Mixtapemotions

  • "View" by Shinee, Wednesday, August 11, 2021

    In May of 2015, Shinee released their fourth Korean album, Odd, with its lead–and only single, other than the repackaged album–“View.” The song was extremely popular, winning eight year-end awards on Korean award shows and heard in commercials and in every Korean radio station. It seems that the classic, early- ’90s vibes of the song made the song palatable to all generations and inescapable bop to all who were out and about in summer of 2015 in South Korea. The music video, filmed in Thailand, tells the story of teenage rebellion, set in a retro style. The sticky hot atmosphere, member Key‘s (키) Guns N’ Roses muscle tee, stealing beer, riding vespas, dancing in a dusty garage, and diving into a neighborhood pool and rushing off, stealing the clothes from the line–creates a vibe of a carefree summer. Though the boys of Shinee and the their female fans might be a little bad, nothing shocking happens. It’s just like a story parents sometimes tell their older teens when they say, don’t do what I did.

    BEYOND THE FOURTH DIMENSIONAL, A MIRACULOUS VIEW. Jacques Patterson ranked “View” in Idolator‘s “25 Best Best K-Pop Songs of 2015” at Number 3, behind Hyosung’s “Into You” (#2) and Big Bang’s “Bae Bae” (#1). Patterson said “‘View’ sounds like it was lifted straight out of a gay New York nightclub in the early nineties, which is about the highest possible praise one can give a record like this. . . .  The moment SHINee start swivelling their hips and vogueing to the chorus, you can almost hear Ru Paul snapping his fingers in the background with a sassy ‘You better WORK!’” But before this song became the song of the summer, South Korea was facing a scary situation. On May 20, 2015, South Korea reported its first case of Middle Eastern Respiratory Syndrome (MERS) coronavirus. Infections started rising in early June. The government took measures against the spread of the virus by quarantining close contacts and family members of the infected. An eerie calm fell over the districts of Seoul. The normally crowded, bustling shopping districts became ghost towns. Shops remained open, but customers mostly stayed home. Everyone was fearful of catching this exotic virus with so little known about it. The stories of burning lungs or not knowing you were exposed until 10 days later, the fear of catching it in a crowded city or from a sauna–where a man in Daegu attempted to treat his flu-like symptoms with hydrotherapy–circulated in early June. All the while, the stores were playing a new song by Shinee.

    THE SKY IS BEAUTIFULLY SPREAD. In the peak of MERS fear, Josh worried about the stigma of people who traveled to Seoul, a two hour trip. Would he be judged as selfish for his leisure time on the weekend? It seemed highly unlikely to get this new disease, but the crowded subways with a confirmed patient could cause him to go into quarantine, and then the questions could start. And meeting Song Jae was starting to hit a lull. They’d check into a hotel. Sometimes paid for by him, sometimes Song Jae. They’d have dinner at a restaurant and then come back to the hotel, have sex, and go to bed. They’d go out on Saturday to have lunch and maybe do some window shopping, have dinner, and go back to the room. They’d talk about nothing too deep. Josh’s Korean was limited, Song Jae’s English was better than Josh’s Korean. The weekends in Seoul were starting to rack up a heavy credit card bill, but Josh needed to see the man that he loved. A new physical relationship void of meaningful conversation couldn’t afford physical absence, something that would prove true in the months to come.  Health authorities contained MERS. The last case was reported on July 19th. Some 100,000 tourists canceled their trips to Korea that year and department stores reported a loss of profits that summer. By the end of June, Seoul started to pick up–shoppers came back. The coffee shops filled up again. The outbreak was forgotten and it was back to normal. It wasn’t fear of MERS that led to the break up, though.


     Read the lyrics on Genius.

  • "Sleep Better " by Pete Yorn, Tuesday, July 10, 2021

    Until last year, thanks to an Apple Music recommendation, I hadn’t heard Pete Yorn’s Musicforthemorningafter, or at least I thought I hadn’t. Despite excellent reviews from Rolling Stone and Spin, Yorn’s debut album only reached number 111 on the Billboard album charts and was certified Gold, selling 500,000 units in the 20 years since its release in March 2001. However, listening to the album 19 years later, many of the songs sounded familiar–a late ’90s/ early ’00 pop-rock sound that always holds a special place in my nostalgia. But it’s no coincidence Yorn’s music sounds familiar. So many of the songs from this album have been featured in movies and television shows from this time. The list is massive: Me, Myself & Irene, 40 Days and 40 Nights, The Sweetest Thing, Orange County, Dawson’s Creek, One Tree Hill, House M.D., Revenge, and Smallville all featured a track or two by the underrated folk-rocker.

