a song i like
I haven’t been listening to much music lately. Sure, I still wear headphones to the gym and on my way to work, but I haven’t responded to much for at least a month, maybe longer. Sometimes we need periods like that to recharge, I guess. Or maybe I’m just getting old.
Last night, though, I had my iTunes on shuffle while I worked and on came a song that immediately stopped me cold. It’s by Kurt Vile — long hyped by Alex here on the blog — and it’s called “My Best Friends (Don’t Even Pass This)” from his recent record God Is Saying This to You.
It’s a Leonard Cohen song, basically. Ruminative was the word Alex used this morning to describe it, and I think that’s exactly right. Vile kinda sighs/whines the lyrics, which are all about being sad and alone, and just as much time is given to the strum of his acoustic guitar as there are to the lyrics themselves – the absence of a voice showing the depth of the loneliness.
And then the chorus, which is this odd, herky-jerked thing that I’m still not even sure if it counts as a melody, but it’s beautiful. It could be an early Nirvana verse, those big leaps that Cobain would make as he found his footing, always a bit awkward but the dreams so big you wanted to share them. But there’s the Leonard Cohen factor, too, this very adult sadness – malaise is too weak a word – that leaves you living in a ranch house far from everyone, your life a series of systems and theories and ideas and tears and all of these things so insular, so self-derived, that word of them is never uttered to anyone. Ever. They would never understand.
From all of this, from all of these pieces, comes this beautiful song. I encourage everyone to listen.
The sample is 30 seconds of him strumming two chords, so you’ll have to take it on Yancey’s say-so.
sure. or you can google: LINK
Nice suggestion, Yancey. Thanks!
On further review, the song has a lanquid, Lee Hazlewood quality to it in both the lyrics and vocals. Which is a good thing. That said, however, someone really ought to introduce Mr. Vile to Billy Strange.
He isn’t really just strumming, tho. It’s more like a hybrid between straight strumming and fingerpicking arpeggiated chords. Anyway, it’s interesting, but less compelling to me than, say, the guitar playing I’ve heard from the upcoming James Blackshaw disc (which I hope we’re getting).
Kurt Vile’s in Fleet Foxes now, right?
Kurt VIle has really grown on me. I’ve been listening to GISTTY on and off for a couple months, now – I hear something new every time. And I just picked up Constant Hitmaker yesterday. It’s pretty good! Freeway is a fantastic song.
THank you sweet Yancey S. you R a volt of culture on an electricity big yellow tree.
HAve no idea what I’ve just sold or said:)
Can only mention that mr Cohen and his son and songs will be coming on stage in israel this year. Mr Cohen has been a great friend to Israel along the years coming to preform in front of soldiers in the desert during the ‘73 “yom kipur” war/
This big event here in Israel is an important one. Not sure if there going to be another one like this in any other place. He should be feeling the best and the wormest among his own people.
What you just told right now is a state of dispair. There is no “break time” from music – unless you go to an ashram like mr. Cohen did – and live alone in some deserted corner near no where.
In our city visilian life – music if our way of balancing the negativity of day to day life among others troubled – sometime – men. Nothing of this new to you I guess.
A state of dispair. There was once a band titled with this name. We’re having a state of
hot summer right now other here. Thank you g.o.d for air-conditioning. No time for dispair in this heat. Thank you for asking – when mr. Cohen came here during the big survival war he neglected his thoughts and dispairs and the big heat and simply did what was right for all. Those were quite a hot days…
I’m having a headace now… but Dark Energy of mr nouveau will help me with that. Seems like it’s weekend but it’s summer. Time for another booster pack.
welcome to earth~
yep