Analysis #1: Bladee's Requiem
An analysis of Bladee's Requiem: a single comprising two songs, Requiem and Obsessed with Death.
Requiem and Obsessed with Death are the two songs released under Bladee’s recent single, titled “Requiem”. Considering their status as a single, it was expected that they would sound similar to one another or that they would revolve around the same subject matter. And they do both speak to the same subject – though it is not entirely evident at first. Regarding their sound, they are quite different. Requiem has the clear, distinct Bladee style, whereas Obsessed with Death – while still very clearly Bladee – moves in a different direction, and stands out from the rest of Bladee’s discography, where it has clear gothic influences. And yet, the two songs feel like two sides to a coin. The exploration of both sides, the embracing of duality, and the unboundedness of Bladee are some of the highly respected qualities of the artist and make his work an undeniably unique experience.
Again, the two songs are very different – their lyrics, melody, etc., but it’s super cool that their linking tie is death and the idea of death. Obsessed with Death states this clearly in the title, Requiem too. Requiem – meaning a mass for the dead – is a Catholic Christian ceremony performed to grant the dead eternal rest. Obsessed with Death could be seen as the chasing and desire for this eternal calm.
Looking at the lyrics, Requiem takes a much more positive view of death, where the discussion of “memento mori”, “we’re victorious, I am very fortunate” (nice reference to his song Victorious with lean as well lol, where they discuss being fortunate + victorious even though they have faced much turmoil) “very blessed by Elohim” (the name for God in biblical Hebrew), etc. The song takes an almost absurdist outlook with “Trauma ties the bond in an unbreakable knot/The door behind is locked, we forever fall apart”. Bladee’s statements sustain that this route is undeniable, that the past is something you cannot escape nor return to, and that the future is set. And while this may seem very depressive, the context of the song allows these lyrics to become more absurdist rather than nihilistic.
“Love should be like war, and this war must be like art” references the H.L. Mencken quote “Love is like war: easy to begin but very hard to stop”, to say that love should be a powerful force, and not just that, but it “must” – it is a requirement – that it be like art, encapsulating beauty and creativity, otherwise, it is not love.
“Victory is ours, written in the stars”, again, the positive outlook is made clear, victory is his God-given right, it is his fate, and has been his fate since the birth of the stars. This line reiterates the idea that the future is set, as stated previously.
“Life is on the line, purpose beyond time” truly speaks to me on a personal level. “Purpose beyond time” is undeniably beautiful. Too many people arrive on this earth wondering what their purpose is, why they have been sent here – and not just wondering – but looking, searching for their purpose, thinking, believing it is an essential part of who they must be and an integral part of life itself. But it is not. Purpose is irrelevant, and not just that, but it is not limited to this earth. Purpose may find you in another lifetime. If at all. And there is nothing the matter with you. “Life is on the line” could be interpreted as a lifeline. A purpose is sometimes made to be a person’s lifeline. It is often thought that without a purpose, you are unimportant and unneeded. Hence, your life is on the line when you believe that a purpose will be enough to sustain you.
Looking at Obsessed with Death, the song has a much darker outlook. Requiem discussed “very blessed by Elohim”, while obsessed with death discusses evil and sin. Truly two sides of a coin. “The city's evil lights, like evil eyes/Like ice, I'm cold, I'm cold, I'm cold (I'm cold, I froze)”, the personification of the city - which is likely a reference to society in general - brings it to life, furthering the dreadful tone. The cold, dead eyes of the city cause Bladee to be physically cold, and the “I froze” could be interpreted as either that the coldness of the city has caused him to become emotionally cold and distant, or that the corrupt attitude of the city has entirely overpowered him, and he is frozen in place, unknowing of how to react, or even that he is dead, physically frozen.