    HE TOOK A KIND OF VACATION. “Sleep Better” turns a few cliches on their heads to talk about a separation period between lovers who ultimately realize that they “sleep better” together. However, it’s an epiphany that the two will have to realize several times over the course of their relationship. Despite the message of the song, The Washington Post recently posted an article titled “For couples, sleeping apart could actually have health benefits.” In the article, the author argues that most Americans are not getting enough sleep, the seven hours recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and one reason is sleeping with a partner. Citing several psychologists and doctors, the author argues that sleep incompatibility is keeping many couples awake at night, and this lack of sleep is causing poor performance at work and even causing or compounding issues in the relationship. Sleeping together in the same bed wasn’t always a cultural norm. A 2019 article in the Guardian gives a fascinating history about sleeping separately. In 1919 Dr. Edwin Bowers wrote in Sleeping for Health: “Separate beds for every sleeper are as necessary as are separate dishes for every eater. They promote comfort, cleanliness, and the natural delicacy that exists among human beings.” One hundred years later, Eric Marlowe Garrison, a certified sex counselor argued that different sleeping arrangements based on the partners sleep needs “from twin beds in the same room near each other to double master bedrooms” helped to strengthen relationships.
    THEY TOOK THE TIME TO REFLECT. The hotel was spacious and the line was clean. The view wasn’t particularly nice, overlooking the alley in Jong-no. The hotel had cost Josh’s credit about $150 for the night, and at the end of this term, he needed to relax. In the morning he would join his friend from another institute at Seoul Station and they would get away further from C., spending the remaining days in Busan–their third trip of the year. “I’ll come to Seoul early in the morning and meet you at 11:00,” Josh lied. No, tonight was all about one thing. “Let’s get something nice to eat,” Alex messaged on Saturday night during the end of year part for the institute. “Maybe we can see a movie too. I’m pretty free Sunday evening.” “Nice. I booked a nice place in Jong-no. Maybe you can check it out,” Josh texted back. It was flurrying in Seoul on Sunday night when Josh arrived at the hotel. Josh checked his messages. There were a few from his student, Julia, which Josh didn’t open and one from Alex. “Meet me in front of Topgol Park. Let’s have Japanese food. I know a good place.” When Alex embraced Josh, Alex’s cologne, Bleu de Chanel, intoxicated Josh with memories of the past two months. Tonight was the night he would ask Alex to spend the night. They could finally have time together. Time had always slipped away during their prior meetings. Some other appointment or not wanting to raise suspicion with Josh’s roommates. Tonight no one knew where he was. He was an adult in a big city sitting across the table from a handsome older man who had a smile on his face, interested in what Josh had to say. Every moment of the cold evening drew closer to the time when he could invite Alex back to his room in what would be the perfect ending to a turbulent year.
     

  • "Soul Meets Body" by Death Cab for Cutie, Monday, August 9, 2021

    Ben Gibbard started performing in 1997 under the moniker Death Cab for Cutie, the name of a Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band song by the same name released in 1967 and featured in The Beatles’ film Magical Mystery Tour. When Gibbard signed a recording contract, he turned his solo act into a band. The band released albums on indie label Barsuk Records, garnering spots in films and television, which got the attention of Atlantic Records. Their major label debut, Plans, was released in 2005 and spawned three singles: “Soul Meets Body,” “Crooked Teeth,” and “I Will Follow You Into the Dark.” Despite being on a major label, Death Cab for Cutie is a symbol of Indie Rock music. They consistently produce thought-provoking music and have many Grammy nominations under their belt. However, like most bands with die-hard fans, their older records often resonate best, whether it’s We Have the Facts and We’re Voting Yes, Transatlanticism, or Plans–the nerdy boys and awful Christmas sweaters speak to times in fans lives that most mainstream radio failed to convey.


    IF THE SILENCE TAKES YOU, THEN I HOPE IT TAKES YOU TOO. Listening to Plans, I always felt that it was an existential passage through the seasons of a year. Songs like “Crooked Teeth,” “Summer Skin,” and “Soul Meets Body” are beautiful, bright songs, but songs like “Brothers in a Hotel Bed,” “What Sarah Said,” and “I Will Follow You Into the Dark” frigidly remind listeners of mortality and the expiration of relationships. Speaking about the themes of the album, Gibbard stated: “One of my favorite kind of dark jokes is, ‘How do you make God laugh? You make a plan.’ Nobody ever makes a plan that they’re gonna go out and get hit by a car. A plan almost always has a happy ending. Essentially, every plan is a tiny prayer to Father Time. I really like the idea of a plan not being seen as having definite outcomes, but more like little wishes.” The themes of this album spoke to the students in Allan’s circle at Mission College. Adventist Millennials were taught by Baby Boomers who had been taught by the Silent Generation. Somewhere along the way the Adventist message had shifted from “Don’t bother going to college. Don’t buy a house. Don’t build to last because Christ will return in 50 years time” to “Make plans, but draw them in pencil.” Many of the ideas shared were not a lot different from Dan Koch‘s four-part You Have Permission series on “End Time Anxiety” only with a rapture-less, full-tribulation, running to the hills time to look forward to. An argument played in Allan’s head as he looked at the bill for Mission College. One side was saying that in order to evangelize the world, you need worldly credentials. The counterargument was “Why gather the elements to a stable life when everything would ultimately be scattered?”


