The band began in 2010, initially as a solo project of Ellie Rowsell, with the name taken from a short story by Angela Carter. She was joined by guitarist Joff Oddie and later by Joel Amey and Theo Ellis. They released a self-titled EP, Wolf Alice in 2012 as well as a single called "Leaving You" which gained airplay from BBC Radio 1 and featured in NME's 'Radar' section.
They then toured with Peace, recorded a session for Huw Stephens' Radio 1 show in January, and released their first physical single "Fluffy" in February 2013 on the Chess Club label. Their second single "Bros", released in May, is about friendship and is one of the first songs Rowsell wrote and the band usually played it during their early stages.
2017–2020: Visions of a Life, Mercury Prize Win
In June 2017, Wolf Alice released the lead single "Yuk Foo" off their second studio album, Visions of a Life. They released three more singles, "Don't Delete the Kisses", "Beautifully Unconventional", and "Heavenward", before the release of their album on 28 September. In 2018, they also released "Formidable Cool", "Sadboy" and "Space & Time" as singles from the album.
In September 2018, the band won the Mercury Prize for their album Visions of a Life
2021–present: Blue Weekend
On 15 February 2021, the band's website was updated to show a looping video of an eye, with the heading "The Last Man on Earth". On 22 February 2021, the band announced that their single "The Last Man on Earth" would be released on 24 February 2021, and would debut on Annie Mac's show on BBC Radio 1. The release of the single was backed by the announcement of their third studio album, Blue Weekend, which was released on 4 June 2021. The second single from the album, "Smile", was released on 20 April 2021.
Blue Weekend received widespread critical acclaim, and was nominated for the 2021 Mercury Prize. On release, music publication The Forty-Five called Blue Weekend "a ballsy idyll of feeling: the sound of a band satisfying themselves rather than proving themselves, and completely filling the space they’ve carved out over the years."
Wolf Alice won the 2022 Brit Award for Group of the Year.
On October 29th 2021, the band released Blue Weekend: Tour Deluxe which includes four live versions of tracks from the album ('Smile', 'How Can I Make it OK', 'Safe From Heartbreak', and 'The Last Man on Earth') as well as a live cover of 'Bobby' by Alex G.
On 5 May 2022, the band released a lullaby version of "The Last Man on Earth" as a single and announced Blue Lullaby, an EP featuring reworked lullaby versions of five tracks from Blue Weekend, which was subsequently released on 24 June 2022. During the summer of 2022, the band played 17 shows supporting Harry Styles' Love On Tour, the first date in Hamburg on the 26th of June and the last show in Lisbon on the 31st of July.
Official site
Lipstick On The Glass
Wolf Alice Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
It could be exciting
Excuse for a change
If we don't like the way we were
Oh
But nothing seems inviting
Except the image of your open arms
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising
When there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising
But it's me who makes myself mad
I take you
Oh
My body does deceive me
Just as did yours
Though we're fighting different wars
In our ways
Oh
But there's no pleasure in this resisting
So go ahead and kiss me
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising
When there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising
But it's me who makes myself mad
I take you
Once more
Once more
Once more
Once more
Once more
Once more
Once more
You know nothing would've needed deciding
Had you just simply asked
But the full moon rising
And it's me
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising
When there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising
But it's me who makes myself mad
I take you
The lyrics of "Lipstick On The Glass" by Wolf Alice convey a sense of desperation and longing for a relationship that has been broken but still holds a strong attraction. The song talks about the singer's willingness to forgive past wrongs and take back their lover despite the evidence of their infidelity presented in the form of lipstick stains on the glass. The singer acknowledges that their desire to be with this person is not based on logic, but rather on the irresistible pull they feel towards them.
The lyrics also touch on the complexities of relationships and the conflicting emotions that arise from them. The singer mentions that their bodies deceived them, just like their lover's did, indicating that there might have been mutual wrongdoing in the relationship. Despite this, the singer finds no pleasure in resisting their lover's advances and gives in to their desires.
The repetition of the phrase "Once more" at the end of the song showcases the addictive nature of this love, and how the singer is willing to repeatedly take back their lover, despite the potential hurt that may come with it. The full moon rising serves as a symbol of the heightened emotions and intensity of the situation, while also highlighting the desire for change and renewal.
