Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums
Encyclopedia
"Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums" is the tenth track on the album eMOTIVe
by alternative rock
band A Perfect Circle
. While the rest of the album is filled with covers of songs by earlier artists such as John Lennon
, "War Drums" is often regarded as a remix
of "Pet", from the previous album, Thirteenth Step
. However, on the aMOTION
DVD commentary, Maynard James Keenan
states that it is a second part of "Pet", a continuation. While the former refers to addiction
, "War Drums" focuses on a political agenda. Mixed by Danny Lohner
, the music is completely electronic and without any guitars, unlike "Pet." The song was used in trailers for the films Fantastic Four
(2005) and The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
(2009) and in the launch trailer for the video game Rage
(2011).
The video begins with the classic peace symbol
shaking and falling apart, and eventually falling from view. An oil derrick starts to turn, as blood slowly drips down the screen. In the next scene, a young boy climbing down from a tree meets a man who appears to be U.S. President George W. Bush
riding a horse. The horse excretes a small Television, and trots away. The boy sits down and watches the TV, and slowly turns into a sheep, as a plane flies behind and drops bombs in the background. Next, Bush walks into a classroom, carrying a small television. He places it down on the teacher's desk, and destroys the student's books. The video continues on in this manner until halfway through, when we see Bush sailing on a sea of blood. He enters a city, waits for a moment, and then appears in a tank. As he progresses through the city, televisions fall out of windows, forming a sort of road for Bush.
He then begins to march through the area, with a brigade of sheep following him. Televisions begin to form a high-walled corridor. As the sheep continue to march, one turns around, stands up, and begins to climb the buildings. As the sheep nears the top, another sheep stands up and marks him with an 'S' sign, which may indicate the lyric "Sedition" used in the song. An arm with a Republican elephant marked on it appears from the clouds, picks up the branded sheep, and throws him into a meat grinder. The animal emerges as a designer coat, and is then worn by a celebrity. In the next scene, two sheep stand up, and begin to kick down the television wall. These two sheep are then marked with the 'S' sign, and are impaled by two flags, marked 'Traitor'. The rest of the brigade follow Bush to a cliff, where he directs them over the edge into a blazing fire. George W. Bush
's face then appears, with his eyes in a slow, hypnotizing fashion, apparently attempting to bring the viewer 'under his control'.
EMOTIVe
-Personnel:* Charles Clouser - Programming* Critter - Engineer* Steve Duda - Digital engineer* Joshua Eustis - Drums, engineer, Fender Rhodes, mixing* Jason Freese - Sax , sax * Steven R Gilmore - Design, photography, sleeve art, poster design...
by alternative rock
Alternative rock
Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...
band A Perfect Circle
A Perfect Circle
A Perfect Circle is an American rock supergroup formed in 1999 by guitarist Billy Howerdel and Tool vocalist Maynard James Keenan. The original incarnation of the band also included Paz Lenchantin on bass, Troy Van Leeuwen on guitar, and Tim Alexander on drums...
. While the rest of the album is filled with covers of songs by earlier artists such as John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, "War Drums" is often regarded as a remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
of "Pet", from the previous album, Thirteenth Step
Thirteenth Step
Thirteenth Step is the second studio album by American rock band A Perfect Circle, released under Compact Disc format on September 16, 2003. It was a major success reaching the #2 position on the Billboard 200 in its premiere week, selling over 231,000 copies and staying on the charts for 78 weeks....
. However, on the aMOTION
AMOTION
-Personnel:* Christopher Abbas – Director* Josh Abrahams – Remixing* Tim Alexander – Group member* Ken Andrews – Mixing* Wes Borland – Remixing* Brothers Strause – Director* Jerry Casale – Director...
DVD commentary, Maynard James Keenan
Maynard James Keenan
Maynard James Keenan is an American rock singer, songwriter, musician, record producer, winemaker, and actor. Originally from Ohio, Keenan spent his high school and college years in Michigan. After serving in the Army in the early 1980s, he attended Kendall College of Art and Design in Grand Rapids...
states that it is a second part of "Pet", a continuation. While the former refers to addiction
Substance dependence
The section about substance dependence in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders does not use the word addiction at all. It explains:...
, "War Drums" focuses on a political agenda. Mixed by Danny Lohner
Danny Lohner
Daniel Patrick "Danny" Lohner , frequently known as Renholdër, is an American rock musician who plays bass guitar, electric guitar, and keyboards. He worked with Trent Reznor on numerous occasions, both with Nine Inch Nails and on the now defunct Tapeworm project...
, the music is completely electronic and without any guitars, unlike "Pet." The song was used in trailers for the films Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four (film)
Fantastic Four is a 2005 American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics comic Fantastic Four. It was directed by Tim Story, and released by 20th Century Fox. It is the second live-action Fantastic Four film to be filmed. The previous attempt, a B-movie produced by Roger Corman only for the...
(2005) and The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3
The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3 (2009 film)
The Taking of Pelham 123 is a 2009 thriller film, directed by Tony Scott, and starring Denzel Washington and John Travolta. It is a film adaptation of the novel by Morton Freedgood , and is a remake of the original 1974 film adaptation, which was also remade in 1998 as a TV movie...
(2009) and in the launch trailer for the video game Rage
Rage (video game)
Rage is a first-person shooter video game by id Software which was released on October 4, 2011 in North America. It uses the company's new OpenGL based id Tech 5 engine. The game was first shown as a tech demo on June 11, 2007, at Apple's WWDC, and was officially announced on August 2, 2007, at...
(2011).
Music video
The video of "Counting Bodies Like Sheep to the Rhythm of the War Drums" is an animated video, which deals with a political topic.The video begins with the classic peace symbol
Peace symbol
A number of peace symbols have been used in various cultures and contexts, one of the most ancient being the olive branch. The dove and olive branch was used by early Christians and was later adopted as a secular symbol. It was popularised by Pablo Picasso in 1949 and became widely used in the...
shaking and falling apart, and eventually falling from view. An oil derrick starts to turn, as blood slowly drips down the screen. In the next scene, a young boy climbing down from a tree meets a man who appears to be U.S. President George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
riding a horse. The horse excretes a small Television, and trots away. The boy sits down and watches the TV, and slowly turns into a sheep, as a plane flies behind and drops bombs in the background. Next, Bush walks into a classroom, carrying a small television. He places it down on the teacher's desk, and destroys the student's books. The video continues on in this manner until halfway through, when we see Bush sailing on a sea of blood. He enters a city, waits for a moment, and then appears in a tank. As he progresses through the city, televisions fall out of windows, forming a sort of road for Bush.
He then begins to march through the area, with a brigade of sheep following him. Televisions begin to form a high-walled corridor. As the sheep continue to march, one turns around, stands up, and begins to climb the buildings. As the sheep nears the top, another sheep stands up and marks him with an 'S' sign, which may indicate the lyric "Sedition" used in the song. An arm with a Republican elephant marked on it appears from the clouds, picks up the branded sheep, and throws him into a meat grinder. The animal emerges as a designer coat, and is then worn by a celebrity. In the next scene, two sheep stand up, and begin to kick down the television wall. These two sheep are then marked with the 'S' sign, and are impaled by two flags, marked 'Traitor'. The rest of the brigade follow Bush to a cliff, where he directs them over the edge into a blazing fire. George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's face then appears, with his eyes in a slow, hypnotizing fashion, apparently attempting to bring the viewer 'under his control'.