    SO BROWN EYES, I’LL HOLD YOU NEAR ‘CAUSE YOU’RE THE ONLY SONG I WANT TO HEAR. “Here’s your fried cheese with a side of sour cream” James handed Allan his order. “Thanks. How’s your Cheesey fries with veggie hotdog?” “I think they switched suppliers. The hot dog is extra rubbery.” “What’s that you’ve got there?” River asked putting down her bite of veggie cheese burger. “Are you talking to the Korea language institute people?” “Yes, I thought I’d check them out.” “I’ve always wanted to go. Maybe see some of my relatives in Korea. You know my dad worked for them in college. That’s how he met my mom.” “Let’s go together then. How about you James?” “I don’t know about that,” River answered. “As much as I want to connect with my cousins, I hear it’s rough. They make you teach Sabbath school after working a ton of hours. If I’m teaching during the week, I’m certainly not teaching on Sabbath,” taking one of James’s fries, “Plus, I get really uneasy when I start thinking about these non-profits and how they run their books.” She swallowed and looked at Allan. “Gosh, our skin is looking bad. We probably should stop eating so much cheese.” “We probably should get off the meal plan,” James said. Looking at her watch, “Oh, it’s late. I’ve got an interview with a student senator in five, so I have to run.” River took her tray and placed it on the dirty counter alongside at least 15 other trays. “So, what do you think about Korea?” Josh asked James. “I actually was thinking about teaching in Taiwan for a year. They pay a little less, but a year of learning Mandarin would be a lot more valuable than a year of learning Korean.” “Taiwan is so hot, I’ve heard. I can’t function in the heat. At least Korea is a cooler environment.” Back in his dorm room, Allan put the brochure down. In a year and a half, he would have to start ironing out his plans. But the abstract notion of being a missionary, really living out God’s plan for his life, sat with him in his dorm room as he read his literature homework, as he wrote his history papers, as he stirred his Easy Mac, as he kept guard as his “fire hazard” coffee pot brewed. The mission’s soul was waiting to embody a willing vessel. 

     

  • "Addict" (Prod. Girlnexxtdoor) by Sik-k (식케이), Sunday, August 8, 2021 (Trigger Warning: Discussion about Drugs and Alcohol)

    Getting his start as a participant on Season 4 of the Korean Hip Hop talent show, Show Me the Money in 2015, Sik-K released his debut album the following year and has released music until his enlistment in June of 2020. Sik-k’s brand of hip hop sounds much like the auto-tuned emo rappers popular in the U.S. market these days, like Machine Gun Kelly or Yungblood or other artists I don’t feel at liberty to talk about because they’re so Gen. Z. “Addict” is song about the speaker trying to numb his thoughts about a girl, though not the most beautiful in the bar, she has him in a trance that will not let the speaker sleep or get on with his life.


    I CAN’T SLEEP SO I POP TWO PILLS. South Korea has extremely strict drug laws for its citizens and residents. Korean rappers will often add lines in songs about drugs or getting high, but the musicians who have been found to use drugs, are arrested. Stemming back to the the Opium Wars between the Great Britain and China, drugs have been taboo in Korea. Current policy states that citizens who are found to have used drugs overseas, even in the case that the substance is legal in the country it was used, face a five-year prison sentence. Illegal substances range from hard drugs like crystal meth to mild drugs like marijuana, which sees the majority of prosecution. Likewise, any resident or visitor who does drugs in Korea can be arrested and imprisoned. In many cases, the home country’s embassy will not help the foreigner who broke the law. Since the ’70s Korean actors and musicians have had scandal after scandal of celebrities jailed or fined for marijuana use. In recent years some of the top K-pop idols and rappers have been accused and convicted in drug-related incidents. From Big Bang’s members G-Dragon, who smoked a suspicious cigarette during a party in Japan to T.O.P. who served ten months in prison, suspending his conscription during that time, for smoking marijuana the year before. 

    AGAIN, REHABBING WITH MEMORIES. While marijuana use is complete unacceptable in Korea, Koreans, on average, drink the most liquor of any country–twice as much as Russia and four times as much as Americans. Embedded in work culture is 회식 (hoi-sik), which is a word meaning going out to eat with your company. While standards and practices are evolving, in the traditional sense of the word, 회식 means spending a night out with the boss, which can last until he wants to go home. 회식 is usually limited to the men in the office and involves drinking copious amounts of 소주 (soju), a liquor made from sweet potato, going to 노래방 or private karaoke rooms, and sometimes entertaining prostitutes. However, as workers rights have increased in the last few decades, this abusive power the boss has over his employees–to keep them until all hours of the night and then expect them back at work, shaved and showered by 8:30 a.m.–is changing. Still, alcohol consumption in Korea is still high. Whether it’s a college gathering or a gathering of middle aged men or women, Koreans can’t seem to get enough of the bitter drink. However, what is not tolerated is drunk driving. In America the legal drinking limit is 0.08; however, in 2019, Korea tightened its laws from 0.05 to 0.03. Being caught drinking and driving, Koreans and visitors can face imprisonment of 2-5 years and a 10-20 million won fine (roughly 10-20 thousand USD). 

