Worum geht es in "Zombie"?

Wovon  handelt der Song "Zombie" von den Cranberries?

In dem wahrscheinlich bekanntesten Song der Cranberries geht es tatsächlich um den damals schon jahrzehntelangen Nordirland-Konflikt. Entstanden ist er, weil manche Bevölkerungsgruppen zu Großbritannien (Protestanten), andere zur Republik Irland (Katholiken) gehören wollten. Die Folge war ein Blutiger Bürgerkrieg mit mehr als 3000 Toten. Im Jahr 1993 sterben bei einem Bombenattentat der sogenannten Irisch Republikanischen Armee (kurz IRA) auch zwei Kinder.

Daraufhin schreibt Sängerin Dolores O’Riordan im selben Jahr auf Tour den Text für Zombie. In einem Interview sagt sie zwar, dass es generell um den Tod von Kindern geht, aber der Auslöser eben doch genau dieses Attentat war.

"At the time 'Zombie' was written, we were touring in the UK. It was before the peace treaty and there had been a lot of trouble. There were a lot of bombs going off in London and I remember this one time a child was killed when a bomb was put in a rubbish bin – that's why there’s that line in the song, 'A child is slowly taken'. We were on a tour bus and I was near the location where it happened, so it really struck me hard – I was quite young, but I remember being devastated about the innocent children being pulled into that kind of thing. So I suppose that’s why I was saying, 'It's not me' – that even though I'm Irish it wasn't me, I didn't do it. Because being Irish, it was quite hard, especially in the UK when there was so much tension. It's so different now. If you told a teenager now what it was like back then they wouldn't believe you, but it wasn't such a long time ago." - Dolores O’Riordan in einem Interview in Songwriting

Das klingt dann im Song so:

Zombie als wichtiger Protestsong

Wer interpretieren will, könnte sagen, dass das Wort "Zombie" hier eine Art Metapher dafür ist, dass durch Konflikte, Kriege und Gewalt irgendwann jeglicher Funke an Menschheit verloren geht. "Zombie" ist im Vergleich zu früheren Folk Songs der Cranberries wesentlich lauter und aggressiver. Der Song wird der größte Hit der Band und belegt in mehreren Ländern die Spitze der Charts. Er ist bis heute einer der wichtigsten Protestsongs und erfüllt seinen Zweck, denn "Zombie" bleibt im Kopf.

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Die Lyrics: Cranberries - "Zombie"

Another head hangs lowly
Child is slowly taken
And the violence caused such silence
Who are we mistaken?

But you see, it′s not me
It's not my family
In your head, in your head, they are fighting
With their tanks, and their bombs
And their bombs, and their guns
In your head, in your head they are crying

In your head, in your head
Zombie, zombie, zombie-ie-ie
What′s in your head, in your head?
Zombie, zombie, zombie-ie-ie, oh

Another mother's breaking
Heart is taking over
When the violence causes silence
We must be mistaken

It's the same old theme
Since 1916
In your head, in your head, they′re still fighting
With their tanks, and their bombs
And their bombs, and their guns
In your head, in your head, they are dying

In your head, in your head
Zombie, zombie, zombie-ie-ie
What′s in your head, in your head?
Zombie, zombie, zombie-ie-ie