Joy Oladokun’s “Taking Things for Granted”
There’s this ritual you may or may not be familiar with, called immersion baptism. It’s an evangelical Christian thing, and generally involves people in their teens or adulthood formally becoming members of a church. Stay with me – it’s my partial analogy of Joy Oladokun’s song “Taking Things For Granted.” One of the meanings attached […]
Neil Young Hits the Vein on “The Needle and the Damage Done”
It’s January 19, 1971. Contrasting the cold winter evening, Toronto’s Massey Hall is a radiator of heat, energy, and electricity. Omemee, Ontario’s (about 175 kilometers NE of Toronto) prodigal son, Neil Young, has returned for a much-anticipated, sold-out performance. The stage is sparsely occupied, as his band Crazy Horse is nowhere to be seen. Despite […]
There and Back Again: Depeche Mode Take You on a Trip with “World In My Eyes”
At the end of the 80s Depeche Mode put a small advert in the papers. It read “Your own PERSONAL JESUS” and had a phone number below it. If you phoned that number, you got to hear their new song. That song is now fairly legendary in their canon as is the seemingly generationally-adored “Enjoy […]
Meditation in loss: “Holy Smoke” by Nicki Wells
It seems fitting that “Holy Smoke” is highly minimal. It’s a track that invites you to quietly join it in the open space, to have the room to feel what you need to as the track slowly calms you. Nicki Wells seems to have been influenced by a wealth of different musical styles but here […]
Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy Whispers his Alienation on “Wolf Among Wolves”
She holds a phantomShe kisses and she hugs himAnd I am notAverse to how she loves him Why must I live and walk, unloved as what I am? If the opening verse of Will Oldham’s (AKA Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy) melancholic masterpiece does not immediately thrust one into existential catatonia, then perhaps one should search their […]
Mark Lanegan Performs his own Exorcism on “The Beast in Me”
The ol’ in-laws. Typically tolerated rather than cherished, “put your best face on and get through the dinner, already” kind of fodder. If you’re English singer-songwriter Nick Lowe, however, this trope could not be farther from the truth. Not when your (ex) father-in-law is The Man in Black – Johnny Cash. It’s 1994 and Lowe, […]
Jettee wants you to dance like no one’s watching
This is a song that will, without a doubt, make you feel good.
Demanding Answers on Tom Waits’ “What’s He Building?”
The American Dream. Long heralded as one of life’s ultimate destinations, it immediately evokes untattered images of picket fences, manicured flora, children’s laughter, and, of course, “keeping up with the Joneses” – the everlasting opportunity to peek over said flora in attempts to truly understand and out-class your neighbors. Now, what happens when we subtract […]
Old Friends, New Friends writes lyrics to get lost in
Life, in many ways, is a set of routines. Some are small, such as putting the cutlery away in the correct order. Some are a little bigger, such as putting the recycling out on the allotted night. Other routines impact us in ways we don’t always recognize. “Now That You’re Older”, the debut single from […]
Radiohead’s “Exit Music (for a Film)” is at Once the Most Haunting and Yet Sparse Offering of Their 30-Year Career
Most 13-year old boys’ primary endeavors revolve around extracurricular sports and navigating budding romantic feelings for schoolmates. At 13, Thom Yorke, singer of British music icons Radiohead, was reduced to tears during a scene of Franco Zeffirelli’s 1968 adaptation of Romeo and Juliet. Fast-forward 14 years. Radiohead is on tour supporting their sophomore LP The […]