    WE DO PARENTHESIS WITH WEIRD EXCUSES. In this context the Seventh-day Adventist church built its ministry back in the late 1960s. As strict teetotalers, the church builds its ministry on spiritual and physical health. Church co-founder wrote about many foods and practices that could destroy ones health, and advocated a simple vegetarian diet free of caffeine, alcohol, sugar, and spices. However, with so many faucets of the Adventist message, health was one aspect either emphasized or neglected. Some Adventists eat spicy food, most eat sugar food. About half are vegetarians, some are vegan. However, what every Adventist must conform to is: no unclean meats (Leviticus 11) and no alcohol, despite the Bible’s arguably nuanced approach to spirits. Starting in the mid-19th century, the Seventh-day Adventist church set up missions across the world, promoting health. Korea’s history with Adventism starts with a hospital in Seoul, which expanded to a vegetarian meat corporation, and eventually schools, and language institutions. These language institutions drew tens of thousands of Koreans into the fold of the Adventist church. In order to keep the business, they needed missionaries to come and teach English. As per Korean government mandates, English teachers must have a Bachelor’s Degree in any field, so these Adventist language schools started recruiting at Seventh-day Adventist universities in English-speaking countries. It was senior year of university that Allan paid a visit to the booth, meeting Seong-mi, who told him of how much taking a year off between college and work would mean to the people of Korea and to him as a teacher. “We don’t offer as much money as a teaching job in the states, but we take care of housing and many teachers are able to pay off their college loans while working in Korea.” “I’ll definitely think about it,” Allan said, taking the brochure before meeting up with James and River at the school cafe.

    If you need resources about alcohol addiction in South Korea, Alcoholics Anonymous has branches in major South Korean cities. Their website says they support English and Korean speaker.  For other addictions, check out this website. If you’re in another country and you struggle with addiction, please get help.

  • “Chariots” by Paper Route, Saturday, August 7, 2021

    J.T. Daly, lead singer of Paper Route, has stayed busy in the music business during Paper Route and after the band ended. In addition to releasing solo records and several side projects, he has composed for an ESPN film, produced several alternative musicians including K.Flay and Pvris, remixed Anberlin, Judah the Lion, MuteMath, and Switchfoot, and works in visual arts, making band merchandise and phone cases. The first single from Paper Route’s third and final album, “Chariots” deals with Paper Route’s most common theme–break ups. While lead singer J.T. Daly maintains his privacy in his personal life, cryptic statements from stage, such as “This has been the hardest year ever” on two separate years, the lyrics alluding to break ups, divorce, and using “chemicals” to forget, have fans speculating about the singer’s love life and mental state. The song “Chariots” depicts the speaker and his love, who is “giving up the fight” which is causing the crash of the “chariots” and ending the relationship. 

    YOU PROMISED ME THAT EVERYTHING IS FAIR IF IT’S LOVE AND WAR, BUT YOU’RE GIVING UP THE FIGHT. IS IT NOT WORTH FIGHTING FOR? “I love you, but what’s the future for us?”  Josh spit out the words similar to the siring piece of flesh that had burned his mouth at dinner earlier that evening. The words came to him suddenly, like a fit of nausea, not prompted by an immediate condition, but of undercooked chicken served at lunch waiting to unleash its force late in the night. The two lay in a hotel bed after coming back for the evening on a Saturday night. Josh couldn’t look into Song Jae’s soft brown eyes, so instead he looked out at the reflections of the hotels and skyscrapers as they they danced on the Han River. “You’re an office worker in a Korean company. I’m a teacher in another city. We hardly spend any time together these days. If we have a future together, what does that mean? Moving to another country? Me living here?” The room was dark and silent for a few minutes. “I know that I haven’t been a very good boyfriend,” Song Jae’s voice cracked. “Our age difference was always the biggest concern of mine. I’m a forty-six year old man who given everything to his job. You’re a young man and you should be with another young man. I have nothing to offer.” “That’s not true,” Josh interjected. “You’re kind and very handsome. I just hope you find who makes you happy and you can have a future with him.” 

