Nightwish: The Kinslayer Meaning

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The Kinslayer Lyrics

For whom the gun tolls
For whom the prey weeps
Bow before a war
Call it religion

Some wounds never heal
Some tears never will
Dry for the unkind
Cry for mankind

Even the dead cry
- Their only comfort
Kill your friend, I don`t...

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   #1 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Aug 5th 2008 report

   Actually it is about the Columbine Massacre as it says after the lyrics (at least I Highest Hopes best of Nightwish) 4 pink ones, 9 blue ones, 2 pink ones In memory to the redeemers 20.4.1999 and the Columbine massacre was at that date.

2. 2TOP RATED

   #2 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Oct 15th 2010 report

   This is directly from the nightwish website (parts in {} are my additions:
   link to site: http://www.nightwish.com/en/article/7
   
   The Kinslayer
   
   On April 20th, 1999 two teenagers, Eric Harris & Dylan Klebold went to Columbine High School, in Colorado with handmade bombs and shotguns, with intention to kill as many of their schoolmates as possible. As they entered the school, they started shooting and throwing bombs everywhere, killing 9 boys {Lyrics: 9 blue ones}, 4 girls {Lyrics: 4 pink ones} and finally themselves {Lyrics:2 black ones}. This was carefully planned for over a year, and these guys were determined to kill also themselves afterwards. They had no real motive. They made a videotape in the morning just before the massacre where they said: "We are going to kill you all. You have been giving us shit for years. We want to say our sorry for our parents; there's nothing you could have done. This is something we must do. We're sorry; we didn't like life very much..."
   
   The event is something I will never understand. If something as horrible as this can happen in this world, there's no sense, no truth to cling to anymore. I find there's a great deal of symbolism hidden in this happening.
   
   The dialogue in the middle of the song quotes the actual phrases between the killers and their schoolmates during the shooting. (According to those who survived)"

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   #3 top rated interpretation:
   anonymous

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   Nov 27th 2005 report

   This song is about the Columbine High School killings. The spoken parts of Tarja and Marco denote the supposed dialogue of one of the killers and a victim.
4. anonymous

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   Jan 25th 2021 report

   This song is undoubtedly about the infamous shooting that occurred shortly before this album came out. However there is also strong evidence that this song may be (partly) inspired by the Sons of Fëanor, from the Silmarillion. They were "Kinslayers" born from a "good womb" as their mother, Nerdanel the Wise, was a good and noble person. They killed many of their kin. We also know that many songs of this album have loosely been inspired by this book and other by JRR Tolkien, so I don't think this is very unlikely.
5. anonymous

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   May 28th 2009 report

   This may be a bit of a vague one but does anyone think it may be related to Michael Moorcock's Elric series? Kinslayer was among the many titles associated with the Melnibonean emperor throughout the Young Kingdoms. Other similarities I noted were the fact that the quote "- Good wombs hath borne bad sons..." could be an allusion to both the fact that he represents a voice of dissent in the 10,000 year history of the empire and also that his birth killed his mother, who was the only woman his father ever loved. The rest could also allude to the general amorality of Moorcock's universe and the myriad terrible things which may happen to the dead, particularly at the hand of Elric himself.
6. anonymous

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   Feb 28th 2008 report

   I just thing it refers to general situations such as the need of war and the need to make others suffer.Good people are being manipulated by aggressive and corrupted people. We are slaughtering each other. That's pretty much the essence of song. THE DEATH AND PITTYNESS. It is awesome...
7. anonymous

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   Dec 1st 2007 report

   It's about the Kinslayer War in Dragonlance.
8. anonymous

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   Mar 1st 2007 report

   I think it has more to do with people called the Redeemers killing people for supposedly religious prospects on 20 April 1999. Or at least that's what I got from it.
9. anonymous

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   Jan 19th 2006 report

   Thanks. But it's not Marco speaking, it's Ike Vil. Marco hadn't joined at that point.

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