The Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible

[Batman]

Review for Manic Street Preachers - The Holy Bible

Label: Sony International

Released: August 1, 1994

Rhythm guitar and lyrics: Richey James

Lead guitar and vocals: James Dean Bradfield

Bass and lyrics: Nicky Wire

Drums: Sean Moore

1. Yes

2. Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayit'sworldwouldfallapart

3. Of Walking Abortion

4. She Is Suffering

5. Archives of Pain

6. Revol

7. 4st 7lb

8. Mausoleum

9. Faster

10. This Is Yesterday

11. Die in the Summertime

12. The Intense Humming of Evil

13. P.C.P.

The Manic Street Preachers were a band who were huge in Britain in the early 90's, yet almost unheard of in America. I am puzzled as to why they were not popular in America. They had great songwriting and great lyrics. They also had infamous band member Richey James, who cast a dark image of the band by carving "4REAL" onto his arm during an interview, and mysteriously dissapeared shortly after the album was released, and has since been assumed to be dead.

The Holy Bible catches the Manic Street Preachers at a crossroads in the band's career. It was at this time that the band was beginning to leave behind their old glam rock meets Guns n' Roses meets the Clash sound and image, starting to be influenced by grunge bands such as Nirvana, and hinting at the britpop sound they would have later in the band's career. Also, the band's frontman and creative leader, Richey James, was spiraling faster and faster out of control. He was having growing problems with alcoholism, self-mutilation, anorexia, and depression. His bleak world image was a main factor in The Holy Bible's sound, and lyrics. Many say the lyrics are the centerpiece of this album. They reflect Richey James' bleak world view, and in some cases, Nicky Wire's political views. The lyrics are truly haunting, and even if you don't listen to this album, I suggest you try to find a lyrics site on the internet (while you still can) and read some of the lyrics.

The first song on the album, "Yes," is actually a very upbeat sounding song. If a listener does not pay attention to the lyrics, he may think the album is going to be a fun, bouncy britpop album. The lyrics are dark, though, and they foreshadow what is to come in the rest of the album. The lyrics appear to have a theme of prostitution, as the quotes that begin the song and end the song are both quotes about prostitution. Prostitution, in this case, symbolizes selling yourself short, and conforming to what is normal in society. The idea of selling yourself short is most vividly described in this infamous lyric:

He's a boy, you want a girl so tear off his c***.

Tie his hair in bunches, f*** him, call him Rita if you want.

It's easy to get into this song, and completely forget about the lyrics. It's also easy to pay attention to the lyrics, and forget all about the music. This is one of the strengths of the Manic Street Preachers; they can appeal to a listener on multiple levels, and they can appeal to a diverse array of listeners. You can't say that about Oasis! As the song fades out, the music gets a little darker, another example of the song's foreshadowing.

The second song, "Ifwhiteamericatoldthetruthforonedayitsworldwouldfallapart" is a song with very political lyircs written by Nicky Wire. Wire does not hide his opinions about white western culture in this song. The music goes well with the theme of the lyrics. The music itself conjures thoughts of America. It also has a good guitar solo from Bradfield. Somehow, this song does not have the same effect as many of the other songs on this album. The music, while it does go with the lyrics well, is hard to get into. The melody just seems to limp along through the song. And while the lyrics are good, they aren't quite as unique as most of the lyrics on this album.

"Of Walking Abortion" begins with a man talking about his death, and he "knew before [he] died, two things were going to happen to [him]. That number one, he would regret [his] entire life, and number two, [he] would want to live his life over again." A few things about this quote make it slightly creepy. First, hearing someone dicuss their own death and suggesting their regrets in their lives is a bit of a downer. The creepy thing about the quote is that he refers to his death in the past tense. The lyrics are about how terrible Richey thinks life is, not just for himself, but for everyone.

"Life is lead weights, pendulum died

Pure or lost, spectator or crucified"

He also compares generally accepted evils in the past, and says how they are still alive today.

"Mussolini hangs from a butcher's hook

Hitler reprised in the worm of your soul

Horthy's corpse screened to a million

Tisu revived, the horror of a bullfight"

In this song, the music becomes darker, and the lyrics are much darker than "whiteamerica." This song is important in the album because it shows a shift into the darkness that is prevalent throughout much of the rest of the album. The chant-like chorus, “We are – of – walking abortion,†is catchy and angry at the same time. The line "of walking abortion" refers to the fact that men are made up of an incomplete chromosome, and in the words of a famous feminist writer, that means men are partially aborted, or "of walking abortion." This leads to emotional instability, and of course, Richey was emotionally unstable.

