What is the meaning of Bastille's Pompeii?

11 January 2023, 14:57

Bastille on the meaning of Pompeii

Watch as Bastille's Dan Smith explains the dark inspiration behind one of the band's biggest tracks.

Bastille's Pompeii was the fourth single to come from their debut album, Bad Blood.

Released on 11th January 2013, the track reached number 2 on the UK Chart, making it the band's highest charting single to date alongside their The Rhythm of the Night re-imagining, Of The Night.

Watch the video for Pompeii below:

Bastille - Pompeii

But what's the meaning behind one of their biggest tracks?

Watch our video above to find out.

It turns out, the song is aptly name as it was inspired by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in Pompeii.

Bastille's frontman Dan Smith revealed all to Radio X: " I was reading a book that had some picture of the people who got caught up in the volcanic eruption.

"And it's just such a kind of dark powerful image, and it got me thinking about how boring it must have been emotionally after the event. To be sort of stuck in that same position for hundreds and hundreds of years.

"So, the song is sort of an imaginary conversation between these two people who are stuck next to each other in their sort of tragic death pose".

He added, jokingly: "Which you know is just your kind of average pop song topic!"