    I’M LOSING MY FAITH. I’M LOSING IT ALL. Josh continued to meet Andy every chance he could in the fall of 2014. Crossing the first threshold in a park restroom, left Josh wanting more. He couldn’t stop thinking about the experience as he went back to work that afternoon. The next weekend Andy found a self-check in motel between Seoul and C. He texted Josh, “Meet me at 1:30. Don’t shave.” When Josh knocked on the second floor door, he was greeted with a kiss by Andy in a brown leather jacked and tight jeans. The afternoon was not exactly like the videos Josh had seen depicted. There was much more awkward slobbering and despite the A he got in geometry in high school, he couldn’t quite master the angles. Still, some emotion came over him, and he blurted out, “I love you.” This caused a fast-breathing Andy to slow his breath. “Wow,  you really are new to this. Let’s get a shower and get lunch.”  “Of course I don’t love you,” Josh said over chicken barbecue about half an hour later. The restaurant overlooked a lake outside of C. “I mean, I just met you. I don’t know if I love you–” “Relax,” Andy chuckled. “What we did there, it was fun. But I’m not looking anything more than fun. You too, I’d imagine. You’re a Christian school teacher. You have to keep up your reputation. You can’t be seen falling in love with some Korean guy from Seoul.” Josh was struggled to find the words. “But, don’t you ever want to fall in love with someone?” “I’m a Christian school teacher. I have to keep my reputation clean. Love isn’t a luxury people like us can have. But we can have friends. We can have hobbies. Just think of what we did back there as a sweaty game of volleyball. In volleyball, you can sweat; you can focus; you can laugh; you can shower and get changed and have a bite to eat and get back to the rest of your life.” Josh sat silently for a minute, wrinkling his forehead slightly for a few seconds. “I think it’s pretty hot analogy. Rematch next weekend?”
    Live album release performance:

  • "August 6th" by mewithoutYou, Friday, August 6, 2021

    Another Tooth & Nail alumni, mewithoutYou is one of the most eccentric bands on the label except maybe the Danielson Famile. Formed by brothers Aaron and Michael Weiss, the boys were raised with a varied religious background. Their Jewish father married an Episcopalian mother and converted to Islamic mysticism, Sufism. Releasing two heavy post-hardcore albums, the band sounded a bit like Tool but began to mellow their sound as their career continued. Vocalist Aaron sings, screams, and speaks his lyrics which often take sources from holy books, history, and literature. There are numerous stories about the band’s hippy environmentalism from driving a bio-diesel bus to living the freegan lifestyle at music festivals, and dumpster diving for their next meal. They decided to call it quits in 2019, though they will continue to play one-off shows. Their final album [Untitled] was preceded by an EP of the same name with seven original songs, different from the twelve tracks on their full length.


    CHILDREN WATCHED AS THE SOLDIERS MARCHED BY. “August 6th,” the sixth track on their [Untitled] EP,  is a stream of conscious tracks full of vivid images both beautiful and disturbing. The song is particularly ambiguous because of the mixing of forms. At first, it’s a quote, carved on an old desk. Then it’s a screenplay. Then it’s the speaker’s thoughts. The images of the song seem to take us between the U.S. and Europe. The first verse is eerily quiet. We have soldiers marching through hyacinth fields, birds falling from the sky, a wedding, and German songs on the prairie in Sioux Falls, and New Mexico. Then the song turns to the bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War. And then we see the description of the devastation: “Skyline shifting like clouds” and “Human foreheads all smashed / Foreign cars upside down.” Then Weiss starts talking about a mechanized insect. According to Genius, “August 6th” seems to be about the bombing of Hiroshima, killing 70,000 people, and along with the bombing of Nagasaki three days later, is the textbook ending of the war with Japan and the end of World War II. MewithoutYou’s hellish depiction of war, shows the human cost, the lives that will never be the same. The speaker is looking at the devastation and wondering and he wonders if “a thought metastasized” will bring a new hell 80, 100, or 1000 years later?

    THE BREATH FEELS LIKE FLIES IN MY LUNGS. In the band’s song “Timothy Hay,” Aaron references getting arrested “on the Pentagon lawn” back in 2007. Catholic Nun, Sister Margaret McKenna led a protest about civilian killings in the Iraq War, in which Aaron Weiss participated. The group had a bigger aim than one specific war. The protest was aimed at all displacement of people due to government action. The leaflet at the protest compared the flight of Jesus under Herod’s rule to the displacement of the Native Americans in the Trail of Tears. Specifically citing the chief protest, the pamphlet read: “Today 4.2 million Iraqis have been forced to flee home and/or country.” The protest was called a “die-in” in which the participants lay on the ground. This is just one example of Aaron Weiss’s activism–protesting the empire of the status quo. In a time when so many of the bands that he shared the stage with Christian music festivals would call Iraq a just war, Weiss was tuned into the hellish nature of war. He believed that the people of Iraq deserved better than the bombings. The Native Americans deserved better than being marched to Oklahoma. The citizens of the Basque city of Guernica deserved better. The people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki deserved better. Nations will wage wars whether considered just or unjust. What, then is the role of the citizens? What then is the role of the poets? What is the role of the prophets? The priests? The religious? The Christians? When you look into a holy book and then look into the dying eyes of the afflicted, which parts of the holy book do you read? The parts that tell you to befriend the stranger or to protect your house?


