Karmacoma Lyrics
You sure you want to be with me
I've nothing to give
Won't lie and say this love is best
Leave us in emotional peace
Take a walk, taste the rest
No, take a rest
I see you digging a hole
Your neighborhood
You're crazy but you're lazy
No need to live in a lean to [no need to live on the need to]
your troubles must be seen to with money
Like paper with faces I remember
The faces I remember
I drink on a daily basis
Though it seldom cools my temper
It never cools my temper
Walking through the suburbs they're not exactly lovers
You're a couple, especially when your body's doubled
Duplicate, then you wait for the next kuwait
Karmacoma, Jamaican aroma [Repeat: x4]
You sure you want to be with me I've nothing to give
Take a walk take a rest
Taste the rest
[Repeat: x2]
Take a walk take a rest
Taste the rest
Don't want to be on top of your list
Monopoly and properly kissed
We overcome in 60 seconds
With the strength we have to together
But for now, emotional ties they stay severed
When there's trust there'll be treats and
When we funk there'll be beats
Karmacoma, Jamaican aroma [Repeat: x4]
Music Video
The video shows a hotel corridor and the occupants of the rooms along the corridor. The band are in one of the rooms accompanied by Tricky and an actress. 3D, Daddy G, and Tricky are all dressed in uniforms that say "Texmex" on the front. Mushroom is sitting on the couch with a hand on his stomach, where he apparently has been shot and his shirt is bloody.
The rest of the occupants are shown intermittently throughout the video, and are all engaging in eccentric activities. Some of the scenes cross over from being weird to being supernatural and magical.
- A man is in the corridor, holding a gun in one hand and a plastic bag with something in it on the other. He's walking backwards and pointing the gun at everything he sees, in a clear state of paranoia and distress. He's sweating and mumbling under his breath, desperately attempting to memorise the room numbers for reasons unknown. At several points he is menaced by two mysterious, identical twin girls (in homage to the 1980 film The Shining), who, at one point, hold up the missing letter 'k' from another tenant's typewriter. And at one point he glimpses a double of himself, pointing a gun at him.
- A man with long, unkempt hair and beard is sitting in his room (actor Olegar Fedoro resembling Charles Manson), staring directly into the camera and speaking in a dazed manner. "I am a... dangerous person," he announces at one point. Later: "All those guys I killed... nothing personal." (He bears a strong resemblance to the man with the gun from the corridor, although it is unclear if they are actually intended to be the same person.) At the video's end he tells the camera, "I want to be free... and I am free." (These three lines are all Charles Manson quotes.)
- A man in one of the rooms is covered with oil among cameras and mirrors, apparently performing some sort of bizarre artwork. The oil comes from his navel, apparently, and his finger goes impossibly deep into it to extract the oil.
- A middle-aged man with a moustache is in a room with two women dressed in red satin robes. He asks "Who's gonna be a bad girl, then?". One of the women answers apathetically, "I am".
- A man (who resembles the protagonist of Eraserhead) is seen with a typewriter, writing "Karmacoma" over and over again on a sheet of paper, though the letter 'k' does not appear. When the man in the corridor realises the two girls have the 'k', it immediately cuts back to the man with the typewriter, who does not look at another man who appears in his room, burning sheets of paper.
- A boy watches TV news in which the journalist covers his half face with his hand. The boy repeats what he sees. As this is happening, a woman dressed in campy, old-fashioned clothing is talking on the phone about the boy.
- A man plays golf in the corridor.
- A man attempts to drown a miniature copy of himself in a bathtub.
Analysis of song & video
"I think it's about a guy and a girl and their messed up relationship, and they're goin' for a walk and smokin' the reefer. kinda reminds me of one of my relationships, actually. he's unsure of the whole thing because he doesn't think he's worth it ("you sure you wanna be with me, I've nothin to give, won't lie and say this lovin's best..."). she's trying to settle down somewhere, so she's "diggin' a hole" in her neighborhood, so she down some roots of her own...maybe she was moving around a lot or was homeless, thus explaining the "no need to live in a lean-to' line. and she needs to sort out her shit ("your troubles must be seen to"). the next line mentions money so maybe he/she/they have financial probs. then we find out the guy is pretty much an alcoholic, as he drinks "on a daily basis." and he has a temper. bad combo.
the next few lines are pretty clear and pretty vague. "walkin through the suburbs, though not exactly lovers, you're a couple" they haven't had sex yet so they're not lovers, but they are a couple of sorts. I'm not sure about "specially when your bodies doubled" unless its something about seeing double when your drunk so maybe their mostly a couple (ie fool around) when they're drunk. "duplicate and then ya wait for the next kuwait" umm...having babies? I really don't know
"jamaica aroma' would be the pot...i think the "taste the rest" parts are about the pot as well.
