Angakok
The Residents Lyrics


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Angakoks, the Eskimo men of magic. are widely held as symbols ofmortal power among the tribe, Stories of their feats are very popular at tribal gatherings.
The whales whistled as the Eskimo tribe danced on and on to the lively beatof the ceremonial band. For twenty days they danced. And sang. And prayed. And still the ice floe hugged the shore line preventing the Eskimos from being able to kill their most valuable prey, the large migrating whale. Anger had been building in the people towards the Angakok who allegedly had the power to remove the ice that was blocking their passage. Finally a hunter challenged the magic of the Angakok with hostile words, and others soon joined him in the traditional taunt of "necki, necki, necki", until the Angakok rose up before them and silenced them with a single cry. A spell escaped from his lips and the sky darkened. A curse slipped from his finger and the seas swelled. The ice was cracking at last. But that dull roar?? The Eskimos looked at one another with fear in their weathered faces. Then it appeared. A "giant snake which stands on the water" wiggled before them with its head in the clouds. They briefly watched it eat a path through the ice floe, then hysterically ran for safety. But the water spout had one more job to do. The hunter who challenged the Angakok's magic was never seen again.

IF AN ANGAKOK IS MURDERED, IN ORDER TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM ITSSPIRIT, THE MURDERER CUTS OFF THE ANGAKOK'S TOES AND FINGERS AND PUTS THEM IN THE DEAD MAN'S MOUTH.
DEAD CHILDREN ARE BURIED WITH A DOG'S HEAD TO PROTECT THE CHILDIN THE AFTERLIFE.
IF CATASTROPHE IS IMMINENT, ALL IN THE SETTLEMENT EXCHANGE WIVESIN ORDER TO CONFUSE THE EVIL SPIRITS.
ESKIMOS HAVE WORDS FOR 40 VARIETIES OF SNOW.




Overall Meaning

The Residents’ song “Angakok” tells the story of an Eskimo tribe gathered together for a traditional ceremony. The tribe is waiting for the ice floe to move so they can go out and kill migrating whales, their most valuable prey. The tribe becomes increasingly angry with the Angakok, the Eskimo man of magic, who is believed to have the power to remove the ice that is blocking their passage. The situation escalates as a hunter challenges the magic of the Angakok, and others join in with the taunting until the Angakok rises up and silences them with a single cry. A spell escapes his lips, and the sky darkens, a curse slips from his finger, and the seas swell, and finally, the ice begins to crack. But what happens next terrifies the Eskimos; a giant snake that stands on the water appears before them, and they watch as it eats a path through the ice floe. The Eskimos, hysterical with fear, run for safety. Eventually, the giant snake sinks into the ocean, but the hunter who challenged the Angakok's magic is never seen again.


Line by Line Meaning

Angakoks, the Eskimo men of magic.
Angakoks are Eskimo men who possess magical powers.


are widely held as symbols of mortal power among the tribe,
The tribe considers Angakoks to be symbols of power and strength.


Stories of their feats are very popular at tribal gatherings.
Tribal gatherings often involve popular stories about the incredible feats of Angakoks.


The whales whistled as the Eskimo tribe danced on and on to the lively beat of the ceremonial band.
While the Eskimo tribe danced to the ceremonial band, the whales made noises.


For twenty days they danced. And sang. And prayed.
The Eskimo tribe danced, sang, and prayed for twenty days straight.


And still the ice floe hugged the shore line preventing the Eskimos from being able to kill their most valuable prey, the large migrating whale.
The Eskimos were unable to hunt migrating whales due to the ice blocking their way to the shore.


Anger had been building in the people towards the Angakok who allegedly had the power to remove the ice that was blocking their passage.
The Eskimos felt anger towards the Angakok who was thought to have the power to remove the ice blocking their passage.


Finally a hunter challenged the magic of the Angakok with hostile words, and others soon joined him in the traditional taunt of "necki, necki, necki",
A hunter challenged the magic of the Angakok with hostile words, and soon others joined in by taunting him with the traditional phrase "necki, necki, necki".


until the Angakok rose up before them and silenced them with a single cry.
The Angakok stood up before the taunters and silenced them with a single cry.


A spell escaped from his lips and the sky darkened.
The Angakok spoke a spell that caused the sky to darken.


A curse slipped from his finger and the seas swelled.
The Angakok cursed and caused the sea to swell.


The ice was cracking at last.
Finally, the ice began to crack.


But that dull roar??
There was a dull noise that caught their attention.


The Eskimos looked at one another with fear in their weathered faces.
The Eskimos looked at each other in fear with weathered faces.


Then it appeared.
Then, something appeared.


A "giant snake which stands on the water" wiggled before them with its head in the clouds.
A giant snake that stood on the water appeared and wiggled around with its head in the clouds.


They briefly watched it eat a path through the ice floe, then hysterically ran for safety.
They watched the snake eat a path through the ice and then ran for safety in hysterics.


But the water spout had one more job to do.
The water spout still had one more thing to do.


The hunter who challenged the Angakok's magic was never seen again.
The hunter who challenged the Angakok's magic disappeared and was never seen again.


IF AN ANGAKOK IS MURDERED, IN ORDER TO PROTECT HIMSELF FROM ITS SPIRIT, THE MURDERER CUTS OFF THE ANGAKOK'S TOES AND FINGERS AND PUTS THEM IN THE DEAD MAN'S MOUTH.
In order to protect themselves from the spirit of a murdered Angakok, the murderer cuts off the Angakok's toes and fingers and puts them in the dead man's mouth.


DEAD CHILDREN ARE BURIED WITH A DOG'S HEAD TO PROTECT THE CHILD IN THE AFTERLIFE.
Dead Eskimo children are buried with a dog's head to protect them in the afterlife.


IF CATASTROPHE IS IMMINENT, ALL IN THE SETTLEMENT EXCHANGE WIVES IN ORDER TO CONFUSE THE EVIL SPIRITS.
If there is an imminent catastrophe, the people in the settlement exchange wives in order to confuse evil spirits.


ESKIMOS HAVE WORDS FOR 40 VARIETIES OF SNOW.
The Eskimos have 40 different words to describe varieties of snow.




Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: HARDY WINFRED FOX, HOMER FLYNN, HOMER III FLYNN

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Comments from YouTube:

@toyaquiyvoyaya

This album is reaaaally hard. Getting into Meet The Residents and Not Available was much easier for me, I fell in love with them since the first time I listened to one of their albums. This is one of the few pieces in this album that I can actually understand and enjoy, it is absolutely brilliant.

@DerDrache707071

A timeless masterpiece!

@VamboRoolz

A soothing cacophony for the wee sma' hours.

@LeVezz

That chorus tho !

@bananartista

the best song ever

@Soft_Machine

I was playing this once and it generally scared the crap out of my brother

@BrianWisti

I played the Eskimo album for the future Mrs. Geek on one of our early dates. Yeah, it surprises me that there were any dates after that as well.

@DaveBennett

She didn't like the music, she liked you! 😃

@BrianWisti

Apparently, Dave Bennett. That bit still occasionally confuses me ^_^

@DaveBennett

Same over here. 😃

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