  • "Surrender" by Spoken, Thursday, July 5, 2021

    Spoken is one of the hardest-working Christian rock bands that has yet to have much recognition. In 1996, the band released three albums on CCM singer’s now-defunct label, Metro 1 Music. Their early, roughly produced records sounded like Rage Against the Machine, and their lyrics sounded like what Rage might sound like if they were militant conservative Christians. In 2003, the band released their first of three albums on Tooth & Nail Records, A Moment of Imperfect Clarity. Produced by Garth “GGGarth” Richardson, who had produced Rage, Kittie, Mudvayne, Chevelle, Trapt, and fellow T&N bands The O.C. Supertones, Project 86, and Beloved, Clarity made the group into a post-grunge group. The gloomy sound of Clarity was certainly a step up for the band. Their follow-up album, Last Chance to Breath, sounded similar to Clarity and the band looked like they would be joining the ranks of the biggest names in Christian Rock at that time. But their next album, their self-titled, was a major misstep for the band.


    SURROUNDED BY PRIDE, THEY LEFT YOU CHOKING. Back in 2007, almost all of the rock bands screamed. Even Evanescence’s massive Top 40 radio hit “Bring Me To Life” featured 12 Stones’ lead vocalist Paul McCoy screaming. Spoken’s new, 2003, had screaming incorporated, and their video hit “Bitter Taste” featured lead vocalist Matt Baird screaming with chaos metal band Norma Jean’s lead vocalist, Cory Putman. The problem with the band’s sixth album was that it was built around screaming. The album was intense, yet Spoken didn’t tour with the hard bands they were trying to be. The band’s sound was too inconsistent for many fans. But while the band parted ways with Tooth & Nail, they continued to release album after album. Their follow up to their eponymous record, Illusion, was heavy like Spoken, but more focused on melody. The band worked on refining their melodic sound, and continued to tour the Christian circuit. Unlike many Christian bands in their scene like Skillet and Red, Spoken had very little cross over appeal or perhaps no desire to share their music outside of the Christian bubble. Unlike the critics and the fans, my favorite Spoken record is their self-titled. Matt Baird has such an intense scream, and I was blown away how on-pitch he was when I saw the band live at Cornerstone. Spoken is a band that I don’t think of often in the latest iteration of my faith. “Surrender” is a song dripping in Christian context, yet it doesn’t come out and say it, making me think about what other contexts that apply.

    YOU’RE GIVING UP YOUR HEART. All these years came down to the moment when Josh decided to surrender to what he had unconsciously known since he was seven or eight years old. No longer could this truth be compartmentalized in cyberspace. No longer could it be a reality of late nights and the blue light of a computer screen. No matter what Every Man’s Battle said, he would no longer turn his head. It was time to stop the exhausting task of keeping captive every thought. It was time to surrender the future. There was no wedding cake and a nice girl and 2.5 kids waiting. If there had been; if it had been easy as it was for so many, Josh could have sleepily moved forward on the path he was now exiting through the bushes. He had bought into conservative Christianity and believed that the most accurate understanding was interpreted through the Seventh-day Adventist church, and that the best form of government was the conservative Republican party, and that C.S. Lewis and Ellen G. White described the Great Controversy between God and Satan was playing out in current events, and that his duty was to warn the whole world of the Second Coming. And yet, somehow, Josh couldn’t live it out. He couldn’t not go to those websites. He couldn’t think of a future free of being himself. So, no longer would he delete the aliases he made online. No longer would he sabotage his future, his fate. It was time to surrender. 


     

  • "You Are Familiar" by Secret & Whisper, Wednesday, August 4, 2021

    Formed after British Colombian Nu-metal band Stutterfly‘s lead singer left the band, Secret & Whisper incorporated the high-registering vocals of Charles Furney (then Finn) with their speed metal guitar riffs. Furney cites The Smashing Pumpkins as one of his influences, and the band is often compared to Saosin or Circa Survive. In fact, a rumor circulated that Charles had left Secret & Whisper and joined Saosin after their lead singer Cove Reber left the group. In 2008, Secret & Whisper released their album Great White Whale on Tooth & Nail Records, touring with Emery and Maylene and the Sons of Disaster. The band’s follow up album in 2010, Teenage Fantasy, was their final record, with three members starting the post-hardcore band, Shreddy Krueger. 

