“I Can’t Understand a Word He’s Saying”

Scuse me while I kiss this guy, or is it scuse me while I kiss the sky? I could write an entire post about misheard lyrics but we all have stories about blowing the lyrics to a favorite song. Instead, I will share my personal feeling that, sometimes, the words just don’t matter in the grand scheme of things.

I remember listening to early REM for hours trying to decipher the Michael Stipe warble. In 2011 you can just jump on a lyrics site and get a clue, but in 1981 you had to listen, and listen, and listen. And still you missed most of what he said. Take this as an example Radio Free Europe Now I know that if you really really listen, you can pick out some of the words but I contend that without help you wouldn’t be able to understand when he says “radio station beside yourself” or is it “raving station beside yourself”? You decide, since my lyric search came up with both. When this song came out Stipe didn’t want the lyrics to be understood because he “… hadn’t written any words yet”. Even with the lack of understanding of the lyric, that song had an energy in 1981 that was a refreshing change from the norm. The beginnings of a stadium headliner started with a mush mouth single.

Fast forward to my quandary. A few years back I heard the band Bon Iver and was sure of one thing, I didn’t like the name. I heard a song and was not as impressed as the critics and hip indie music stations. I resisted the urge to join the Bon Iver club and continued to do my own thing. All the while I had a nagging feeling that perhaps I was missing something. I went back again and gave another listen, to no avail. Feeling like perhaps I had finally jumped the shark and was now officially stuck in 1993 forever. Cursed to listen to cool bands that have Broadway shows like Green Day. Or maybe I was destined to become a fan of Barry Manilow aka a Manilooney.

Then in summer of 2011 Bon Iver reared his/her/its ugly head once again. (The name actually comes from the French for Good Winter) I had escaped the critics for a few years and even halted my subscription to rolling stone when they turned into Time magazine size. If I can hold Rock and Roll in one hand, I DON’T WANT IT. Rock and Roll is meant to be unwieldy. I was once again forced to read about how fantastic the new Bon Iver self titled disk was. How everyone on Amazon reviewed it and gave it 4 or 5 stars. Called it Excellent, Magnificent, Blah blah blah. I had just purchased the best of Sammy Davis Jr. and blew off the hype. Blew it off in fact until July 22 when Amazon did the unthinkable. They offered the download for $3.99. I can pass up on very little when offered for $3.99. I think it has to do with a store called Record Revolution that sold records (you know those black round flimsy things) for $3.99. At least the big sign in the window said they did. Anyway, I rationalized that if I could find one or two songs on the album that I liked I could justify the purchase to Saint Peter if necessary.

Bon Iver is essentially Justin Vernon who sings lyrics that are even harder to understand than circa 1981 Stipe. I like lyrics, I write lyrics that I want people to understand, I like to sing along to songs. Yes, I belt out some Gaga when I’m in the mood. I was determined to find out what the big deal was with this Vernon fellow and his band of merry Ivers once and for all. It was time to move into 2011 deeper than I had to this point. What happened can only be compared to an awakening. The lyrics evaded me time after time but something else occurred. The emotion of Vernon came out loud and clear. Through his music, through his voice, through my speakers to my belly and my being. I’m not sure when it happened but I think it was around track three, Holocene, where I finally got it. Its not the lyrics that make the music. It’s not the music that makes the music. Sure, some of the time those are the most important aspects but in this case it was much more than that. It was the sum total of the indiscernible lyrics coupled with the sound that was driven by emotion. Their emotion and by track three, mine. Nietzsche said “Without music life would be a mistake”. I couldn’t agree more. Enjoy!

Holocene