Fuck this is a lot of writing...almost finished...so, "dont wanna be on top of your list, phenomenally and properly kissed" he's saying he doesn't want to be her #1 guy, even if he'll get these phenomenal and proper kisses. Even though they are good at getting over their problems together, he's still not ready ("we overcome in 60 seconds withthe strength we have together but for now the emotional ties they stay severed"). The next few lines speak for themselves; when they trust eachother, they'll get down 'n dirty.
Now 3D starts talkin' bout 'deflowering', so methinks the guy either gives in to her or just gives in to his biological urges. then he's telling himself "I must be crazy"...I don't know what "swazy" means. Patrick, perhaps? yeah right. anyway, he says she's crazy too and lazy, which could mean she's too lazy to find a better man than him. I dunno about the 'monopoly' reference...pretty sure it's not the game...maybe he means like monopolizing her or her monopolizing him or whatever."
"This song is also very similar to the first track on Tricky's album Maxinquaye. In fact I think it's the exact same lyrics, and a very similar beat."
"I think the title should be looked at first. Karma--Buddhist belief in cause and effect. I think the Karmacoma is the unawareness that what you do becomes who you are. If you don't own up, you're never free. I also think that this song is meant as a Koan. Trying to put together what this song means may leave you with a blank mind.. ;) Stay with it and find out. But if I should try and explain the song... All of these different characters could be his past lifes and they all fit together regardless of how different they maybe. The boot shine machine only plays when he is talking. Yet, he's not the one with the dirty shoes or a "dirty sole". It's on the robber's shoes and the dirt and muck is also on the guy with the Kango. There are more connections, but meh, I'll let you figure'em out. When he makes the realization that he is what he is and no matter if he tries to be good to fix his past mistakes or continues to do bad things, he's always free regardless. The end with the boot shine machine stopping depicts his freedom from the continual need to have his "sole" cleaned. And, theoretically his Karmacoma is lifted."
http://songmeanings.com/songs/view/40563/
The bold letters signify points of interest and help us visualise what the song is really about, the core messages you can take from: these inputs, the video, and the lyrics are that… there is a fight for control within each situation depicted which thus suggests there is also a fight for freedom within ones self.
The bold letters signify points of interest and help us visualise what the song is really about, the core messages you can take from: these inputs, the video, and the lyrics are that… there is a fight for control within each situation depicted which thus suggests there is also a fight for freedom within ones self.
Massive Attack
"Massive Attack is an English musical group from Bristol consisting of Robert "3D" Del Naja and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall, formed in 1988. The duo are considered to be progenitors of the trip hop genre. Their debut album Blue Lines was released in 1991, with the single "Unfinished Sympathy" reaching the charts and later being voted the 10th greatest song of all time in a poll by The Guardian. 1998's Mezzanine, containing "Teardrop", and 2003's 100th Window charted in the UK at number 1. Both Blue Lines and Mezzanine feature in Rolling Stones list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
The group has won numerous music awards throughout their career, including a Brit Award—winning Best British Dance Act, two MTV Europe Music Awards, and two Q Awards. They have released 5 studio albums that have sold over 11 million copies worldwide."
"Karmacoma" is a single by British trip-hop collective Massive Attack, released as a single from their second album Protection in March 20 1995. It is a rap featuring vocals from band member 3D and guest artist Tricky.
Song details
Released: 20 March 1995
Recorded: 1994
Genre: Trip Hop
Length: 5:21
Label: Virgin Records
Porducer(s): Massive Attack and Nellee Hooper
Massive attack singles chronology:
Protection (1995)
Karmacoma (1995)
Risingsong (1997)
No comments:
Post a Comment