"Melt!" is a song by English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

band

Siouxsie and the Banshees Siouxsie and the Banshees ( ) were a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1976 by vocalist Siouxsie Sioux and bass guitarist Steven Severin. Post-punk pioneers, they were widely influential, both over their contemporaries and later ...

. It was released in 1982 by record label

Polydor Polydor Limited, also known as Polydor Records, is a British record label that operates as part of Universal Music Group. It has a close relationship with Universal's Interscope Geffen A&M Records label, which distributes Polydor's releases in ...

as a double A-sided single with the song " Il Est Né, Le Divin Enfant" and is the second and final single from the band's fifth studio album, '' A Kiss in the Dreamhouse'' ("Il est né, le divin Enfant" does not appear on that album).

Content

The sensual lyrics of "Melt!" compare an intense sexual interlude with a lover to dying. Its lyrics can also allude to a S&M encounter ("...Handcuffed in lace, blood and sperm / Swimming in poison / Gasping in the fragrance / Sweat carves a screenplay / Of discipline and devotion..."). Dave Morrison of '' Select'' observed that "The Baudelairean imagery of 'Melt' evokes claustrophobic scents of

opium Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...

, sex and sickly flowers, and lapses into morbidity with lines like, 'You are the melting man and, as you melt, you are beheaded'". " Il est né, le divin Enfant" was an adaptation of a traditional French

Christmas carol A Christmas carol is a Carol (music), carol on the theme of Christmas, traditionally sung at Christmas itself or during the surrounding Christmas and holiday season. The term noel has sometimes been used, especially for carols of French or ...

. This track was exclusive to this single, and remained unreleased on LP or CD for many years until the appearance of the Siouxsie and the Banshees box set '' Downside Up'' in 2004.

Release

"Melt!" was released on 26 November 1982 as a double A-sided single by record label

. The single peaked at number 49 in the UK Singles Chart.

Track listing

; 7" ; 12"

References

{{authority control 1982 singles Siouxsie and the Banshees songs Songs written by Siouxsie Sioux Songs written by Budgie (musician) Songs written by Steven Severin Songs written by John McGeoch 1982 songs Polydor Records singles Songs about BDSM