“And it's like it demands life, it demands life/To die, to die, to die tonight/To die tonight, a sacrifice/A sanctioned kill”. This lyric is spectacular. The diction “demands” is very striking. That it demands life. It is truly weird if you think about it. This idea could be applied to God as well. That god demanded life of us. The allusion to God would not be unusual in a Bladee song, but in this context, it seems to be to sacrifice. Sacrifice demands life, and it’s “sanctioned”. Someone or something demands life, and most likely Bladee’s life in particular. This could be interpreted as general dislikers of Bladee attempting to pull him down, or even as something such as a deal with the devil, which would further the duality previously discussed of Requiem speaking on blessedness and God, and Obsessed with Death communicating evil and sin. Additionally, the imagery of death links back to the idea that “I froze” could mean death, and the cold that overtakes one's body in death.
“The buildings commit, it slits your wrist, you cease to exist/You feel nothing, you feel nothing, you feel nothing/The curtains are ripped, the cranium split, and in the blood spill/A temple is built, a tower of guilt, a tower of sin”. The use of imagery in these lines and Bladee’s delivery of these lines are beautiful, genuinely poetic. He furthers the personification, the buildings come to life, “it slits your wrist”, the ambiguity of this line furthers the dark tone of the song. Do the buildings slit your wrist? Or is this something you do to yourself? This method is generally one of suicide and is referenced in a previously released Bladee song Wrist Cry, though it could also be interpreted as both – the cold, evil city pushes him to the edge, and he commits. But delegating to the buildings the blame of the committing of the actual act is very powerful. To not take responsibility for your own suicide. The actual act of it. A very strong line. Next, “cease to exist/You feel nothing”, when you die is it over? This seems to imply so, especially with the repetition, but revisiting Requiem, “purpose beyond time” tells us differently, reinforcing the duality between the songs.
“The curtains are ripped, the cranium split, and in the blood spill/A temple is built, a tower of guilt, a tower of sin”. The imagery of the curtains being ripped reminds of a theater - when the curtains open to indicate the beginning of a show. But here, the curtains are “ripped”. This is a lot more violent, as though someone has been forced to perform before their time, and before they were ready. “The cranium split, and in the blood spill a temple is built”, to have the brutal imagery of a split cranium and a blood spill, right next to a temple – a sacred place, a place of worship – is crazy. It emphasizes the viciousness and the sinfulness. And these images have not just been placed next to one another, but the temple arises from within the blood, built on it. Does goodness come out of bad? Or is it a guise? A guise of goodness that capitalizes off of a bad situation, makes it seem pretty, to be more digestible to the public? Bladee furthers this imagery, “a tower of guilt, a tower of sin”, it is inferable that this is the capitalization of a bad situation – and not positively where you see the silver lining, but in a way where evil benefits off of a good person’s bad situations, leaving goodness in the dust. The tower – it's of guilt, but it goes beyond that, it's of sin. It is made of sin. It seems as though the guilt simply passes through, it is not there to stay, it’s a fleeting feeling that is quickly dismissed, to make space for further sin. Additionally, the negative connotations of a tower – a tall, spindly building, beginning in hell and reaching for the heavens in the sky.
Bladee then goes on to say “Destruction, desolation/Desperation, despair []/Destination nowhere”, the alliteration of the letter “d” creates hard, plosive sounds, where the abruptness emphasizes each word, furthering the eerie mood of the song. This all works to reinforce the ideas of evil and sin, and by ending the lyric with “destination nowhere”, ending it with a single word that fails to fall into the alliteration, “nowhere” holds a lot of power. Additionally, it is a beautiful line, as though you’re running with no direction, you just need to get far away. The whole song feels like a dark, thunderous, rainy night, where the only hints of light come from the intermittent flashes of lightning. There is some irony in that as well. That the only sense of reassurance emanates from someplace frightening.
And of course, it’s Bladee, so he must bring in and end on, “Yes, I must confess, (I want your flesh)” – cannibalism as a metaphor for love. Though it may not necessarily be love this time. It could also be him taking on the perspective of the city. But why does the city want him dead? And specifically him? What is it that he has? Or is it a generalization?
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