Aboriginal Anemia
Cinema Strange
A Haunting Tale of Desperation and Disease
Cinema Strange's song "Aboriginal Anemia" paints a dark and surreal picture of suffering, disease, and societal decay. The lyrics are rich with vivid and grotesque imagery, creating a nightmarish landscape where the characters are trapped in a cycle of illness and despair. The song opens with a harrowing scene of a brother dying from an infection caused by eating a sickly rabbit, setting the tone for the rest of the narrative. The mention of Parzifal, a name that evokes the Arthurian knight Percival, adds a layer of tragic heroism to the story, as he hunts his sister, leading to further infection and decay.
The lyrics continue to describe a family torn apart by disease and bitterness. The phrase "animal people scale the walls so easily" suggests a dehumanization of the characters, as they are reduced to their primal instincts in the face of overwhelming adversity. The imagery of "bubbling sores" and a "china shack of ignorance" highlights the physical and metaphorical fragility of their existence. The repeated line "bashing in my weakened knees" serves as a refrain, emphasizing the relentless and debilitating nature of their suffering.
The song also touches on themes of social hierarchy and the futility of trying to maintain order in the face of chaos. The dinner party scene, with guests eating while facing west, suggests a ritualistic attempt to impose structure on a world that is falling apart. The curses flung forth and swallowed by the Masque and the trees symbolize the characters' desperate attempts to fight against their fate, only to be met with indifference by the world around them. "Aboriginal Anemia" is a powerful and unsettling exploration of human frailty, societal collapse, and the inescapable nature of disease and death.