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This Heaven Gives Me Migraine EP

by Gang of Four

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1.
Anthrax (Andy Speaks) 00:52
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2.
The Dying Rays (2020) 03:26
lyrics
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Stop the seconds' flow Oh I'm too late I'm back where I began at the start I'm caught in their wake I'll have my due and drag The rock up the hill Nothing to lose that's not been lost I wish the sun anchored still What I wanted Disappears in the haze A speck of dust Held forever in the dying rays Breath on the mirror, nothing in sight The horizons bare but in the night I missed the pilots light Control & power Empires were built in our minds But it will all go up in a blaze Only dust In the dying rays
3.
Natural's Not In It (2020) 03:19
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The problem of leisure What to do for pleasure Ideal love, a new purchase A market of the senses Dream of the perfect life Economic circumstances The body is good business Sell out, maintain the interest Remember Lot's wife Renounce all sin and vice Dream of the perfect life This heaven gives me migraine The problem of leisure What to do for pleasure Coercion of the senses We're not so gullible Our great expectations A future for the good Fornication makes you happy No escape from society Natural is not in it Your relations are of power We all have good intentions But all with strings attached Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest Repackaged sex (keeps) your interest The problem of leisure What to do for pleasure Ideal love, a new purchase A market of the senses Dream of the perfect life Economic circumstances The body is good business Sell out, maintain the interest Remember Lot's wife Renounce all sin and vice Dream of the perfect life This heaven gives me migraine This heaven gives me migraine This heaven gives me migraine
4.
Toreador (2020) 03:44
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See me drive Catch the light in my car I'm breaking all the rules I disappear, I'm gonna reappear In a puff of smoke, I'm here In my despair in the maze, I curse the way she holds my gaze Where you been? Missing you And we've got so much catching up to do Can you hear me now? I've been missing you And we've got so much catching up to do Look in my eyes, show me your respect There's things I want to forget Toreador Kill the bull, the Minotaur Then you walk through the open door Let's celebrate me! I'm bound, but I believe I'm free You diggin' me? I'm your friend, family You must never stop talking about me Pocket dolly, plastic fork Cappuccino foam I get all the air in the room 'Cause that's my home Toreador Kill the bull, the Minotaur Then you walk through the open door Toreador Kill the bull, the Minotaur Then you walk through the open door Get into me, friendly Let's explore my sexuality Lying in filth Since 1000 BC I never said, I never said That I was a people person
5.
Purple In Nature (Andy speaks) 00:08
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about

This digital EP was released just a few weeks after Andy died, on 26th February 2020. It was also released on vinyl with the ANTI HERO EP in August 2020.

Excerpt from the EP press release:

“Gang of Four today announce the release of a new EP, 'This Heaven Gives Me Migraine', on 26th February.The lead single, 'The Dying Rays' (2020) is released today (14th February).

“Until days before his death on 1st February, Gang of Four co-founder Andy Gill was working on a new body of music that revisits and re-imagines his musical legacy. The new EP includes three new recordings, which form only part of that output, together with two spoken interludes by Andy.

“Andy’s wife, Catherine Mayer, says; ‘From hospital, Andy continued to give final notes on mixes of music that he looked forward to releasing. Since his death, I have been working with the band to fulfil his vision. The only change we have made is to include on the EP two brief recordings of Andy speaking, both, in different ways, essence of Andy.’

“Gang of Four singer John ‘Gaoler’ Sterry adds: ‘This collection of songs was recorded just before Andy died and it was his intention to get these out – to represent the way we played them on tour, late last year. All three songs were recorded in Andy’s home studio in London and there’s a fly-on-the-wall intimacy to this EP; from the song selection to the snippets of spoken word.’

“The Dying Rays (2020) reimagines a song originally included on the legendary post punk outfit’s eighth studio album, What Happens Next, released in 2015. The new track features vocals by John ‘Gaoler’ Sterry in place of original vocalist, Herbert Grönemeyer. Poignant and powerful, The Dying Rays (2020) is a meditation on mortality, composed and produced by Andy Gill.

“John says: ‘The Dying Rays (2020) is just a beautiful song and completely confounds what people think of when they think Gang of Four, which in itself is quite a Gang of Four thing I guess; the lyrics seem all the more pertinent now.’

“Catherine adds: ‘There have been so many tributes to Andy as a creator and as a breaker – of rules, new ground, guitars. The Dying Rays (2020), a track Andy first recorded with our old friend Herbert Grönemeyer and reworked by Gang of Four singer John, shows the fuller picture, of a man who also thought and felt deeply and whose loss is not just to music but to all of us who loved him.’

“The other tracks on the EP are:

“Natural’s Not In It: Originally featured on Gang of Four’s seminal 1979 album Entertainment! and one of few older tracks included in the live setup of the current Gang of Four line up, this was recorded in late 2019 to capture the energy of those live performances.

“Toreador: Andy was fascinated and horrified by the myth of the Minotaur, as he said, a story that is ‘ancient but of the moment… Half man, half beast. He’s rational and understands his predicament while locked into the behaviours that destroy all chance of happiness or intimacy. Vainglorious, insecure. Simultaneously aggressively proud, attention-seeking and conceited. He’s brave but frightened. He is alone but desperate for the human touch. Masculine fragility and alienation.’ First recorded for Gang of Four’s 2019 album, Happy Now, the track continued to evolve in performance and in Andy’s concept for it.

“Says John: “Toreador was in the live set from the moment it was written and has evolved a lot from the album version, it has an energy that only comes from knowing a song like the back of your hand.”

credits

released February 26, 2020

Copyright Gill Music Ltd 2020.

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Gang of Four London, UK

Gang of Four is one of the most radically important, and influential rock groups of the last 40 years.
The Red Hot Chili Peppers, INXS, R.E.M., U2, Rage Against the Machine have all spoken of their debt to Gang of Four, with today's creators of angular rock music having GO4's influence and imprint all over it.

This page features Gang of Four's new music output from 2008 onwards. ... more

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