HORSE the band's lyrics are chaotic and colorful metaphors for vocalist Nathan Winneke's life, often with humorous or abstract pop culture reference titles and bases. Winneke has referred to his style on multiple occasions as "lynchian" in reference to his favorite film director David Lynch and his obtuse narrative style.
The band had jokingly labeled themselves "Nintendocore" very early on in their career in reference to the synth sound they had adopted. Some Nintendo characters that are metaphorically referred to include Cut Man from Mega Man, although the song is spelled "Cutsman" because the song was about a childhood friend Winneke grew up with and that was how they had said the character's name in youth; "Birdo", one of the bosses from the NES game Super Mario Bros. 2, in the song "Birdo" which was actually about Winneke's distaste for eggs and traumatic experiences with his stepfather early in his life ; and the rabbit-like nemesis from The Legend of Zelda in the song "Pol's Voice" which is about Winneke's early loathing of the sound of his own voice. Similarly, the song "A Million Exploding Suns" refers to the Marvel Comics character Sentry, a schizophrenic and agoraphobic hero with this abundance of power, pertaining to Winneke's double life as a musician and as a video rental clerk.
2007's A Natural Death featured significant lyrical and musical evolution into the concepts of nature and mortality while moving slightly away from the Nintendo metaphors. The song "Murder" is inspired by the Western novel Lonesome Dove, in which a Native American named Blue Duck stalks and kills white settlers on the plains. "Hyperborea" as a reference to Robert E. Howard's original "Conan" pulp fantasy stories from the 30s, and "The Red Tornado," a DC comics character from the company of which Winneke is such an open enthusiast.
The band's line-up has continuously fluctuated in its 10 year history. In February it was announced that Chris Prophet had been fired and Jon Karel from The Number Twelve Looks Like You would be filling in on drums during Earth Tour. In July, 2008 the band stated that long-time band friend Daniel Pouliot of Bleeding Kansas had joined as the band's full time drummer. On Wednesday, December 3 2008, the band announced that Dash Arkenstone would be leaving the band soon, though he remains on good terms with the other members and has attended local shows.
The band booked its own tours starting the summer of 2002, including a 3-month tour spanning seven countries. With a carefully maintained web presence including their MP3.com and MySpace accounts, they had gained themselves a niche audience. In the summer of 2004, the HORSE the World Tour 2004 included 85 shows in 90 days, spanning 7 countries throughout North America and Europe.
Their latest album, titled Desperate Living, was released on October 6, 2009.
The Ambiguous Camel
HORSE the band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Bitten by a poisonous snake
Sweet venom burns my heart
Oh how I love to suffer
Know this isn't reasonable
Anything but reasonable
I step over the edge
I see you in my mind again
This feeling, it comes again
This time I'm suffocating
It doesn't really matter
I could live off this feeling forever
My field of vision dwindles
Into a circle; the harmonic shape
But what is left around it is black
All the colors put together
I feel religious
I want to believe
Only in you
And give my freedom
LOVE IS DYING
The song "The Ambiguous Camel" by Horse the Band is a complex and cryptic composition that evokes multiple emotions in the listener. The first verse describes the singer laying in a hot desert, bitten by a poisonous snake. The venom burns their heart, but they seem to enjoy the pain, as evidenced by the line "Oh how I love to suffer." This suggests that the character is a masochist, finding pleasure in pain. The chorus reflects this idea of irrationality and a lack of control, with the singer stepping over the edge and going crazy. The second verse is more abstract, with the field of vision dwindling into a circular shape and all the colors blending together. The character feels religious and wants to believe, but only in the person they see in their mind. The final line, "Love is dying," is a poignant ending that suggests the character's obsession is ultimately futile.
Overall, the song explores themes of pain, obsession, and irrationality. The cryptic lyrics lend themselves to multiple interpretations, making the song a fascinating and provocative listen. Perhaps the underlying message is a cautionary tale about the dangers of obsession and the need for balance and reason in our lives.
Line by Line Meaning
Laying in a hot desert
I am feeling lost and alone in a situation that is both harsh and unforgiving.
Bitten by a poisonous snake
I have been hurt and betrayed by someone or something that seemed beautiful and harmless at first glance.
Sweet venom burns my heart
The pain of this betrayal is intense, but I find some kind of twisted pleasure in the way it stirs up my emotions.
Oh how I love to suffer
Despite the pain, I feel addicted to this feeling of intensity and the way it consumes me.
Know this isn't reasonable
I am fully aware that my behavior and emotions aren't rational or healthy, but I can't help myself.
Anything but reasonable
I am fully immersed in this experience and it has taken over my entire being.
I step over the edge
I am fully committed to taking risks and pushing past my own limitations, even if it means facing consequences.
And as I fall I GO CRAZY
I am completely consumed by my own impulses and desires, even if it leads to my own destruction.
I see you in my mind again
Despite my self-destructive tendencies, I am still fixated on a past love or relationship that haunts me.
This feeling, it comes again
I am once again overwhelmed by the waves of emotion and obsession that come with thinking about this person.
This time I'm suffocating
The intensity of these emotions is suffocating and overwhelming, to the point where I feel like I can't breathe.
It doesn't really matter
Despite the fact that my obsession is hurting me, I feel like I am powerless to stop it.
I could live off this feeling forever
Even though it's self-destructive, I feel like I could easily become addicted to this experience and the emotions it stirs up in me.
My field of vision dwindles
These emotions and experiences have narrowed my focus and made it hard to see the bigger picture or consider other options.
Into a circle; the harmonic shape
Despite the chaos and pain of my emotions, I still feel like they have a kind of strange order or symmetry to them.
But what is left around it is black
Despite this sense of order, the rest of my world feels dark and hopeless.
All the colors put together
Despite the chaos and pain of my emotions, I still feel like they have a kind of strange order or symmetry to them.
I feel religious
These intense experiences and emotions feel almost mystical to me, like I'm tapping into something beyond normal human experience.
I want to believe
Despite the fact that these experiences are hurting me, I still find myself wanting to hold on to the hope that they could lead to something good.
Only in you
I've invested everything into this obsession or feeling, and the thought of giving it up or moving on is terrifying.
And give my freedom
Despite the pain and chaos of these experiences, I still feel like they're worth sacrificing everything else for.
LOVE IS DYING
Despite my desperate attempts to hold on to these feelings, I can feel them slipping away from me and dying, leaving me with nothing.
Contributed by Julia N. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@combreze
absolutely brilliant song
@TicalWave89
anyone else ever notice lyrics from this song are in the song "Sand" off of TMH?
@LaPetiteVieEnLigne
The name is "The Ambiguous Camel"
@cw147
i think this song and salvation army are the best songs from the secret rythm of the universe. the first one is good too