But I’m losing my edge to better-looking people with better ideas and more talent. And they’re actually really, really nice. I’m losing my edge.
It’s happening. I’m getting old. There’s a band that I am just too old to get into. And it’s not like I don’t like them because I think they’re lyrics are stupid or something, I don’t like them for the same reason my parents don’t like the music I listen to. It’s too loud and sloppy and the singer is soooooo tone deaf. I can’t take it. The band is Iceage. They’re from some Nordic country. They sound like this:
And I thought I had a pretty high tolerance for noise. I mean, I grew up on Lightning Bolt, Xiu Xiu, The Mae Shi, and a bunch of other atonal post-hardcore shit. I still like music that’s loud (Metz, Cloud Nothings, etc.) but with Iceage, it just feels too young. Like I always got a sense that the bands I listened to knew how to play their instruments, even if they chose to make feedback loops instead. With Iceage, I don’t think that’s the case. Aside from their drummer, I don’t think they know how to play. And that that thought is a barrier to my liking them is pretty old fashioned.
Last year Purity Ring released an album called Shrines. It’s great. I love that album. It’s creepy. The songs kill. But then I saw them play at the Mohawk and I was just so underwhelmed. I wanted to see a band. You know like drums and stuff. Instead, the dude bopped some cocoons with drum sticks and the girl sang while holding a microphone attached to a work lamp. It was boring. I’m sure the guy was doing something with all those electronics, but whatever it was, I didn’t understand it. But that’s how it is now. Drums and guitars, while I wouldn’t say they’re antiquated, are optional. Which intellectually, I understand, is good. The more tools and influences we have in music, the more interesting it’s going to be. But still, I like watching some skinny dude writhe around and mangle a guitar while some other guy pummels the living shit out of a drumset.
We’ve all listened to the radio and heard a song we used to sing as children. We even remember all the words. Only now, when we sing them, we wonder why our parents ever let us speak them out loud. Some lyrics are a little weird to sing (with or without music and completely out of the context of a radio, movie, or tv show), but at the very least, are acceptable. Then there are those lyrics that just sound awkward if they’re spoken as a dry statement rather than sung, much the way you would talk about the weather (and are even more awkward if spoken by a child). Not surprising, it’s because most of them are about sex. However, in other moments, the fact that the majority of a song is moans or cries, rather than words, can make singing to yourself with people in the other room only slightly uncomfortable.
Bruno Mars, When I Was Your Man Now I never, never get to clean up the mess I made
And it haunts me every time I close my eyes
It all just sounds like uh, uh, uh, uh (that sound would haunt me too)
Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z, Suit & Tie And aww, shit’s so sick, got a hit and picked up a habit
But that’s alright, cause you’re all mine
Aww, go on and show ‘em who you call “Daddy”
Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Thrift Shop I’m so pumped about some shit from the thrift shop
Ice on the fringe, it’s so damn frosty
Ke$ha, C’mon Come gimme some of that yum like a lollipop
Baby don’t be scared (I’d be a little scared if someone walked up to me and said that)
Nelly, Hey Porsche Hey little Porsche, I wanna try ya
Crazy baby girl, there ain’t nothing like you
Hey little Porsche, so right I had to get ya
B-b-back it up, let’s roll, roll, roll, roll
Flo Rida, Whistle Can you blow my whistle baby, whistle baby
Let me know
Girl I’m gonna show you how to do it (wait… are you sure?)
Pitbull, The Anthem I just wanna taste ya ASAP
Take ya ASAP, to the room ASAP
Zoom zoom ASAP, boom boom take that
Green Day, Basket Case I went to a shrink
To analyze my dreams
She says it’s lack of sex
That’s bringing me down
I went to a whore
She said my life’s a bore
So quit whining cause
It’s bringing her down (just depressing)
J. Cole, Bed Wrap me up in your legs
And love you till your eyes roll back
I’m tryna put you to bed, bed, bed
Grease Cast, Greased Lightning With new pistons, plugs and shocks I can get off my rocks
You know that I ain’t bragging, she’s a real pussy wagon
T-Pain, Buy You a Drank We in the bed like
Ooh ooh ooh, ooh ooh
Red Hot Chili Peppers, Californication First born unicorn
Hard core soft porn (unicorn and porn in the same stanza. YES!)
