Haunting songs are a luxury in my eyes. It's easy to make something happy, perky, poppy, jovial, or any other number of positive adjectives. It's easy because everyone likes to smile. Nobody likes to frown or feel bad; even if feeling bad is what someone wants, they're happy once they're feeling that way. It's easy to conjour happiness because happy is universal. Sad is easy too, because sad is easy to relate to, along with angry, which is proven by the thriving success of punk rock.
But haunting. Scary. Disconcerting. Powerful. Songs like that are more difficult to arrange - to compose - to construct. You have to keep your listener engaged, but you can't scare them off. You have to try to intrigue and distress simultaneously. Then, of course, you have to speak your peace for the song - say what needs to be said within the confines of the choruses. Some of the best political music I've ever heard is scary. It's easy to yell about politics, but it takes a lot more passion and skill to conceptualize politics; to give reality the weight reality really holds; to present the world in a light that is not necessarily flattering.
Case and point, this wonderful live performance by A Silver Mt. Zion. This was recorded as part of La Blogotheque's Back On Stages series of videos, expertly capturing intensity a band's liver performance avec cinématographie. The music by A Silver Mt. Zion, this truly unique ensemble from Montréal, can speak for itself with this poignant performace. Just remember, that it's not about simply what is being said, but also how it is presented.
1 comment:
Hey man,
Great post, and thank you for reading my blog. It's appreciated. Take care.
-Omar from loveiselusive
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