Every now and then I get all melancholy like and I sit at my dining room table, single floor lamp switched on behind me, a golden glow in the corner of an otherwise darkened room. Curtains still open, blinds half drawn, I type and dream and allow myself to sink into dark golden corner music.
I’m holdin’ you close in the back of my mind
And raise my glass ’cause either way I’m dead
Neither of you really help me to sleep anymore
One breaks my body and the other breaks my soul
La Cienega Just Smiled – Ryan Adams
My recent (re)obsession with this next song* began a couple of nights ago. Unable to sleep, I popped my headphones in and listened to this three or four times while lying in bed, dreamily tracing the shadows on the ceiling. I’ve heard this countless times now and it’s usually the gorgeous strings that I focus on, but this time it was the high-pitched flute flourishes that captivated my attention. They come in around the two minute mark and are simply beautiful.
I know what it’s like to be floating along
Without a warm body to heap your cares on,
O on and into the night.
For I have been bad now for twenty years long,
For centuries you have been pure and strong,
If you thought me a good place to stay you were wrong,
O song, did I lead you on?
O Song – Augie March with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra
*I have posted this song before. I figure you’ll either ignore it if you know it already, or just enjoy listening to it again.
Image from this flickr stream
O’ song…. is o’ sad
Yes. And therein lies its beauty.
Sad songs are beautiful because they’re so sad, and sad because they’re so beautiful.
Or something.
‘Melancholia’ is one of my favourite words of all time. Really it is. (‘Acquiesce’ is another, but that’s another story.) And if ever I read that a band’s latest album is ‘filled with melancholia’ then I’ll rush to the store to buy the thing. Speaking of melancholia, when in this mood (and I reckon I’m in it more often than not) there’s nothing better than listening to some Red House Painters, particularly the ‘Ocean Beach’ record. Startling. Have they come across your radar? Bon Iver, of course, is another melancholic gem, but everyone knows that!
They’re both lovely words aren’t they? I’m also a big fan of ‘reconnaissance’.
I hadn’t heard of Red House Painters, but I see from a quick wiki visit that they’re now Sun Kil Moon (with a slightly different lineup) who I am a little familiar with. Will add to them to my radar!
And I’ve never really been able to get into Bon Iver, I have to say. I remember checking him out when the hype was at its highest and I was quite unmoved I’m afraid. Maybe I was distracted or not in the right mood… I don’t know. I don’t mind ‘Blood Bank’ though.
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