Third Eye Blind, Deep inside of You Slide of her dress
Shouts in darkness, I’m so alive
I’m deep inside of you
Barenaked Ladies, Pinch Me I could hide out under there
I just made you say “underwear” (yup, you got me there)
Nelly Furtado and Timbaland, Promiscuous Girl I can see you with my t-shirt on
I can see you with nothing on
Feeling on me before you bring that on
I’m sure we’ve all heard someone or another in our lives croak on about the classics and how great they were compared to music today, but with the rapidly changing music industry, what exactly constitutes as ‘classic’ anymore? Our over-connectedness due to the web has allowed people to look past just the radio and the record store to find great music of all types. People have branched out their music tastes and “underground” scenes are hardly underground anymore. Music is all becoming very overwhelming to understand and people often wonder what is going to stick in future generation’s minds from of today’s information overload. One of my favorite quotes describing this comes from the 90’s favorite, Clueless. Travis says, “See, the way I feel about the Rolling Stones is the way my kids are going to feel about Nine Inch Nails.” He nailed it! (yes, pun intended). Meaning, the “classics” are always changing, and no one can tell you who tomorrow’s classics are going to be.
I like to think of great music in a different way. I think there are certain songs (or sometimes, artists) who are “forever”. Not “classic”, because “classic” can signify old, outdated or even the foundations upon something was built. “Forever” songs are songs that hold the same power, feeling, and sound as they did when they were invented. Songs that someone can pop into their record player, or CD player, or iPod thirty years after the song is released and it still gives the feelings and conveys the message that it did in its day. There are a lot of forever songs that are among us today, as well. There are forever songs of every genre in every time period. They transcend the fads and trends of the decade they were conceived in. They are the mantra of every generation.
What makes a forever song? In my opinion it’s creativity. With all creative mediums, insanely simple and meaningfully complex things are difficult to mimic and as a result, last endlessly. Think about it– are the Sistine Chapel and Andy Warhol’s soup forever art? Are Apple’s 1984 and Volkswagen’s Lemon forever ads?
Here I have listed 5 forever songs. These songs play with song structure, instrumentation, lyrics, and themes creatively to create songs that are everlasting.
1. M83 – Midnight City
This song plays with all the conventional things that make a popular song and breaks all of them. It might as well almost be an instrumental track– but it’s not, and that’s what makes it so powerful. It has lyrics, but really, who cares what they are? It’s something to sing along to while losing yourself in the feeling. It’s kinda electronica– but it’s not dance. There are all sorts of sounds and layers in the song that create something impossible to recreate, and a unique feeling that is difficult to convey in music. The approach of having a strong instrumental chorus is not a first, but it definitely has never been done like this. I don’t know if 20 years from now people will know this song as a “classic”– but I bet you the random hipster kids who do listen to it then will be just as entranced as we are.
2. Johnny Cash – The Ring of Fire
To me this is the forever love song. The musicality of it is really the bare minimum– the simplest things you need to compile a song, really. Also I would like to point out the well-blended vocal harmonies you may have never noticed are even there. Aside from the fact that it’s ridiculously catchy is the pure beautiful simplicity of the lyrics. It is the ultimate metaphor, and the best part is the ambiguity of it. Fire can keep you warm, but it can also kill you. The same goes with love. There is no clarity of whether this is a song about a disastrous relationship or a perfect one. It can be whatever you want it to be. It’s a song you could listen to while going through old Facebook pictures of your ex, but it’s also a song you could play at your wedding. Stop searching for what love is. Johnny figured it out already.
