Unwoman (aka Erica Mulkey) is a San Francisco-based cellist-singer-songwrit… Read Full Bio ↴Unwoman (aka Erica Mulkey) is a San Francisco-based cellist-singer-songwriter. Layered with skillful cello, rich vocals, and electronically arranged beats, her solo music is a futuristic homage to her classical training. Unwoman performs often in the Bay Area and has been featured at major steampunk, goth, and sci-fi-related events all over North America. She has collaborated with Abney Park, Stripmall Architecture, Voltaire, Rasputina, Jill Tracy, Vernian Process, Caustic, and Attrition. Other influences include Amanda Palmer, Florence and the Machine, IAMX, Imogen Heap, Siouxsie Sioux, and Beats Antique. Extremely versatile, able to perform with no amplification, just cello and voice ("acacella") or with full backing tracks, she also plays the piano, cello banjo, and theremin.

In Spring of 2010 Unwoman released her fourth full-length self-produced album, Casualties. Its pressing was funded by fans on kickstarter, and its release coincided with a huge bump in her popularity due to several enthusiastic tweets from Amanda Palmer. In September 2011 she released Uncovered Volume 1, an album of dramatic reinterpretations of popular songs written betwen 1980 and 1995, also funded by fans via kickstarter.

Unwoman performs solo, with drummer Felix Macnee as Heavy Sugar Duo, and as a guest in other bands, throughout the US. Unwoman has performed solo at WorldCon (Reno, NV 2011), Steamcon I, II, and III (Seattle), Victoria Steam Exposition (Victoria, BC), Bats Day in the Fun Park (Anaheim, CA), Can't Stop the Serenity (Phoenix, AZ), Nova Albion (SF Bay Area), Fanime (San Jose, CA), and Teslacon (Madison, WI).

Black Magic
Unwoman Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

If I could save you
I would kiss you
I would run to you
I would fix you

If I could stitch their hearts
I'd collect another
All the lonely boys

I could be their mother

If it was more than the lure
Of a possible fall
I would consider
Breaking it all

But it is merely polar
Opposites attracting
My perfect order
To meet chaos again

Still something pulls me
And I don't want the blame
This is black magic
I can only lose this game

You ask for what seems simple
And god I love to give

But it's impossible
You are not mine to save

Overall Meaning

The lyrics to Unwoman's "Black Magic" evoke themes of longing, desire, and inability to control the uncontrollable. The singer of the song wants nothing more than to save someone they care about. This person's heart may be shattered, and they may feel lonely and lost. The singer imagines themselves running to this person's rescue, stitching their heart back together, and becoming a motherly figure to them.

Despite this desire to help, the singer recognizes that their efforts may not be enough. They acknowledge that the lure of temptation and the pull of chaos may be too strong to overcome. The singer wonders whether they should risk everything to break the spell and save their friend.

However, in the end, the singer realizes that they don't have control over the situation. They cannot save their friend, and it's not their fault. They recognize their own limitations and acknowledge that some things are beyond their power. The lyrics suggest that "Black Magic" may refer to a sense of helplessness and entrapment, where the singer is unable to resist the pull of their desires.

Line by Line Meaning

If I could save you
If I had the power, I would save you.

I would kiss you
I would show you love and affection.

I would run to you
I would make an effort to come to you.

I would fix you
I would help you overcome your problems.

If I could stitch their hearts
If I could bring people closer to each other.

I'd collect another
I'd make an effort to find another person to help.

All the lonely boys
People who are in need of comfort and love.

I could be their mother
I could provide them with the care and love that a mother would.

If it was more than the lure
If it was deeper than casual attraction.

Of a possible fall
Of a potential risk or danger.

I would consider
I would think about it.

Breaking it all
Taking risks and going outside of one's comfort zone.

But it is merely polar
But it's just the fundamental force of attraction.

Opposites attracting
People with different personalities finding each other.

My perfect order
The balance she has found in her life.

To meet chaos again
To feel alive amidst chaos and unpredictability.

Still something pulls me
Despite the risks, there's something that attracts her.

And I don't want the blame
She doesn't want to be held responsible for the possible outcome.

This is black magic
The inexplicable and uncontrollable force of attraction.

I can only lose this game
The only possible outcome is failure.

You ask for what seems simple
You ask for something that seems easy to provide.

And god I love to give
She has a willingness to provide help to others.

But it's impossible
Some problems are beyond her capability to fix.

You are not mine to save
It's not her responsibility to fix every problem she encounters.

Contributed by Savannah V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.

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Comments from YouTube:

Vladimir Kozlov

11y↑2

Great video, Erica! You are fantastically amazing, as always!

ShakespeareOfBorg

11y↑1

I'm OBSESSED with this song right now!! I'm a huge fan and would love you to visit the UK (preferably the North East) sometime soon :)

Netwolf

4y↑1

Splendid! From Russia with love <3

Nordic Beast

So my best friend found out how much I love Cello and got me listening to you starting with The Heroine, AMAZING song by the way! Some of your industrial stuff such as this and The Snowstorm are fantastic as well! I'm really enjoying your work! Are you a Detroit Native? I too am from the greater Detroit area. Well done for a no budget music video!