Instrumental with quasi-electronic lyrics:
Philomela’s tongue
A lie was built
The Fat Lady has sung
Hide our guilt?
Cut out our tongue
Philomela’s tongue
Has come undone
Philomela’s tongue
It’s come undone
- Philomela’s Tongue.mp3
- Philomelas-Tongue-LH-Casio-WK-3500.MID (Left Hand / also controlled Korg PS60)
- Philomelas-Tongue-RH-Yamaha-PSR-740.MID (Right Hand / also controlled microKorg and miniNOVA vocorder)
Chords: Em Dm A / A Am Adim / Cm C / Dm Em Dm A; Part II Ambient Country Two Step @ 128 Beats Per Minute
Instrumentation: Vocals (MiniNova Vocorder), Keyboards (Korg PS60, Casio WK-3500, Yamaha PSR-740, MiniNova, MicroKorg)
ABOUT THE SONG
Tereus seduced his wife’s sister, Philomelam and tricked her into a sham marriage. (Other versions describe the encounter as a brutal rape.) In order to hide his guilt, Tereus cut out Philomela’s tongue.
The metaphor “Philomela’s tongue” in the context of climate change suggests the suppression or silencing of essential information and the consequences of deceptive actions. Philomela, in Greek mythology, faced a traumatic experience at the hands of Tereus, who not only deceived her but also took extreme measures to hide the truth.
In the metaphor, the line “A lie was built, The Fat Lady has sung” implies that a falsehood or deception has been constructed and that its consequences, represented by “The Fat Lady has sung,” are now evident or irreversible. The reference to “Hide our guilt? Cut out our tongue” suggests a dilemma faced by those responsible for the deception. The metaphorical cutting out of the tongue could symbolize attempts to silence the truth or conceal the damaging information to avoid accountability.
The repetition of “Philomela’s tongue, It’s come undone” reinforces the idea that attempts to suppress or hide crucial details are unraveling, and the truth is emerging despite efforts to keep it concealed. This metaphor may draw parallels to the handling of information related to climate change, where misinformation, denial, or intentional suppression of facts can have severe consequences.
Overall, the metaphor of “Philomela’s tongue” in this context underscores the idea that attempts to deceive or hide the truth about climate change may eventually unravel, leading to accountability and a reckoning for the actions taken to conceal crucial information.
