THE CRANBERRIES - ZOMBIE

Publicació: 19 de setembre de 1994

Llistes: Regne Unit: #14

"Zombie" és una cançó de protesta de la banda irlandesa de rock alternatiu The Cranberries, escrita per la cantant principal de la banda, Dolores O'Riordan, sobre els problemes a Irlanda del Nord. Va ser llançada com el senzill principal del seu segon àlbum d'estudi de 1994, "No Need to Argue", dues setmanes abans del llançament de l'àlbum. Els crítics musicals han reconegut durant molt temps "Zombie" com "una obra mestra del rock alternatiu", així com un número grunge poc característic de l'altre treball de la banda.

La cançó es va inspirar en l'atemptat de l'IRA a Warrington, Cheshire, Anglaterra, el 20 de març de 1993. Dos nens van ser assassinats. L'IRA (Exèrcit Republicà Irlandès) és un grup militant decidit a retirar les tropes britàniques d'Irlanda del Nord. La cantant Dolores O'Riordan va afirmar que "Zombie" parla de "la lluita irlandesa per la independència que sembla durar per sempre". La lletra fins i tot diu: "És el mateix tema des del 1916". Igual que les obres de Yeats, Heaney i U2, els Cranberries afirmen que van escriure "Zombie" per ser una "cançó per a la pau entre Anglaterra i Irlanda. Aquesta cançó pren la posició inexpugnable que matar nens petits és tràgic, però en aventurar-se en la lluita política, va crear una gran polèmica, cosa que no va sorprendre a O'Riordan. "Sabia que aquest seria el punt de vista de la cançó, perquè era controvertit", va dir. "Però suposo que em vaig conformar per la sorpresa de l'èxit de la cançó. No sabia que triomfaría tant".

El vídeo va ser filmat per Samuel Bayer, que va volar a Belfast per a obtenir imatges de la zona poc abans de l’alto el foc, i mostra soldats britànics reals i nens locals. Bayer va barrejar aquestes escenes amb imatges sorprenents de Dolores O'Riordan, dempeus al costat d'una creu i coberta de pintura daurada, amb nens amb un daurat similar. Pintar-se per al vídeo va ser idea d'O'Riordan. Explicant el simbolisme, va dir: "Va ser per magníficar d'alguna manera l’escena de la creu. Era metafòric de tot el dolor que s'estava causant, i també era una mica religiós". Bayer, que va començar com a pintor, va ser molt creatiu en els seus vídeos quan es va donar a conèixer. El seu treball més conegut és "Smells Like Teen Spirit" de Nirvana.

El 31 d'agost de 1994, poques setmanes després de la publicació d'aquesta cançó, l'IRA va declarar un alto el foc després de 25 anys de conflicte, fet que va fer que alguns crítics de The Cranberries es preguntessin si l'IRA estava disposat a convocar una treva per assegurar-se que el grup no publiqués més cançons sobre ells.

A Amèrica, la cançó no es va publicar com a senzill, una tàctica dissenyada per vendre més àlbums. Es van enviar còpies promocionals a les emissores de ràdio i MTV va posar molt el vídeo, de manera que la cançó va tenir molta exposició, ajudant “No Need To Argue” a vendre més de 7 milions de còpies als Estats Units. Com que no es va editar com a senzill, "Zombie" no era elegible per a la llista Billboard Hot 100, però va arribar al número 22 a la llista Airplay.

THE CRANBERRIES - ZOMBIE

Released: September 19, 1994

Charted:  UK: #14   

"Zombie" is a protest song by Irish alternative rock band the Cranberries, written by the band's lead singer Dolores O'Riordan about the troubles in Northern Ireland. It was released as the lead single from their 1994 second studio album, “No Need to Argue”, two weeks ahead of the album's release. Music critics have long recognized "Zombie" as "a masterpiece of alternative rock", as well as a grunge number uncharacteristic of the band's other work.

This was inspired by the IRA bombing in Warrington, Cheshire, England on March 20, 1993. Two children were killed. The IRA (Irish Republican Army) is a militant group that was determined to remove British troops from Northern Ireland. Lead singer Dolores O'Riordan claimed that "Zombie" speaks about "the Irish fight for independence that seems to last forever". The lyrics even say, "It's the same old theme since 1916." Like the responsive works of Yeats, Heaney and U2, the Cranberries claim they wrote "Zombie" to be a "song for peace, peace among England and Ireland. This song takes the unassailable position that killing young children is tragic, but in venturing into the political fray, it created a great deal of controversy. This didn't surprise O'Riordan. "I knew that would be the angle of the song, because it was controversial," she told. "But, I suppose I was kind of taken aback with the success of the song. I didn't know it was going to be that successful."

The video was shot by Samuel Bayer, who flew to Belfast shortly before the fire ceased to get footage of the area - those are real British soldiers and local children. Bayer intercut these scenes with striking images of Dolores O'Riordan, standing by a cross and covered in gold paint, as similarly gilded children look on. Getting painted for the video was O'Riordan's idea. Explaining the symbolism, she told, "It was to make it magnificent in a way, at the cross. It was metaphoric for all the pain that was being caused, and it was slightly religious as well." Bayer, who began as a painter, was wildly creative in his videos when given free rein. His best-known work is Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".

On August 31, 1994, just a few weeks after this song was released, the IRA declared a ceasefire after 25 years of conflict, leading some critics of The Cranberries to wonder if the IRA was willing to call a truce to make sure the group didn't release any more songs about them.

In America, the song wasn't released as a single, a tactic designed to sell more albums. Promotional copies were issued to radio stations and MTV gave the video plenty of spins, so the song got lots of exposure, helping No Need To Argue sell over 7 million copies in the US. Since it wasn't sold as a single, "Zombie" was ineligible for the Billboard Hot 100 chart, but it did make #22 on the Airplay chart.