Nuclear Rabbit was started in 1989 by bassist Jean Baudin, who was influenced by a variety of music styles, including Fishbone and Bad Brains, and envisioned having a band not bound to any genre. He was soon joined by guitarist Pat Garner and drummer Steve "Stymie" Sigaty. Originally Baudin performed the vocals, but Greg Parrish was eventually asked to step in as vocalist. Nuclear Rabbit incorporates a variety of genres in their music, including metal, funk, ska, hardcore, punk, jazz, East Indian, and Egyptian. Baudin uses a variety of bass techniques, including tapping, slapping and popping. Their music is often characterized by sudden tempo changes and wacky musical stylings.
The band recorded several demos, some of which are included on the compilation Vicuna. After a quick switch of guitarists, Nuclear Rabbit recorded their first full-length album, Intestinal Fortitude, in 1998. Soon after, Greg left the band and was replaced by Jon Scullion, with whom they recorded their More Human EP.
In 2000, following More Human, Nuclear Rabbit went on hiatus. During this time Jean and Steve formed an alternative rock style group called Element of Surprise, often stylized as "E:OS." The band was formed as a supergroup of underground artists, eventually including vocalist Andy Slipka of Tribal Disco Noise and guitarist Raye Medeiros of Ten Man Killer. Medeiros left the band some time after, and Baudin asked Pat Garner to step in. They recorded two demos,"2:001" and U:pside Down, before the band called it quits in 2002.
Nuclear Rabbit reunited in 2002 with its original line-up and recorded their 2nd full length, Mutopia, the title being a portmanteau of the words mutation and utopia. The album was well received,[citation needed] but the band went through more line-up changes following the supporting tour. A few shows were played in the Northern California area in 2008 with new guitarist Macy Mullen, as well as new drummer Timothy Bailey, though the band is now currently on an unofficial hiatus, with a status of "Writing New Tunes!" on their official MySpace page for 3 years with no updates. In August, 2011, the band announced their first show in three years via JeanBaudin.com, and played an hour-long set on October 8th, 2011, at 924 Gilman in Berkeley, CA.
My Hideous Claw
Nuclear Rabbit Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Seventh son of the seventh son. Rivers of Fu Manchu.
Daffodils and pineless quills. Toad and eye of newt.
Terry Anne, she loved them all. But nothing has the power... of that claw.
He contemplates his next move. In squishy silence he rides on...
Terry Anne was a sumo fan. She had the master plan.
Clueless to the passenger. That rides inside of her.
She ventures of to win that dance. Her powers are the result... of that claw.
I pistol whipped her in the jaw. Aftershave in her hidden cave.
I hide my hideous claw...
Dance, dance, dance, the two-dance dance. Swivel-swivel-swivel-swivel!
Competition, no inhibition. What's this crazy lady thinking?
She's wigglin', she's jigglin'. There's a gigolo a signalin'.
Simple human beings will never understand the things I've seen.
My claw creates entire races pack them and ship them places.
Fools who try to use my claw will find the flaw.
Resides in their own narrow sight - I'll kill 'em all.
The lyrics to Nuclear Rabbit's song My Hideous Claw paint a colorful and bizarre picture of Terry Anne, a character who seems to be enthralled by mystical and unconventional objects and practices. The opening lines "Terry Anne was a rice cake. Her head had nothing to do" suggest a lack of purpose or direction in her life, as she is compared to a food item that is known for being bland and uninteresting. However, the subsequent lines hint at a more complex and esoteric worldview - Terry Anne is the "seventh son of the seventh son," a figure of mystical significance in folklore, and she is interested in obscure objects like "rivers of Fu Manchu" and "toad and eye of newt." Despite all of these fascinations, the ultimate source of Terry Anne's obsession is "that claw," a mysterious and powerful object that seems to be the focus of the song.
The second verse introduces a new character, referred to only as "he," who is apparently plotting his next move. The imagery of "squishy silence" creates an unsettling atmosphere, and we are left to wonder what this character's role is in relation to Terry Anne and the claw. The chorus returns to Terry Anne's story, describing her as a sumo wrestling fan with a "master plan." She engages in unusual behavior like oil wrestling a one-armed man and doing handstands, but all of this oddness is eclipsed by the power of the claw. The final verse appears to be sung from the perspective of the claw itself, with lines like "My claw creates entire races / pack them and ship them places" suggesting that the object has god-like powers. Anyone who tries to use the claw for their own purposes, though, will meet a violent end.
Line by Line Meaning
Terry Anne was a rice cake. Her head had nothing to do.
Terry Anne was a boring person with no clear thoughts or ideas.
Seventh son of the seventh son. Rivers of Fu Manchu.
Refers to an individual with supernatural powers and abilities.
Daffodils and pineless quills. Toad and eye of newt.
A combination of mystical ingredients used for magical spells and potions.
Terry Anne, she loved them all. But nothing has the power... of that claw.
Terry Anne had a love of mystical components but was especially obsessed with the power of the claw.
He contemplates his next move. In squishy silence he rides on...
The artist is thinking about his next action as he moves on in a quiet and contemplative way.
Terry Anne was a sumo fan. She had the master plan.
Terry Ann was a fan of Sumo wrestling and had a well thought out plan for victory.
Oil wrestling a one-armed man. Doing a handstand.
Terry Anne's plan involved wrestling a one-armed man in an oil pit while doing a handstand.
Clueless to the passenger. That rides inside of her.
Terry Anne is unaware of the supernatural passenger that resides within her.
She ventures off to win that dance. Her powers are the result...of that claw.
Terry Anne is using her supernatural powers to help win her wrestling match through the use of the claw.
I pistol whipped her in the jaw. Aftershave in her hidden cave.
The artist attacked Terry Anne in a violent way and hid his supernatural claw.
I hide my hideous claw...
The singer continues to hide and protect his powerful claw.
Dance, dance, dance, the two-dance dance. Swivel-swivel-swivel-swivel!
A call to dance and move in sync with the music.
Competition, no inhibition. What's this crazy lady thinking?
The singer is perplexed by the actions of Terry Anne and her wild behavior.
She's wigglin', she's jigglin'. There's a gigolo a signalin'.
Terry Anne is dancing provocatively and attracting the attention of a male dancer.
Simple human beings will never understand the things I've seen.
The singer feels that normal people can't comprehend the supernatural things he has experienced.
My claw creates entire races pack them and ship them places.
The supernatural claw has the ability to create entire races and transport them to other locations.
Fools who try to use my claw will find the flaw. Resides in their own narrow sight - I'll kill 'em all.
The artist warns that anyone who tries to use his supernatural claw will fail and he will kill them for their foolishness.
Contributed by Nolan V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.