POSSUM KINGDOM
Toadies
The least obviously dealing with vampirism, Possum Kingdom comes from the 1994 album Rubberneck by American alternative rock band Toadies. The roots of this song are more folkloric than anything else, but while Possum Kingdom and Dracula may have many dissimilarities, they do find commonalities in dealing with death and dark themes, among other similarities.
LYRICS
Make up your mind
Decide to walk with me
Around the lake tonight
Around the lake tonight
By my side
By my side
I'm not gonna lie
I'll not be a gentleman
Behind the boathouse
I'll show you my dark secret
I'm not gonna lie
I want you for mine
My blushing bride
My lover, be my lover, yeah
Don't be afraid
I didn't mean to scare you
So help me, Jesus
I can promise you
You'll stay as beautiful
With dark hair
And soft skin, forever
Forever
Make up your mind
Make up your mind
And I'll promise you
I will treat you well
My sweet angel
So help me, Jesus
(hey, hey, hey)
Give it up to me
Give it up to me
Do you wanna be
My angel?
So help me!
Be my angel
Be my angel
Do you wanna die?
I promise you
I will treat you well
My sweet angel
So help me, Jesus
Jesus
Jesus
Jesus
Though not as explicitly as the other representations, Possum Kingdom evokes dominant elements of Stoker’s novel, the most significant of which being the play on the characterization of the “Brides of Dracula.” The Other in this song, whomever may be receiving these advances, is presented with repeated opportunities to be the speaker's “blushing bride,” an offer which is emphasized as it follows the line “I want you for mine.” However, to fully receive this offer, the individual must “give it up to [them],” a demand which implies fatality as it is coupled with the question of “do you wanna die?”
All of this dialogue is highly reminiscent of the relationship between Dracula and his “Brides,” referred to as the sisters in the book. The speaker—the Dracula character, immortal, powerful, seductive— is approaching this, presumably, mortal individual with offers of immortality— “You’ll stay beautiful/With dark hair/And soft skin, forever/Forever.” The speaker can convert the Other to vampirism as Dracula may have done with the sisters. The speaker in this song, much like Dracula, is providing offers of life which may only be attained through death.
SONICS
This grungy, vampiric anthem taps into a grittier, more visceral representation of Dracula. Musically speaking, the most significant connection to Dracula is the shared emotional volatility between the Count and the singing style of the Toadies lead singer. As the song progresses, the lead vocals fluctuate in intensity, generally following a pattern of lower intensity which gradually builds to high intensity yelling of lines such as “Do you wanna die?” Additionally, following the builds in intensity, when the intensity reaches its peak levels it, most often, soon thereafter returns to lower levels of intensity. We see similar traits in Dracula as he develops in the novel.
Firstly, his longer arc from an innocuous gentleman and host to bloodthirsty, supernatural being is broadly representative of this kind of build. But even more so, instances such as Dracula’s involuntary, aggressive reaction to Jonathan Harker cutting himself while shaving show the same kind of volatility— low intensity to immediate and visceral high intensity and back to low— heard in the vocalist’s delivery.
Additionally, there is a certain hypnotic quality within the ringing effect of the lead guitar throughout the song—it can be heard well around the repeated refrain of “By my side” within the song’s first verse. This drawing, almost siren-like quality ties back to the prevalence of charms and sexual allure in the novel, especially in the case of the three vampiric sisters, often known as the Brides of Dracula.
