The Mule

This is my favorite NR song, though it’s a dark bit of wisdom that always makes me think of mass-shooters, spree killers, and psychopaths. Which I guess is the point. A mule is a sterile hybrid of a horse and donkey- Man playing God with basic science to his own end, and damn any bad outcome. The first verse is interesting- four lines describing a human/mule metaphor, the next four bringing the metaphor into a sociopolitical context. But it’s the third verse (or second verse following the bridge/chorus) that really drives the point home: ‘In a spiraling humanity’ (Population growing exponentially) ‘There’s a cycle we can see’ (Prediction of a killer) ‘In a throng’s monstrosity’ (Too many people, crowded) ‘Odds are there’ll always be a mule’ (A large cross-section of humans increasing the risk of at least one with psychopathy) ‘You never can predict / The mind of a lunatic / A mind so badly sick / With strange arithmetic’ The guitar solo part is cool, and really ties the whole thing together. Fairly simple and repetitive (but catchy), it’s a good illustration of the song’s intent rather than an obvious crazy-out-of-control guitar. The madness has a method, the runaway train is still on the tracks. But oh man, look out. Then slam- back into the bridge-verse, the second verse, and concluding with the bridge-verse. You almost expect a mic-drop. I was listening to this song when I saw the news about the Vegas Shooter. A weird moment of coincidence. Sickening... but I thought, Yup, there you go. Raygun said all this years ago.