SILVERCHAIR - ANA'S SONG

ANA'S SONG

SILVERCHAIR

SONGWRITER: DANIEL JOHNS

COUNTRY: AUSTRALIA

ALBUM: NEON BALLROOM

LABEL: MURMUR

GENRE: ROCK

YEAR: 1999

 

         Silverchair were an Australian rock band, which formed in 1992 as Innocent Criminals in Newcastle, New South Wales, with Ben Gillies on drums, Daniel Johns on vocals and guitars, and Chris Joannou on bass guitar. The group got their big break in mid-1994 when they won a national demo competition conducted by SBS TV show Nomad and ABC radio station Triple J. The band was signed by Murmur and were successful in Australia and internationally. Silverchair have sold over 8 million albums worldwide.

                Silverchair have won more ARIA Music Awards than any other artist in history, earning 21 wins from 49 nominations. They also received six APRA Awards, with Johns winning three songwriting awards in 2008. All five of their studio albums debuted at number one on the ARIA Albums Chart: Frogstomp(1995), Freak Show(1997), Neon Ballroom(1999), Diorama (2002), and Young Modern(2007). Three singles reached the number-one slot on the related ARIA Singles Chart: "Tomorrow" (1994), "Freak" (1997), and "Straight Lines" (2007).

Silverchair's alternative rock sound evolved throughout their career, differing styles on specific albums growing more ambitious over the years, from grunge on their debut to more recent work displaying orchestral and art rock influences. The songwriting and singing of Johns had evolved steadily while the band had developed an increased element of complexity.

                In 2003, following the release of Diorama, the band announced a hiatus, during which time members recorded with side projects the Dissociatives, the Mess Hall, and Tambalane. Silverchair reunited at the 2005 Wave Aid concerts. In 2007, they released their fifth album, Young Modern, and played the Across the Great Divide tour with contemporaries Powderfinger. In May 2011, Silverchair announced an indefinite hiatus.

        "Ana's Song (Open Fire)" is a song by the Australian alternative rock band Silverchair. It was released in May 1999 as the second single from their third album, Neon Ballroom. The song is about lead vocalist Daniel Johns' struggle with anorexia nervosa. "Ana's Song" peaked at No. 14 on Australia's ARIA chart, at Nº 12 on Billboard's Alternative Airplay and at Nº 28 on the US Mainstream Rock chart. It was nominated for two Aria Awards in 1999: Single of the Year and Best Video. The track also earned Silverchair a Comet Award in Germany.

Please die Ana

For as long as you're here we're not

You make the sound of laughter

And sharpened nails seem softer

 

And I need you now somehow

And I need you now somehow

 

Open fire on the needs designed

On my knees for you

Open fire on my knees desires

What I need from you

 

Imagine pageant

In my head the flesh seems thicker

Sandpaper tears corrode the film

 

And I need you now somehow

And I need you now somehow

 

Open fire on the needs designed

On my knees for you

Open fire on my knees desires

What I need from you

 

And your my obsession

I love you to the bones

And Ana wrecks your life

Like an anorexia life

 

Open fire on the need designed

On my knees for you

Open fire on my knees desires

What I need from you

Open fire on my needs designed

Oh, and open fire on the needs designed

On my knees for you.