3. Blink 182 – I Miss You
You know that you secretly sing this song to yourself every time you hear it, and it was probably you and your awkward 8th grade girlfriend’s “song”. Whether you hate the obnoxious way Tom pronounces “my head” or not, here’s a reason this is one of the most famous songs that the pop punk genre has ever seen. This song breaks conventional song structure, especially compared to most punk, pop, and rock songs. Instead of traditional verse-chorus-verse-chorus-bridge-chorus, they mix it up by having a pre-verse, verse, chorus-music bridge-chorus. A song structure that shouldn’t seem like it would work, but it does. Lyrically, it is a pretty strange love song. It takes dark imagery (such as nightmares, darkness, spiders, etc. etc.) and negative contexts (wasting time, apologies, sleeplessness) and somehow manages to create a positive song of restless, passionate love. The simple chorus line (Don’t waste your time on me/You’re already the voice inside my head/I miss you) and the piano and string parts say it the simplest– missing someone for the first time is a complicated subject, but this song sums it up. It is the forever teen love song.
4. Beyonce – Single Ladies
So Beyonce herself is pretty forever. We all know she is awesome. But taking her immense fierce-ness out of the picture, there is something about this song that makes it stand out from the rest of her hits. The song doesn’t rely on stupid cheesy dance beats or any fads. It is just a great, strong drum beat with a few musical accents. The creative theme is the strongest part of this song. We’ve all heard songs about women empowerment, but this puts such a twist on it. There aren’t fun, danceable songs about being a proud single lady. This isn’t screaming, “girl you don’t need no man”– because yes, girls do need someone to love. This is screaming, “you’ll find someone– but you don’t settle.” While the song is very wordy, she gets down to the point quickly– “If you liked it then you should’ve put a ring on it.” Damn right, Beyonce. Damn right. As long as there are dateless people on Valentines’ Day, this song will stay in our lives. Too many people write songs about being in love and not enough people actually are, so those of us who are flying solo will rejoice as proud single ladies (and men) to this song instead.
5. The White Stripes – We Are Gonna Be Friends
There are a LOT of White Stripes songs to choose from. There are a few reasons why this is one is forever. First, it’s simple. One guitar. One voice. One plucking pattern. Three chords. That’s all there is to it. There is no song structure. This sounds like it could be a really shitty song, but it isn’t, because it ties so perfectly into the theme. (That, and because Jack White is a genius) Second, the lyrical structure matches the simple style of the song. It’s just continuous verses that are parallel in structure, almost like a storytelling or a poem. Third, the theme is so unique and something everyone shares and understands. It touches on the simplicity and innocence of childhood. The lyrics are bits and pieces of grade school imagery that create a very small and simple story. The story isn’t spelled out for you; instead, you have to put it together, imagine it, like you are a child yourself. The excitement, innocence, and wonder that comes with childhood is restored in you when you hear it. Most importantly, it is the sound of nostalgia. It’s not nostalgic because you remembered it from when you were a kid, as songs of the 90’s and 80’s may be to us. You could hear it for the first time and it would strike nostalgia into you. That’s a powerful feeling.
If you’ve made it this far, you must really love music. These are just a few “forever songs”. There are a lot of them. The Beatles and A Tribe Called Quest were a couple of artists I couldn’t just pick one song to highlight. What are some of your favorite forever songs?
During the Olympics this past summer, HP started airing their “Make it Matter” commercial. And I got hooked… on its song. I Shazamed, I YouTubed, I Googled, but nothing – nobody knew what the track was. I stumbled upon some random discussion board threads debating its origins, but the closest anyone got at the time was speculation that it was a made-for-commercial by composer Ludovico Einaudi. So, to get it out of my head, I contented myself with playing the video over and over again an embarrassing number of times.
I’ve since discovered that the track is owned by HP. The ad was done by BBDO, and the music produced by Beacon Street Studios. I’m still not exactly sure who created it, but alas it doesn’t look like it’ll ever be released to the public anyway.
This isn’t the first time I’ve found music I love through advertising. I discovered The Asteroids Galaxy Tour courtesy of Heineken. “Glorious” by Andreas Johnson was actually released as a Nutella-branded single in France following the great success it had in its commercial.
Point being, while you probably shouldn’t waste precious messaging time on people who aren’t in your target market (I’m an immovable Mac user and have no other computing needs that might be filled by HP at this time), don’t discount the power of peripheral aspects – such as great music – to catch just about anyone’s attention. Who knows? That person may in turn bring it up to someone you do want to sell to.
TX Creative P1 