    A SILENT FIGURE, A VAPOR THAT LOOMS BEYOND. The lyrics of Great White Whale are inspired by Moby Dick combine with Furney’s dreams and experiences. While tapping into the motif of loneliness in Melville’s tome, Great White Whale explores the vast and mysterious world of the sea. In an interview with Charles Furney, he explains the meanings behind his songs. Furney talks about his Christianity and the supernatural, including his family being haunted by the ghost of his deceased brother. Both Great White Whale and Teenage Fantasy rely on the supernatural, whether ghosts, sea monsters, or Native American spirits, and deal very little with the Christian tradition. Great White Whale opens with the short atmospheric “Blonde Monster” and leads into “You Are Familiar.” Both tracks were based on a recurring dream after a break up of a seven-year relationship, in which Furney meets a faceless figure. Furney’s reaction to the dream was fascination rather than fear. He interpreted the dream as he hadn’t met the love of his life yet and her face would eventually be filled in when he met her. To me, Great White Whale encapsulates the summer of 2008, the year I turned 21, bought my second used Toyota Corolla, went drove to Cornerstone, learned to appreciate the hilarious and misunderstood novel Moby Dick, and annoyed the passengers in my car with the screechy vocals of Charles Furney and Secret & Whisper.
    BOTH OF US ARE CURIOUS. After high school comes the first burst of weddings. The high school sweethearts ready to make commitments that will last forty years or longer. Allan kept himself busy playing weddings almost every other Saturday from April to September and some Adventist weddings on Sundays too. He started out performing as ensemble with his music teacher and some of her students, earning a cut. As often the only male performer, he was tasked to do all of the set up and take down, which was quite a sweaty task in the North Carolina summer humidity. However, by 2008, as Mrs. Porter’s health began to deteriorate with an undiagnosed illness, Allan played mostly solo. This summer in particular he had played three weddings for former classmates. When Allan played these weddings he wondered when his love story would happen to him. One wedding was particularly emotional for him. He was asked to play the wedding of his high school crush, whom he had never told anyone about. It would be in bad taste, particularly because the beautiful couple had started dating shortly after the late night conversation that confused Allan that he was in love. Just focus on the music. Vivaldi. “Canon in D.” Some Bach. The classical guitar off to the side as guests arrived. She had asked to walk down the aisle to “Sweet Hour of Prayer.” “I listen to your recording of that song over and over again at home.” As he played ideas of some deus ex machina ran through his mind. Perhaps she would realize that she hadn’t lived enough before committing herself to another. Perhaps she would want to know what love was like outside of the one serious relationship she had from tenth grade to two years of college. But the gods didn’t intervene. The wedding was boring. The unity candle, the prayer, the Southern Baptist sermon with a bit of antagonism toward the forces of evil in Washington. Pretty routine. Certainly, at some point, deus ex machina would intervene in Allan’s life, bringing a beautiful blushing bride and end the heinous desires that kept him awake at night. Yes, someday that would happen. But after the wedding, all Allan wanted to do was to sweat on the front porch, leafing through a few chapters of the whale encyclopedia in Moby Dick.

    “Blonde Monster” + “You Are Familiar”
    “You Are Familiar”

  • "You Love to Sing" by Copeland, Tuesday, July 3, 2021

    From their heaviest record, In Motion, the band’s 2005 sophomore release, Copeland released songs that bore some similarities to mid-to-late ’90s rock. The sound of In Motion is a natural progression from their first album Beneath Medicine Tree. However, Copeland’s sound changed drastically after In Motion. Starting with a bonus EP recorded prior to but released with their third album, Eat, Sleep, Repeat, exclusively at Best Buy, the band reworked three of their songs from In Motion, slowing them down and using a string section rather than guitars. The three songs from this release would be included on the band’s B Sides record, Dressed Up & In Line. The band would continue to experiment instruments, synthesizers, and non-traditional rock arrangements. 


    NOT BECAUSE YOU LOVE THE SONG, BECAUSE YOU LOVE TO SING. Between the two versions of “You Love to Sing” the original is my favorite. It’s a great road trip song on a great road trip album. With grungy guitars, piano-driven tracks with guitar accompaniment, the musical-theater/Sound of Music-sounding “Kite,” to bright sounding guitar solos, the band uses musical variety to keep listeners engaged, even on the slow songs. In Motion and Beneath Medicine Tree are perhaps the most concretely spiritual albums. On In Motion, the band deals with grace on “No One Really Wins,” with acceptance on “Choose the One Who Loves You More,” with unconditional love on “Love Is a Fast Song,” and with God on “You Have My Attention.” The subject of  the penultimate song,”You Love to Sing,” though is the love of music itself. While, the singer wishes that the live of singing the songs he loves were more profitable and that he could buy his love more things, he’s content with the joy of creating art. After a music journey of stylistic changes, the instrumental section is a bit hypnotic in the car–not to cause an accident, but to keep the driver ultra-focused.  

