Three Sheets to Kishkiyya · Track 107 · middle
Fernet Branca
VOLUME V — the CURES, crawling back to life. The idiom and the song's title hook: "Fernet Branca". Its true history: Italy, 1845 — the bitter herbal high-proof digestif of myrrh and botanicals; ornate medicinal bitterness. Render this beat of the night as the band's affectionate, funny, celebratory tribute — the idiom itself is the chorus hook.
Lyrics
[Intro] [Verse 1] The temple is crumbling, the columns give way The frescoes are peeling in the terrible grey Bring forth the apothecary, unstopper the glass To Italy, 1845, we must dash! A dark heavy syrup to wash it away The maestro is ready to enter the fray. [Chorus] Oh, Fernet Branca! The bitterest draft in the pharmacy hall Fernet Branca! The myrrh and the magic to rescue us all It tastes like a forest that’s catching on fire But look how it lifts us right out of the mire Fernet Branca! The grand architecture of saving the day. [Verse 2] The stomach’s a ruin, a tragic ballet The strings are all broken, refusing to play But Bernardino is brewing a terrible ink Twenty-seven botanicals poured in a drink It grips you, it shakes you, it shatters the teeth And builds a new marble floor underneath. [Bridge] Rhubarb and chamomile, aloe and bark Swallowing shadows right out of the dark Saffron and cardamom, roots from the dirt A punishing magic that heals where it hurts! It’s medicine, darling, it’s not meant to please It brings the bold sickness right down to its knees! [Chorus] Oh, Fernet Branca! The bitterest draft in the pharmacy hall Fernet Branca! The myrrh and the magic to rescue us all It tastes like a forest that’s catching on fire But look how it lifts us right out of the mire Fernet Branca! The grand architecture of saving the day. [Outro] The glass is now empty, the columns stand tall We praise the dark bitter that answered the call A toast to the roots, to the apothecary's grand scheme I am completely restored... Just keep that bottle away from me.