Philippe GARDETON Zombie Cranberries Analyse

THE CRANBERRIES - ZOMBIE

I - The context

1,5 million people live in northern Ireland. 54% are protestants and 41% catholics.

In the 60s, a major conflict was born. The catholic minority was disciminated by the Britannic protestants. Catholics protested for new rights, but it engendered a lot of religious violences between the two sides. It was a political conflict too, the nationalists (native Irish who wanted an united Ireland), fought against the British immigrants who wanted to preserve their attachment to United Kingdom.

In 1913, the IRA was born. It was a paramilitary organization which wanted to defend the Irish independence. On April 1916, the twenty third, 1 200 members of the Irish Volunteers rebelled on the Easter Mondays and invested places and monuments of Dublin. The English army sent 20 000 soldiers and fired the city with its artillery. 60 insurgents and 150 English soldiers died.

In March, 1993, while they were on tour in England, The Cranberries learned that two bombs of the IRA exploded in a shopping mall in Warrington, in the North of the country. Two children were killed, and from then, the singer of the group, Dolores O'Riordan, took his pen and wrote Zombie.

II - The lyrics

Another head hangs slowly,

Child is slowly taken,

And the violence caused such silence,

Who are we mistaken,

But you see it's not me,

It's not my family

In your head, in your head,

They are fighting

With their tanks, and their bombs,

And their bombs, and their guns,

In your head, (x2)

In your head they are cryin',

In your head, (x2)

Zombie, (x3)

What's in your head, in your head,

Zombie, (x3)

Another mother's breakin',

Heart is taking over,

When the violence causes silence,

We must be mistaken,

It's the same old theme since 1916,

In your head,

In your head they're still fightin'

With their tanks, and their bombs,

And their bombs, and their guns,

In your head (x2),

They are dying,

In your head, in your head,

Zombie, (x3)

What's in your head, in your head,

Zombie (x3)

III - Analyse of the lyrics

First of all, the title of the song, « Zombie ». It refers to Irish peoples who lived in fear during almost 50 years, when the British immigrants and the IRA fired all what stand against their interests.

In the song, we can hear at the beginning « Another head hangs slowly / Child is slowly taken ». It is an explicit reference to the attempts in Warrington. The two boys killed were named Johnatan Balland and Tim Parry. Then, the singer repeat « In your head » and « What's in your head ». It clearly aims IRA and weapons dealers, who, according to the group, are responsible of the civil war and the attempts. Indeed, no war could be led without weapons, and the IRA used a lot of those guns. 

The sentence « The violence caused such silence » refers to the events of April 1916, when a lot of people rebelled against United Kingdom, the violence of English army caused a long silence in Irland, Irish would forgot this day who made 60 death among them.

When the group says « It's the same old theme since 1916 », they think to the multiple cease-fire who were not respected by both sides.

The sentences « With their tanks, and their bombs / And their bombs, and their guns / In your head / They are dying » is a message send to all who led the civil war, they will remember all there life the deaths they caused.

The song Zombie can be cut into 3 sections which are repeated and lightly modified during the song. This formula uses the repetition as a tool to influence the public. It is a symbol of the violence of the IRA. The singer underlines also some words in the lyrics, for example « In your head » or « Zombie ». These words create a strange atmosphere in the song, mix of anxiety and revolt. In the modern culture zombies are dead people who still live. It is a really good way to name feared people.

The video clip is very adapted to the music. It uses images of young boys playing with firearms. It shows the pain and the propaganda with graffiti relative to IRA. Colors are limited to black, white, red and gold, which are colors relative to war and violence. The image of the golden singer on a cross with young boys around her gives an element of religious sacrifice. Both young boys, who were killed in attempts in Warrington, are represented in this images.

At least, we can say that this song created in answer to attempts is adapted to aim IRA, weapons dealers and war in general.