“She is Suffering†is the next song on the album. It is a slick, almost pop sounding song, with a bit of a dark edge to it. The lyrics revolve around the bad side of beauty. It’s about a woman who is very beautiful and appears to be very normal, yet on the inside, she is suffering (I know, you never would have guessed), and much of that suffering is caused by her beauty. The lyrics also reflect Richey's own vanity which he hated. The lyrics are very interesting. I don’t find the music to this song that great though. I find it to be kind of bland.

“Archives of Pain†begins with the mother of a murder victim talking to the muderer:

“I wonder who you think you are

You damn well think you're God or something

God give life, God taketh it away, not you

I think you are the Devil itselfâ€

“Archives of Pain†has what may be the darkest lyrics of the album. They are truly frightening. The lyrics seem to me to be through the eyes of someone basically condoning pain and suffering, saying “the centre of humanity is cruelty.†The music is terrific for this song too. It begins with an awesomely sinister bass-line, with kind of quiet guitars playing off-kilter high pitched chords, and Bradfield singing calmly. When the guitars get loud and Bradfield sings the line “you will be buried in the same box as a killer,†the song begins to just kick ass, plain and simple, especially at the end of the second verse when he sings “All I preach is extinction.†The bridge is sort of spacey and atmospheric, as Bradfield sings about “a drained white body [hanging] from the gallows.†Once the chorus kicks in, the music sounds like a wild Brit-rock song. The lyrics then name a list of terrible people, and Bradfield repeats “I give them the respect they deserve.†During the last chorus, the list of bad people is changed so it includes the Manic Street Preachers. That is probably suggesting that we aren't too different from the people who are generally accepted to be bad. It’s definitely one of the highest points of the album.

“Revol†is a song about failed relationships. Richey specifically focuses on relationships between politicians and world leaders. The song itself is great and exciting. It’s got the wild British rock feel to it that makes it incredibly catchy. One element of the song that I especially like is during the verses, when Bradfield does some tremolo picking helping give the song the feel that it is going out of control.

“4st 7lb†is one of the scariest songs on the album. It begins with what sounds like a young girl saying this:

“I eat too much to die, and not enough to stay alive. I’m sitting in the middle waiting.â€

The song is sung through the eyes of an anorexia patient. 4st 7lb (4 stone 7 pounds) is what is said to be the lowest an adult can weigh without dying. Because of this, it is a common target weight for anorexic people. Those who weigh this low are teetering on the edge of death, and most people who weigh this little end up dying. The descriptions of the anorexic person in the lyrics (most likely Richey James) are truly sickening, and incredibly disturbing. The music during these descriptions gives the effect of a downward spiral, which is what Richey James was trapped in during the making of the album. The lyrics also reflect self-hate, which is very common among anorexia patients.

“I want to walk in the snow

and not leave a footprint.

I want to walk in the snow

and not soil it’s purity.â€

The narrator seems as if he feels he is something ugly in a beautiful world. Near the end of the song, the narrator seems to find peace, and the music reflects that. The narrator “doesn’t mind the horror that surrounds [him].†He also says “this discipline’s so rare so please applaud me, just look at the fat scum who pamper me so.†The listener can only assume that in this part of the song, the narrator begins to hate the world around him, he begins to die, and he is glad he is leaving this world and his body behind. It is a truly haunting and moving song.

“Mausoleum†has strange guitar riff to open the song. It sounds jumpy and paranoid, and the bass and extra guitars make it sound like a more intense paranoia. The beginning of chorus has a very good chord structure, but besides that, the music is pretty bland. The lyrics to Mausoleum are about Nagasaki and Hiroshima, the cities that were bombed by America in WWII. The lyrics are very descriptive.

“Faster†begins with a quote from the movie “1984.â€

“I hate purity, I hate goodness. I don't want virtue to exist anywhere. I want everyone corrupt.â€

In “1984,†words such as purity, goodness, and virtue mean “loyalty to the party.†This quote fits with the song very well. The lyrics are about a few things, one being rebelling against the societal norms. Along with this, the song stresses individuality, as shown in lyrics such as “I am stronger than Mensa, Miller and Mailer.†The other meaning to this song is also related to the aforementioned lyric. Richey, who wrote the lyrics, says that he is better than Mensa (an elitist group of really smart people), and some people who are depressive. Since he’s stronger than these people, he can get over his problems. While this didn’t turn out to be true, it’s a very optimistic and cheerful song, and the music reflects that. The music is wild and fun, unlike many other songs on the album.

The next song, “This Is Yesterday,†is a quiet song, compared to the rest of the album. It is reminiscent of an Alice Cooper ballad, except with a faster beat. It is a very pretty song. It has a pretty melody, pretty vocals, and a pretty guitar solo. “This Is Yesterday†is thought by many to be one of the worst songs on the album. They say that it is too sweet and poppy, and it seems out of place in the album. I agree that the song is sweeter sounding and more poppy than the rest of the album, and it does seem out of place in the album, but that’s what I love about it. It’s a nice break from the intensity of the rest of the album. It also makes the next song, “Die in the Summertime†seem even darker and heavier. There is a contrast between “This Is Yesterday†and the rest of the album that exaggerates the mood of The Holy Bible in general.

