Do you ever find yourself overcome by the groove when ambushed by the presence of a sultry modern condo? Really? You Don’t? SERIOUSLY? Okay yeah phew me neither, but this post has actually nothing to do with architecture at all. This post is about a quote that has been variously attributed to people such as Frank Zappa, Elvis Costello, and Steve Martin, which goes : “Talking about music is like dancing about architecture.” The gist of the quote as I interpret it, is that music is so ineffable and in many ways is a language in and of itself, why try and box it in with words when you could just experience it? In some ways, I just couldn’t agree more, from both a personal and rational perspective.
Often times I find myself seeking out new music and getting about 20 words into a review before nodding off into a dreary daze. So many music reviewers these days COUGH Pitchfork COUGH seem to want to fill up pixels by trying to weave some grandiose narrative around their personal interpretation of a particular album, and then try and place that in a grand social context, often given minimal lyrics that lend themselves to subjectivity. As you can probably tell, I’m generally more persuaded by short paragraphs that have to do with the timbral characteristics of a given album, what it is influenced by/sounds similar to, and a short judgement of quality. I don’t feel like much else is required for me to decide whether I’d like to give a certain band a shot.
still dancin
Now I realize that my lack of appreciation for essay-length album reviews has its roots in my own psychology/musical inclinations as well. I for one, have never quite been someone who gives too much of a damn about lyrics. Which may not be surprising as I am a multi-instrumentalist music teacher (as well as a singer) and have spent much of my life focused on the sonic as opposed to lyrical aspects, whereas I think your average non-musician may find lyrics as a much easier point of entry on any given song. I just generally gravitate towards music that generates a specific emotion or environment, regardless of the lyrics, the general texture/emotional thrust of an arrangement can generate just as much of a reaction in me as any set of lyrics can. I also feel like as a lyricist, I always will have my lyrics subordinate to my melody (though obviously many people don’t create this way) and that that compromises any potential literary value a lyric may have via it’s subservience to a greater musical purpose.
This is not to say that I don’t love a good lyricist, Of Montreal’s Kevin Barnes is one of the few singers and lyricists that can make me laugh out loud, Elliott Smith makes me want to cry all damn day, and Fleet Foxes can send me on an emotional rollercoaster as lines like “So now I am older / Than my Mother and Father / When they had their daughter / Now what does that say about me? “ unfold slowly enough for me to be totally enthralled by the lines. This is also not to say that writing about the story surrounding an album doesn’t have its place, recently I read a review for Mount Eerie’s “A Crow Looked At Me” which was written in the wake of the death of his daughter and wife, which are certainly pertinent details that lend an extra gravity to the album. Anyways! I’d love to hear how other people feel about lyrics in general and intend to write more on this topic!
