The band met up with fellow anarchists Crass when, legend has it, their van broke down on the road. They made their way to nearby Dial House, where Crass were based, who helped them with repairs. The two bands became friends, and although musically very divergent, they shared many common political views. Zounds shortly afterwards released their first EP, "Can't Cheat Karma", on the Crass Records label.
In November 1980, they were on tour on the European continent. The first concert of that tour was in Rotterdam, with local band Bunker OESO. The other dates of that tour were with Dutch band Cheap'n'Nasty (who had played with Crass and Poison Girls as well), playing in the Netherlands, Belgium and West Berlin.
In 1981, they came again, to play in Leiden and elsewhere in the Netherlands.
The band released their first album The Curse of Zounds on Rough Trade Records in 1981. The cover art, by anarchist artist Clifford Harper, featured a painting of firefighters apparently trying to put out a blaze at the Houses of Parliament in Westminster. However, the picture continued onto the back cover, which showed that in fact, they are spraying the fire with petrol, thus feeding it!
The band split up in late 1982. Bass player and vocalist Steve Lake and guitarist Laurence Wood continued to work together for a while as The World Service, whilst drummer Josef Porta (AKA Joseph Porter) went on the join The Mob and later formed Blyth Power. Lake continues to work as a solo artist, and Zounds occasionally reform for benefit gigs with a line-up augmented by Protag (formerly of Instant Automatons, Alternative TV and Blyth Power) and drummer Stick (previously of DIRT, Doom and Extreme Noise Terror). A remixed version of the bands song "This Land" was released in 2001 as a CD single benefit for the McLibel support campaign.
The name of the band is derived from the old English curse-word "zounds", which is a contraction of "Gods wounds", referring to Christ's crucifixion wounds.
Wolves
Zounds Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
We’re safe in here
The bolts are fastened
The windows shuttered
Secure and tight
When daytime comes we can go out walking
Run and play till the sun goes down
But when darkness falls we must stay well hidden
The Zounds's song Wolves talks about the fear and insecurity that someone might feel while living in a dangerous environment. The lyrics metaphorically describe the outside world as a place where wolves are roaming and waiting for their prey. The singer warns the listeners not to step outside the house at night because it's not safe. However, during the day, they can go out and enjoy themselves until the sun goes down. But as soon as the darkness falls, they must hide and protect themselves from the enemy.
The song can be interpreted in many ways. Some might see it as a commentary on the dangers of living in a war-torn or crime-infested area. Others might view it as a warning against authoritarianism or oppression, where the government or a ruling class is the enemy. The lyrics are open to interpretation and resonate with anyone who has ever faced fear, uncertainty or danger.
Line by Line Meaning
Don’t step outside the house tonight
It's not safe to venture out at night, so let's stay indoors.
We’re safe in here
We're protected from harm inside the house.
The bolts are fastened
The locks are secure and cannot be easily opened.
The windows shuttered
The windows are closed tightly with shutters to block any outside view.
Secure and tight
The house is completely safeguarded and nothing can penetrate it.
When daytime comes we can go out walking
During daytime, it's safe to leave and move about.
Run and play till the sun goes down
We can have fun outdoors until the sun sets.
But when darkness falls we must stay well hidden
When it's dark, we need to remain unseen to avoid getting caught.
For our enemy might come to town
We have an enemy who could come and harm us, so we need to be cautious and alert.
Contributed by Tyler E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.