    I NEVER HAVE ANY TIME TO PLAY. IT ALWAYS SEEMS TO SLIP AWAY. When Allan was 13 his mother signed him up for guitar lessons with Mrs. Porter. She came highly recommended from friends at church. She taught lessons in her house, a few miles outside of Mern in a two-story house on the basement floor. Mrs. Porter was a short lady with jet black hair in her mid-fifties. She talked with a New England accent, saying that she, like Allan, had moved south when she was young. After a few months, Allan began to show progress, practicing more and more each day. In April every year, Mrs. Porter held a recital for her students. Allan would play the hymn “Just As I Am” on solo guitar, a complicated arrangement that involved playing chords and lead guitar at the same time. Before the recital, there was a dress rehearsal. When Allan arrived at Zion First Baptist Church, he saw just how many students Mrs. Porter taught. Many of them were elementary kids. They were placed first in the program. Mrs. Porter taught many instruments from “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” on the piano, to “Michael Row Your Boat Ashore” on the trumpet, to “Hot Crossed Buns” on the violin. The middle school kids were next, mostly piano and guitar students with a few banjo, mandolin, violin or fiddle pieces. But Allan noticed that he was placed where students started to sound good–mostly late middle school students, a couple of high achieving elementary school students and high school students. At the end of the program, Mrs. Porter’s top students performed. One red-haired pianist about his age played a medley of songs recognizable from old movies in a piece titled “The Grand Ballroom.” Another student played an impressive Spanish sounding classical guitar piece. One girl played the harp. The next evening, however, another one of Mrs. Porter’s top students closed the show with a mini-concert. Wearing a black Stetson, tight Indigo Levis, a flannel shirt straight out of a Kenny Chesney music video, and singing in an accent manufactured in Nashville, Kaleb Mason performed five songs that night, each time playing a different instrument. Mrs. Porter accompanied the older teen on piano for two of the songs. Allan had never seen his music teacher ever smile as she did that evening. “That Kaleb kid. Who does he think he is? We wanted to go home,” Allan’s mom said in the car. “That whole country music thing? Please!” But Allan sat silently in the back seat, loosing his tie,  thinking about how much he would have to work to achieve his dream.
    Original:

    Slow Version:

     

  • “2002WorldCup” by Hyukoh, Monday, August 2, 2021

    Singer and guitarist Oh Hyuk (오혁) was raised in Northern China by parents who worked as professors. His dream was to be a musician, which was vehemently opposed by his parents. In his teens, he tried out for the three major labels in South Korea but turned them down, citing musical differences. Oh Hyuk felt more aligned with indie rockers and listened to The Beatles and German-Norwegian band The Whitest Boy Alive. The young musician would go on to write vague lyrics as social commentary and about history, topics commercially unviable in the Korean pop scene. Moving to back to South Korea for college and dropping out, Oh’s parents stopped supporting him. He was Bob Dylan’s Rolling Stone–the birth of all good rockers: penniless and full of passion for music itself.

    WHEN YOU’RE NAKED (I’LL BE COMING THROUGH). Like most indie music in Korea, Hyukoh started in Hongdae, the hip college town located between several major private universities in Seoul. Oh Hyuk started as a solo act but found like-minded musicians to perform and record with, naming his band Hyukoh, an inversion of his name. Hyukoh’s breakthrough moment was when they appeared on the variety show Infinite Challenge, one of the most viewed programs in South Korea, in 2015. After signing to an indie label (meaning a label that didn’t market to the K-pop market), the band recorded several EPs and started touring internationally. The band performed at Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Bonnaroo. So far 2017’s 23, is the only LP the band has recorded, releasing mostly EPs and singles. Taking a note from Adele, most of the band’s EPs and their LP correspond with the singer’s age at the time of recording. Today’s song “2002WorldCup” is the fifth track on the band’s LP 23. The lyrics never mention the competition–one that was very important to South Koreans as they jointly hosted the games with Japan, and, controversially, placed number 4 in the competition. If the speaker of the song is Oh, then he would have been eight years old at that time (10 in Korean years).

    THAT NIGHT I SPILLED IT ALL INTO A HEATED DIARY ENTRY. It’s certainly possible to write vaguely in any language, but this song utilizes Korean’s routine implied-thus-omitted pronouns the song hard to translate and the meaning opaque. The theme of the song is youth, and youth can be encapsulated in a particular event that happened in childhood, in this case, the summer games of 2002. Korean dramas often like to set up a lover’s meeting after years–a Cory and Topanga Boy Meets World love story where childish play becomes infatuation then turns to love and conflict and crests in a happily-ever-after marriage. This can be seen in dramas like the Reply series or last year’s It’s Okay to Not Be Okay.  “WorldCup2002” seems to venture into this territory, with a bit of a twist. The line “But we fell together on that very adult-like night” gives an innuendo that more than just a kiss happened. This rock ‘n’ roll line is unlike most Korean drama plots and K-pop songs that hold teenagers to high, often unrealistic, mores. While most Americans don’t care much for the World Cup, Hyukoh’s song about the 2002 game speaks to the universal truth about growing up and losing innocence, which, for most people, usually doesn’t involve soccer.