“Die in the Summertime†shows influence from the dark side of glam, which is mainly Alice Cooper. The vivid lyrics are a little frightening, especially the first line; “scratch my leg with a rusty nail; sadly, it heals.†The lyrics are from the point of view of a person who is realizing that since his normal childhood, his problems have spun so out of control that he realizes he is on the brink of death. His only wish is that he is able to die in the summertime. The vocals are great on this song, especially the part when Bradfield sings “I can’t seem to stay a fixed ideal,†and when he says “ideal†his voice slides up an octave. The music during the verses is dark, and it becomes more optimistic when the narrator sings about his hope of a summertime death.

“The Intense Humming of Evil†is perhaps the darkest song on the album. It starts out slightly industrial sounding, and has a quote from the Nuremberg Trials. It is dark and slow, and the listener expects it to get wild and loud, but it never does. The lyrics are about The Holocaust. Despite the haunting lyrics, and well done dark mood, this is the only truly weak track on The Holy Bible. The song doesn’t seem to go anywhere. However, it is only weak when taken out of context. In the context of the album, it fits perfectly with the next song, “PCP†in that makes “PCP†sound all the more exciting and fun.

After the unsettling “The Intense Humming of Evil,†the song “PCP†is like a breath of fresh air. The music is cheery and catchy pop-punk, and a marvelous way to end the album. The last sung line is “pass the Prozac, designer amnesiac.†I think that line is trying to say that Richey’s still depressed, but he’ll live with it, and the music suggests that everything will turn out OK. Of course, everything did not turn out OK with the Manics and Richey, but it’s still a nice way to end the album. The lyrics are an attack against political correctness. The singer suggests that the PCP (the censors, not the drug) worries about silly and pointless things, such as the way things are worded, rather than more important evils in the world. This is outlined in the following lyric:

“Teacher starve your child, PC approved, as long as the right words are used.

Systemized atrocity ignored as long as bi-lingual signs on view.â€

Musically, it’s a great way of ending the album, but lyrically, it seems odd that the last song would be about politics, rather than about Richey. While the last line seems to be about Richey, the rest of the song most certainly is not. Either way, it’s a terrific way to close a terrific album.

I would recommend this album to anyone who is a fan of British rock, punk, grunge, loud guitars, or good lyrics to check this album out. Even if you don’t buy the album, you should at least look up some of the lyrics on the internet. I recommend the site manics.nl for not only lyrics, but information about all the quotes and phrases and people in the lyrics.

[SoulGirl]

well done on a very in-depth review! i agree with alot of what you've written but a few things not so much. mainly, how can you think 'faster' is an optimistic song?! it ends with james screaming "so damn easy to cave in - man kills everything" repeatedly!!! the music is certainly more upbeat but the lyrics are some of the most vitriolic on the album!

i visited dachau a number of time when i was in munich and every time i couldn't get 'the intense humming of evil' out of my head - it captures the strange mood of the place perfectly and i'll even forgive james for mispronouncing 'arbeit'.

the best part of 'of walking abortion' is at the end when james screams the last lines "who's responsible - you f***ing are" up an octave but in his real voice - he has an incredible range!

the lines you quoted from PCP refer to the somewhat systemised killing of the welsh language, something i can identify with being irish. the 'systemised atrocity' is the loss of a beautiful and significant part of the welsh culture which is supposed to be reversed and somewhat wiedergutgemacht by the use of biligual street signs.

the most important thing about this album, in my opinion, is not the exhibition of richey's state of mind, although that is immensely affecting. the most important thing to me is that this album asks questions of all of us, about our views on life, our understanding of humanity, our action or inaction when faced with the injustices of life and society. it asks difficult questions - they are both difficult to hear and difficult to answer. it's a fantastic album but not for everyone.

[Batman]

That last paragraph is very true. It would be a good way to end the review! If I was a criminal, I'd plagiarize it! But I'm not, so I won't. And thanks for all the info about the album.

The reason I find Faster to be optimistic is because of the chorus, where he says "I am stronger than..." and then he lists some people with emotional problems. It kind of gave me the impression that he meant despite all his problems, he'd still get over them. Of course, he didn't get over them, but it's still an optimistic song. Except for the last lines, where, as you said, he repeats "So damn easy to cave in, man kills everything."

Oh, and I agree about JDB's vocals. I think he's pretty underrated! I guess he kind of was overshadowed by Richey, and is probably still overshadowed a bit by Nicky.