Overall, "Lipstick On The Glass" presents a nuanced portrayal of the complexities of relationships and how the heart sometimes overrides reason.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh
This line emphasizes the singer's uncertainty
It could be exciting
The singer is considering a change in their relationship and sees potential in it
Excuse for a change
The singer sees the current situation as an opportunity for positive change
If we don't like the way we were
The artist is considering changing the relationship if they are not happy with how it currently is
But nothing seems inviting
Despite the potential for a positive change, the artist is not convinced of its appeal
Except the image of your open arms
The only appealing aspect of the potential change is the idea of their partner welcoming them back
Calling back to me
The singer longs to be welcomed back by their partner
I take you back
The artist decides to take their partner back despite the issues in the relationship
Yeah, I know it seems surprising
The artist acknowledges that their decision may seem unexpected or even foolish
When there's lipstick still on the glass
The artist alludes to their partner cheating on them as evidenced by the lipstick on a glass
And the full moon rising
The singer alludes to the romantic tension and heightened emotions in the moment
But it's me who makes myself mad
The artist takes responsibility for their own irrational decision-making and emotional turmoil
Oh
The singer once again expresses their uncertainty
My body does deceive me
The singer acknowledges that they are being guided by their physical desires rather than rational thought
Just as did yours
The singer acknowledges that their partner was also led by physical desires
Though we're fighting different wars
The artist alludes to the fact that they and their partner are dealing with different internal struggles
In our ways
Despite their different struggles, the artist and their partner both give in to temptation in their own way
But there's no pleasure in this resisting
The singer finds it difficult and ultimately unfulfilling to resist their physical desires
So go ahead and kiss me
The singer gives in and invites their partner to kiss them
Once more
The artist wants to repeat the intimate moment
You know nothing would've needed deciding
The artist believes that none of this would have happened if their partner had simply communicated with them
Had you just simply asked
The artist alludes to the idea that their partner should have asked for their forgiveness instead of acting on their desires
And the full moon rising
Once again, the singer alludes to the heightened emotions and romantic tension in the moment
And it's me
The artist realizes that they alone are responsible for taking their cheating partner back
I take you back
The song ends with the singer reaffirming their decision to take their partner back despite their infidelity
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Ellen Rowsell, Joel Amey, Jonathan Oddie, Theodore Ellis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@GarethJohnson
@@Joegriffussy I could have been more specific - I'm really talking about something quite different. I'm talking about the treatment and mixing of rock guitar on the album as a production choice. The choice is easiest to appreciate if you simply A/B a couple of tracks from the previous work versus this album that are very similar and pretty similar. Compare Yuk Foo to Play the Greatest Hits and then particularly play Giant Peach or Visions of a Life (the track) compared to Smile.
With the earlier work you will hear bass, two guitars and drums mixed on the rockier numbers as equal partners with everything pushing forward, a guitar led rock band (as well as the many other things they are). On Play the Great Hits and then the biggest offender which is Smile, you will notice the guitar is pushed way back with bass leading everything. This is something you see in Marcus Dravs (the producer) work for Mumford & Sons and Coldplay (3 albums I think). He tends to push bass forward and push guitar back. It's just a production choice but for a two guitar band, I don't like it.
In particular I stand by my ground that the mix of Smile could have been done a lot better. The guitar power chords instead of having that rock bite as they do in Giant Peach and much of Wolf Alice's work (and anyone who has seen them live) are smeared into the background with a very transistory 'shhhh' type sound rather than any bite. The bass is well recored but proportionately too loud. At 2.13 in the track there is a guitar 'solo' where the volume of the guitar is drowned out by splash cymbals for heavens sake! The chorus on the song should have taken off with crunch but is instead curiously muted with swells which takes the momentum out. Really good track which should have punched and been an absolute banger; instead it's got a bit of life taken out of it by the production. Notable also that Joff doesn't play any guitar on that track (it's all Joel and Ellie).
If you then listen to the track Visions of a Life and you're a guitar fan, you might have a little weep about where they all went.
BTW having been a massive shoegaze fan since the original shoegaze era where I listened overwhelming to 'gaze, I think that's quite a lot overstated. What you have is two tracks out of 11 which have really good shoegazey elements in Feeling Myself and of course the fantastic The Beach II. Elsewhere, really not so much. A little textural stuff, yeah, sometimes but shoegaze no.
End of the day, it's the band's choice. Don't get me wrong, Blue Weekend gains a huge amount in other areas, particularly vocals (although I do wish they'd backed off the reverb and the choir-of-Ellies sometimes - on some tracks it is great on others like Safe from Heartbreak it's just too much) but Dravs is a bit of a strange choice for a two guitar band and I think on Play the Greatest Hits and Smile he's just the wrong producer - it would have been great to sub that out to Flood, Eno/Lanois, Meldal-Johnsen etc. One of the reasons Lipstick on the Glass is so good is that Joff's strong guitar for once gets to be a main accompaniment and it is much stronger for it.
Bands have to experiment and Blue Weekend gains loads in many places. Ellie has never sounded better. Production is epic. I personally am looking forward to the live shows where I think the band's longtime engineers will restore a bit of punch and I strongly predict you'll see them come back towards a bit more of a balance on album 4 and I think it'll be all the better for it.
@sadkaique
[Verse 1]
Oh, it could be exciting
Excuse for a change if we don't work the way
We were
Oh, but nothing seems inviting
Except the image of your open arms calling back
To me
[Chorus]
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising when there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising, but it's me who makes myself mad, mm
I'll take you
[Verse 2]
Oh, my body does deceive me
Just as did yours
Though we're fighting different wars
In our ways
Oh, but there's no pleasure in resisting
So go ahead and kiss me
[Chorus]
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising when there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising, but it's me who makes myself mad, mm
I'll take you
[Bridge]
Once more, once more
Once more
Once more, once more
Once more
Once more
You know nothing would've needed deciding
Had you just simply asked
But the full moon rising, and it's me
[Chorus]
I take you back
Yeah, I know it seems surprising when there's lipstick still on the glass
And the full moon rising, but it's me who makes myself mad, mm
I'll take you
@miracleofsound
Fave song on the album. Makes me think of PJ Harvey's 'Stories From The City' and early Goldfrapp
@jtarantula3390
Excellent taste
@fede7289
Same
@fede7289
Exactly the same
@kriso75
Hell yeah
@hughgrection5674
Totally get the sftcsfts comparison in a way, mainly the guitar line and production 👍
@ARTV-
Honestly this might be the best song on the album. This, Delicious Things, and Last Man are probably my Top 3!
@camerickson9787
Yes!! I think for me personally I’d swap out Delicious Things with ‘How Can I Make It Ok?’ I love everything about that song.
@CINRZ
@@camerickson9787 same ! And maybe last man on the earth for feeling myself
@ItsMeiri
There are too many good ones! But I'd add Feeling Myself as well.