Three Sheets to Kishkiyya · Track 78 · middle
Katzenjammer
VOLUME IV — the HUNGOVER morning after. The idiom and the song's title hook: "Katzenjammer". Its true history: Germany, mid-19th c. — 'cats' wailing'; a miserable, noisy uproar; monumental and crushing. Render this beat of the night as the band's affectionate, funny, celebratory tribute — the idiom itself is the chorus hook.
Lyrics
[Verse 1] The dawn drops down like a hammer of lead Upon this monumental, echoing breath I weigh ten thousand tons in this empty bed Every shadow outside is a canyon's giant step [Chorus] Oh, the Katzenjammer Hear the 1850s choir awake A German chorus that makes the skull strain The wailing of the cats in the morning light The heavy, heavy toll of a glorious night It is the Katzenjammer [Verse 2] A titan defeated by a tiny, scratching sound The coffee pot roars from the trembling house I built a great temple of golden glass and foam Now a hundred feral voices call it a towering throne [Chorus] Oh, the Katzenjammer Hear the 1850s choir awake A German chorus that makes the skull strain The wailing of the cats in the morning light The heavy, heavy toll of a glorious night It is the Katzenjammer [Bridge] From old Munich taverns, the young scholars knew well This deeply specific and furry magnificent spell Not demons, not devils, just whiskers and claws Scratching the back of my staggering thoughts [Outro] I am a towering giant, but I am brought low Let the little cats sing, let the heavy wind blow And tomorrow I will probably just do it all again Quiet the beasts. Let the mountain sleep.