Satan, Bugs Bunny & Me

This was recorded by Rodney using a different band to the one that appeared on the early albums. As such, it’s very transitional in its sound, and it doesn’t sound very polished compared to our other albums. We were recording with basically no money and no record company back-up, so it was a real struggle to get it made at all.

At the time we were in the studio it was the middle of the Satanic Panic, when there was a great deal of persecution of occultists by right-wing Christians going on, culminating in the firebombing of The Sorcerer’s Apprentice esoteric shop where Rodney used to work. These events account for a great deal of the anger on this album. A good one to bang your head to if you’re feeling frustrated – must be played loud!

Ironically, it also gave us our first MOR hit, Penny Century, a song based on the comic book Love & Rockets by the Hernadez Brothers.

Note: Gunship did not appear on the Satan album, but was on the 16 Minutes of Death EP that came out at the same time. It’s still one of our favourite CX singles, all 16 minutes and 45 seconds of it…


GUNSHIP (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

And you kick me down

And you hold me down
And you turn me around
And you feel the heat
And you take me down
And you kick me down

And I feel your breath on my cheek
And I feel you touch my hair
And you kick me down

And you take me down
And you swing me around
And you hold me down
And I see the fear in your eyes

And you’re near me now
And you kick me down
And you push me down
And you kick me down

And you kick me down

And I take the knife, lift my throat

And I see the fear in your eyes
And I see the fear
And I know that I’ve won

And you kick me down
And you kick me down
And you hold me down
And you kick me down
And I know that I’ve won

And I smile at you
And I feel the heat
And I know that I’m dead

And you’re flying above

And I taste the smoke coming from your lips
And I know that I’ve won

And I take the gun from my hips
And I take the gun
And I shoot you down

And I feel the shot
And I feel the blood between my legs
And it hurts me now

And I feel the heat between my hands
And I feel the throb of your death

And I fall back on the cockpit floor
And I’m flying above

And I’m in you now
And you know it’ll never be the same
And I’m in you now

And I see my skin getting whiter every minute

And I’m in you now

And I take your body
And I make it my own
And I am you
And I’m everyone

And I’m in you now

Take me home


WHAT CAN YOU SAY? (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

When you see the people come to you
Their faces closed, their minds shut down
Their eyes an end, the living dead
The living hell, the living hell
And they stare at you like you’re not there
They close their eyes and they don’t care
And you’re dying there in front of them, in front of them you fall apart
You fall apart, you watch T.V., some stupid clown
Tells you the world and how you are
You throw up over him, and he drowns like Jimi Hendrix did
And all the guys with guitars are telling lies
And trying hard to be American….

What can you say?

You open up the Sunday Sport and read about the aliens with the biggest tits
And how their coming for your mother because she voted socialist
She won’t do that again, will she?
And you eat the apple pie that she was saving up for Sunday
‘Cause you’re a revolutionary, and you’re listening to a friend’s tape right now
Because you only buy records from Nicaragua, because you can’t afford to be a
fucking Yuppie

What can you say?

You always give some money to the people who come round from Christian Aid
Because you know they’re really nice
Even though they’ve spent at least nine hundred years in killing people
But propaganda doesn’t affect you, does it, baby

What can you say?

And a woman comes along and says that she used to be a junkie killing,
baby killing, junkie motherfucker
But now she’s seen the light
And she wants the Lord to kill us all with nuclear bombs
Because we’re evil
And you say what a nice person she is!?!?!

What can you say?


E.’.O.’.D.’. (Jansen, Orpheus)

They are, they were, and they shall be again
They came, and we are here
They sleep now, and we watch for them
They sleep now, but they shall return

We are their dreams, and we shall wake them
We are their dreams, and we shall die
We are their dreams, and we shall return through them
We are their dreams, we are their dreams

Cthulhu f’taghn

Without you we would not be
Without you we have no will
Without you we feel no pain and terror
Without you we have no joy
You taught us to laugh
You taught us to play
You taught us to be with you
You taught us to be with you

Cthulhu f’taghn

I come screaming from the depths of space
I come to your world of horror
I am dead, but I sleep and I dream
I am dead, but death can die


SYMPHONY FOR THE DEVIL (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

We are the ones
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We stand on our hind legs
We are human
We are free, we are free
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We don’t want your God
We don’t need your God
We hate your God
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We are the ones who made the world
We are the ones who hold the world
We are the ones who walk across the world
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We don’t work for you
We don’t play for you
We don’t slave for you
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We will take your love
We will take your hate
We will take your power
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t

We are the ones
Better the devil you know than the God you don’t


FOREVER (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

Do you remember me, I knew you you when you were three
Do you remember me, I used to live in poverty
But now I’m grown, I’ve felt the power of your attraction
I wanna be with you, I want a piece of the action

Forever

I won’t use force on you, I’ll just use lies
You’ll send me presents, I’ll send you spies
I won’t use force on you, I’ll just use love
You’ll be my puppet, I’ll be the hand in the glove

Forever

You say you’ll forget about me, we’ll wait and see
Your friends will hate you, all you can think about is me
You say you’ll forget about me, we’ll wait and see
We’ll wait forever, we’ll wait forever

Forever

We could be together for ever and ever

Forever

Little Miss Parisienne of 1956
I’ll take your clothes off, slow but sure
I’ll smother your body in dollar signs
If you’ll only be mine, if you’ll only be mine

Forever

When I touch you baby I feel like a hot air balloon
I’m burning up inside
All things are lights

Forever


KILL THE CHRISTIAN SWINE (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

Every Christian we kill gives us new life
Every one we kill gives us one more chance
One more chance for a place in heaven
One more way to be divine

Kill the Christian swine

Oh, God send me more lives, so I can touch you
So I can feel you, so I can be with you

Kill the Christian swine


CITY OF DREAMS (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

The rain is coming down like a million drummers
The lights are flashing on God’s pinball machine
It’s after midnight, I’m home alone without you
Still under the city, still in my dreams

Welcome to the city of your dreams

Welcome to the city where the streets are paved with shit
Welcome to your new home, get used to it
An East End squat with a cat and two junkie friends
The beginning of your life, coming to an end

Welcome to the city of your dreams

Welcome to the city where the sun never shines
It’s always hot down here, but I’m cold all the time
We stumble through shit, searching for a slice of our dreams
And fight over the crumbs, and fall apart at the seams

Welcome to the city of your dreams


(IN SEARCH OF) PENNY CENTURY (Galvin, Jansen, Orpheus)

Penny, Penny Century
I love you, I love you
Don’t go away, don’t go away
Never go away, never go away
Come back and stay, stay with me
Penny Century, Penny Century
Penny Century

I want to conquer you
I’ll lift you off the page
So you will be with me
You will be with me
Come to me, come to me
Come to me
Penny Century
Penny Century

Marry me, come marry me
We will live beside the sea
A handful of cliches is all we need
All we need, all we need
Penny Century

And the waves crash over us
Holding us, binding us
Calling us, wanting us
Taking us, being us
Penny Century
Oh, Penny

In search of Penny Century
I’ll be searching all my life
Till the day I die
Die in your arms
Penny Century