Describing their music as a combination of “Funeral Pop” and “Dead Western”, MXMS made a vow to express their art as naked as it reads channeling artists like Johnny Cash, Nirvana, Serge Gainsbourg, Lush, Vast, and Enya.
Collaborating with designer Asher Levine for a “funeral” inspired fashion show for SS 2014, performing a series of shows at NYC’s immersive Sleep No More theatre, and playing LACMA’s (Los Angeles contemporary museum of modern art’s) annual Halloween Ball installation called “Haunted Screens” German 1920’s Cinema are just a few of the many events and performances MXMS has taken part of in efforts to jointly focus on music, fashion and cinema.
At the end of 2014, with a large collection of songs and a finished film script MXMS signed with boutique indie label Grand Jury Records. The music is earmarked for release early summer internationally via digital and vinyl with an accompanying tour.
“MXMS’s music frequently swells from lush yet painfully intimate lows to rousing and inspirational cinematic highs, demanding to be mined for a transformative film montage. The duo relishes straddling the fine line between light and dark–as well as navigating, and often deliberately disrupting, the fault line between their fierce desires to both shun industry norms, and to share their music with the world.” –Kurt McVey for Interview Magazine
Anna
MXMS Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Choke my throat with the blood of the vine
Curse black hearse wanna go for a ride
Red rum eyes, under the knife
Look at my lips and I'm ready to die
She takes my clothes off
You like what you see?
Scream my name, getting down on your knees
Anna's gonna come, gonna take you away
I like the young girls, super thin
Look at her hip bones, porcelain
I like the good girls, that cry every day
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
(Interlude)
I only love you when you're falling apart
I lift my shirt up, the fun begins
I want your hands to feel where my fingers have been
But I'm a lie (?), I'm going insane
Anna's gonna come, gonna take me away
I like the young girls, super thin
Look at her hip bones, porcelain
I like the good girls, that cry every day
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
(Yeah)
(Interlude)
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
(?????)
I only love you when you're falling apart
I like the young girls, super thin
Look at her hip bones, porcelain
I like the good girls, that cry every day
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
I like the young girls, perfect skin
Look at her hip bones, and touch them
I like the bad girls, they're running away (?)
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
(End)
The lyrics of MXMS's song "Anna" explore themes of obsession, desire, and the self-destructive behavior that can accompany them. The opening lines set a dark tone, with the singer using wine as a tool to choke their own throat. The reference to a hearse adds to the morbidity of the scene. The mention of "red rum eyes" is a nod to Stephen King's novel The Shining, in which the singer's son has a psychic ability to see the words "red rum" spelled backward, which he realizes is a message of "murder." This reference sets the stage for the violent and dangerous romantic attraction that the singer has to Anna.
The lyrics of "Anna" suggest that the singer may have a pattern of seeking out young and delicate women, and Anna appears to be the embodiment of that ideal. The singer seems to enjoy the power dynamic that comes from being desired, and describes Anna as someone who will "take you away," reinforcing the idea that Anna is in control. However, the singer also acknowledges that Anna poses a threat, with her gun pointed at them.
The repetition of the phrase "Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me" creates a sense of tension and danger throughout the song, and the repetition of the verses suggests that the singer is stuck in a cycle of this type of destructive behavior. The repeated mention of liking "young girls, super thin" and "good girls that cry every day" speaks to the singer's unhealthy fixation on fragile and vulnerable women.
Overall, the lyrics of "Anna" are unsettling and disturbing, evoking a sense of dangerous attraction and destructive desire.
Line by Line Meaning
Un, deux, trois
The singer is counting down to something, setting the scene for what's to come.
Choke my throat with the blood of the vine
The singer is expressing a desire for an intense experience, perhaps with alcohol or other drugs.
Curse black hearse wanna go for a ride
The singer is embracing their darker side and wants to take risks.
Red rum eyes, under the knife
The artist is feeling intense emotions and perhaps undergoing some kind of transformation.
Look at my lips and I'm ready to die
The artist is feeling a deep desire for some kind of release, or perhaps they are saying this to someone else.
She takes my clothes off
The singer is describing an intimate encounter with another person.
You like what you see?
The singer is asking their partner for validation or approval.
Scream my name, getting down on your knees
The artist is expressing a desire for power and control in their sexual encounter.
You're my obsession, who I wanna be
The artist is expressing a deep attachment to their partner, and perhaps even an identity crisis.
Anna's gonna come, gonna take you away
The artist is introducing Anna as a potentially dangerous or influential person.
I like the young girls, super thin
The singer is expressing a preference for young, slender women.
Look at her hip bones, porcelain
The artist is objectifying women and fetishizing their bodies.
I like the good girls, that cry every day
The singer is expressing a preference for women who are emotionally vulnerable, perhaps to gain control over them.
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
The singer is now feeling threatened by Anna, who may be seeking revenge or asserting power over them.
I only love you when you're falling apart
The singer is acknowledging their own emotional instability and expressing a desire for someone who is also struggling.
I lift my shirt up, the fun begins
The artist is initiating a sexual encounter, with a sense of excitement.
I want your hands to feel where my fingers have been
The artist is expressing a desire for intimacy and connection with their partner.
But I'm a lie (?), I'm going insane
The singer is beginning to question their own sanity and perhaps their motives in this encounter.
Anna's gonna come, gonna take me away
The singer is now feeling directly threatened by Anna, who seems to have some kind of power over them.
I like the young girls, super thin
The artist is repeating their preference for young, slender women.
I like the good girls, that cry every day
The artist is reiterating their preference for emotionally vulnerable women.
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
The artist is now feeling even more threatened by Anna.
I like the young girls, perfect skin
The singer is still expressing their preference for young, attractive women.
Look at her hip bones, and touch them
The artist is still objectifying women and fetishizing their bodies, but now more explicitly.
I like the bad girls, they're running away (?)
The singer may be expressing a desire for women who are difficult to control or who present a challenge.
Anna's got a gun and it's pointed at me
The singer is still feeling threatened by Anna, who continues to have power over them.
Contributed by Kayla O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.