by producer Mike Thorne. The experimentation was even more prominent on 154 (1979). Many of the songs had bassist Graham Lewis on lead vocals.
In 1979, creative differences pulled the band in different directions, leading to the Document and Eyewitness LP (1981), a recording of a performance that featured, almost exclusively, new material. The LP came packaged with an EP of a different performance of more new material. Some of these songs, along with others performed but not included on the album, were included on Colin Newman's post-Wire solo albums ("5/10", "We Meet Under Tables"), while others were released by Gilbert and Lewis' primary post-Wire outlet Dome ("And Then...", "Ritual View"). The band disbanded for the first time in 1980
Between 1981-85 Wire ceased recording and performing in favour of solo and non-Wire collaborative projects such as Dome, Cupol, Duet Emmo, and several Colin Newman solo efforts. In 1985, the group reformed as a "beat combo" (a joking reference to early 1960s beat music or even possibly beatniks), with greater use of electronic musical instruments. It released It's Beginning To And Back Again (IBTABA) in 1989, a "live" album of mostly re-worked versions of songs from The Ideal Copy and A Bell Is a Cup...Until It Is Struck, heavily re-arranged, edited, and remixed. A new song from the album, "Eardrum Buzz", became the band's biggest charting single.
Gotobed left the band in 1990, after the release of the album Manscape. After his departure, the band dropped one letter from its name, becoming "Wir" (still pronounced "wire"), and released The First Letter in 1991. Once again, the band disbanded in 1992 There followed a further period of solo recordings, during which Newman founded the Swim ~ label, and later Githead with his wife (ex-Minimal Compact bassist Malka Spigel), while Wire remained an occasional collaboration. It was not until 1999 that Wire again became a full-time entity.
With Gotobed back in the line-up (now using his birth name, Robert Grey), the group initially reworked much of their back catalogue for a performance at Royal Festival Hall on 26 February 2000. Wire's reception during a short tour of the US, and a number of UK gigs, convinced the band to continue. Two EPs and an album Send (2003) followed, as well as collaborations with stage designer Es Devlin and artists Jake and Dinos Chapman. In 2004 the band split once more.
In 2006, Wire's 1970s albums were re-released with original vinyl track listings. Rumours abounded of a renewal of activity to mark the 30th anniversary of the band's debut as a 4 piece and the re-release of Pink Flag in 2007. A third Read & Burn EP was released in November, 2007.
A full-length album of new material entitled Object 47 was released in July 2008. Bruce Gilbert was not involved in this recording, although according to Colin Newman, he did feature in a minimal capacity on the third Read and Burn EP. 2011 saw the release of the band's twelfth studio album Red Barked Tree.
Stealth of a Stork
Wire Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
One-legged surveillance and the stealth of a stork
Probing the shallows and measuring the depth
He catches a morsel he’s bound to regret. Change!
Bleaching the bones, false nails and extractions
Arriving in port on the eve of a storm
Hugging the shadows, collecting a debt
Backing your instincts but slow to react
An innocent bystander but witness to the fact. Change!
Feeling the strain, hard to walk away
The lyrics to Wire's song "Stealth of a Stork" seemingly talk of someone who is actively involved in some covert operations. The line "Feeling the strain but supporting the action" suggests that this person is struggling with the weight of the tasks they carry out, but they continue to do so regardless. The "one-legged surveillance" mentioned could be a metaphor that describes the delicate balance between being discreet and being discovered. This person is also described to be like a stork, who stealthily hunts by probing the shallow water, measuring the depth and moving quickly to catch its prey. However, in "catching a morsel he’s bound to regret", we get the sense that this person will, in the end, pay a terrible price for their actions.
The second stanza is similarly cryptic, mentioning "bleaching the bones, false nails, and extractions". These lines create the imagery of someone who tries to erase their past and cover up their tracks. The person arrives in port on the eve of a storm and "hugs the shadows, collecting a debt". The use of the word "immortal" implies that the person they are collecting money from could be someone powerful or influential. The last line repeats "change", suggesting that the singer recognizes their situation is unsustainable and must take action to transform their present circumstances.
In the final verse, the singer speaks about someone who is "backing your instincts but slow to react" and could be considered an accomplice. The person is also an "innocent bystander but witness to the fact," suggesting that they might have inadvertently found themselves involved in something they did not anticipate. Once again, "change" is repeated as a call to act decisively, take responsibility and create a new path forward.
Line by Line Meaning
Feeling the strain but supporting the action
Experiencing stress while continuing to support the cause
One-legged surveillance and the stealth of a stork
Keeping watch with a bird's precision and quietness
Probing the shallows and measuring the depth
Exploring the surface and assessing the deeper meaning
He catches a morsel he’s bound to regret. Change!
Acquiring something that will eventually have negative consequences
Bleaching the bones, false nails and extractions
Removing all evidence, including false clues
Arriving in port on the eve of a storm
Arriving at a dangerous time, where chaos is about to ensue
Hugging the shadows, collecting a debt
Hiding in the darkness to collect what is owed
Nothing’s immortal, it’s so hard to forget. Change!
Everything is temporary and it's tough to move beyond.
Backing your instincts but slow to react
Trusting intuition but taking time to respond
An innocent bystander but witness to the fact. Change!
An observer of an event, but still impacted by it.
Contributed by Layla R. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Dragon Energy
One of the greatest bands ever.
Tec Tec
fantastique !
Enrique Panik
Great !!
Eric Rhodes
Change!
MikeDel76
Yeah!