never knew the story of Bluebeard; see that's the wonderful thing about Joanna, she teaches you things you might never get the chance to learn.
since most of what i understood from the song has already been touched on in one way or another by the other comments i just want to point out the lyric:
"You burn in the Mekong"
this is a reference to the legend of the NÄga/The Curse of Kadru, where (in short)
"Kadru, the ancestral mother of snakes, made a bet with her sister Vinata, the stakes being that the loser would be enslaved to the winner. Eager to secure victory, Kadru requested the cooperation of her offspring in order to fix the bet so that Kadru would win. When her offspring balked at the request, Kadru grew angry and cursed them to die a fiery death in the snake-sacrifice of King Janamejaya, the son of Parikshit, who was the son of Abhimanyu the son of Arjuna. The king of the snakes Vasuki was aware of the curse, and knew that his brethren would need a hero to rescue them from it. He approached the renowned ascetic Jaratkaru with a proposal of marriage to a snake-goddess, Manasa, Vasuki's own sister. Out of the union of the ascetic and the snake-maiden was born "a son of the splendor of a celestial child." This son was named Astika, and he was to be the savior of the snakes. In accordance with Kadru's curse, Janamejaya prepared a snake sacrifice of a type described in the scriptures, the Puranas. He erected a sacrificial platform and hired priests and other professionals needed for the rites. Following the proper form, the priests lit the sacrificial fire, duly fed it with clarified butter, uttered the required mantras, and began calling the names of snakes. The power of the rite was such that the named snakes were summoned to the fire and were consumed by it. As the sacrifice took on genocidal proportions, Astika came to the rescue. He approached Janamejaya and praised the sacrifice in such eloquent terms that the king offered to grant him a boon of his choosing. Astika promptly requested that the sacrifice be terminated. Though initially regretful of his offer, Janamejaya was true to his word, and the sacrifice came to an end."
the sacrificial platform is the "palanquin" and i think Joanna sees herself as a sort of saviour/comrade to all women tormented and tortured by men/society. She relates herself to Astika and, most likely her ex Bill Callahan, to the offspring that were destined to be burned in the Mekong River and also the more evil, more willing to kill/sacrifice others, Kadru.
This legend and the story of Bluebeard have many parallels such as the killing of many and the escape of one.
Joanna being that one who got away. Personally, Smog, i think you're missing out.
PS: i'm still trying to figure out this song. feedback would be nice/helpful :)
never knew the story of Bluebeard; see that's the wonderful thing about Joanna, she teaches you things you might never get the chance to learn.
since most of what i understood from the song has already been touched on in one way or another by the other comments i just want to point out the lyric:
"You burn in the Mekong"
the sacrificial platform is the "palanquin" and i think Joanna sees herself as a sort of saviour/comrade to all women tormented and tortured by men/society. She relates herself to Astika and, most likely her ex Bill Callahan, to the offspring that were destined to be burned in the Mekong River and also the more evil, more willing to kill/sacrifice others, Kadru.
This legend and the story of Bluebeard have many parallels such as the killing of many and the escape of one. Joanna being that one who got away. Personally, Smog, i think you're missing out.
PS: i'm still trying to figure out this song. feedback would be nice/helpful :)