Our frantic and jarring first single “Unwomanly Face of War” arises from the ash of yesteryear fuelled with spirit and armed with historical fervour.
After an exploration into “The Unwomanly Face of War”, a book penned by Nobel Prize winning author Svetlana Alexievich, I discovered the real life stories of hundreds of female soldiers who endured horrors and loss during the Second World War. Having fought for the Soviet Union these women of Russia recount their memories and nightmares in honest detail, sharing their experiences on the front lines and back home.
Inspired by these true stories our single shines a light on the often overlooked and unheard reality of these women. Returning home unrecognisable to family. The choice to pull the trigger with a man’s life within your sights. Saying goodbye to your mother as you step onto the carriage. The initial single that sparked the fuse for the rest of our EP, Unwomanly Face of War familiarises listeners with a new style of songwriting within our music, one based upon the importance of the past rather than the mundane rituals of our present.
A song written to remember the realities of a time not long ago and the sacrifices and efforts given by Women of the past, Unwomanly Face of War reminds us all to ensure above all else that no daughter or son need know the noise of a firing gun.
Filmed by Lara Kester
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Back from the front
The things I've seen
My hands they tremble
And my heart bleeds
I knock on the door
And who do I see?
It’s my mother
And she does not recognise me
My siblings shake
And sit by the fire
No rags to cover
Their bodies they shiver
I begged to leave here
Now i’ve came back
And I lay awake wishing these thoughts would fade to black
Whilst men hold guns knee deep in the mud The woman of east hear news from the front Protect the land whatever the cost
They bleed, they march
They lied, took their jobs
Heavier guns and heavier hearts No daughter or son
Need know the noise of a firing gun
My Mumma came running to the train She had those tears in her eyes
And that’s when I realised in the rain That I’d never see my Mummma again
All the young ones
Piled high
European swamp
And a babies cry
A teenager that’s lived their life 50 years behind 18 year old eyes What’s it all worth?
What’s it for?
Let us fight sir
It’s our cause
We’re left behind
And we want more
All behind The Unwomanly Face of War
I am decorated
I am revered
I am a hero
To them I am fear
For when they’re greeted eye to eye They expect to see a man rise into site I did not ask for this
The Noise Of A Firing Gun
Lyrics by Conor Clements
I was not made
And I have seen things
To drive men insane
For i’ve seen Leningrad up in flames
And mothers fight for children still yet to be named A woman walks in with a suitcase
And the public they all cheer
Donate their rations willingly
This woman shows no fear
The men they give their lives
The woman too give their soul
And to this day
It still remains
For whom the bell does toll?
My Mumma came running to the train She had those tears in her eyes
And that’s when I realised in the rain That I’d never see my Mumma again
All the young ones
Piled high
European swamp
And a babies cry
A teenager that’s lived their life 50 years behind 18 year old eyes What’s it all worth?
What’s it for?
Let us fight sir
It’s our cause
We’re left behind
And we want more
All behind The Unwomanly Face of War
“To this day I remember my first wounded man
His face he had a compound fracture of the middle third of the thigh bone Imagine it the bone sticking out
A shrapnel wound, everything turned inside out”
Everything turns inside out, inside out.