ten songs i wish were written about me.
1:02:00 AM
Stylistically speaking, I think the common thread among these ten tunes is the intricacy of the words behind them. Maybe my thought process can be a little romanticized at times, especially when it comes to how I interpret song lyrics; maybe I read into them too much. As someone who thoroughly enjoys discovering new music, I could easily spend hours on the internet going through artists' discographies. I love when people come to me with suggestions - it's my favourite thing. "Hey, I think you'll like this band" or "this song reminds me of you", will never get old.
That being said - here I present to you ten songs I wish were written about me. Imagine being a poet's muse; imagine being a songwriter's muse. No difference to me, really. You'd live forever.
1. TONIGHT YOU ARE MINE / THE TECHNICOLORS
"LET ME SLIP INSIDE YOUR ULTRAVIOLET DISGUISE. THE DAYLIGHT HOLDS YOU CLOSE, BUT TONIGHT YOU ARE MINE."
"LET ME SLIP INSIDE YOUR ULTRAVIOLET DISGUISE. THE DAYLIGHT HOLDS YOU CLOSE, BUT TONIGHT YOU ARE MINE."
I knew from the very first listen I knew that I was in love with everything about 'TONIGHT YOU ARE MINE'. The mystery it breeds is beyond me; I wouldn't dare compare it to any sound, because there simply isn't any other. The Technicolors have this addicting, dark and groovy mood attached to their music - not only this track, but the entire album. Not to mention, guitar solos that absolutely rip on top of hypnotizing drum beats. I always imagined this song to be written about the master of playing 'hard-to-get', dark-haired, leather wearing, beauty who stands out in a crowd of blondes. I had no clue it was possible to be persuaded and serenaded by such a hypnotizing voice before hearing this...
2. TRANSATLANTICISM / DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
"I NEED YOU SO MUCH CLOSER."
The reoccurring theme in 'TRANSATLANTICISM' seems to be distance - the physical and more so, emotional. In my mind, it signifies being too far out in a direction away from 'home', whatever/wherever/whoever 'home' may be. There's a sense of urgency that pulls on me everytime I hear this song, still. I hear an outcry of heartbreak and imagine a relationship pushing and pulling at the seams of a breaking point. The long instrumentals are slightly haunting and the ringing/echoing of the vocals add to the haunt. I think of traveling on airplanes alone and the distance that separates someone on the other side of the Atlantic. I always imagined slow dancing in the middle of a dim-lit living room to this song. Maybe I'm the only one.
3. SHE'S SO HIGH / TAL BACHMAN
"SHE'S BLOOD, FLESH, AND BONES;
NO TUCKS OR SILICONE
SHE'S TOUCH, SMELL, SIGHT, TASTE AND SOUND."
With the line "she's so high above me," repeating and starting out each chorus, I don't necessarily feel he's talking about the girl's wealth or social class being above his; but more so of his admiration and her spot on a pedestal "so high above" him. In his eyes, she is as perfect as perfect can get. She is strength, embodies beauty and defines "freedom". He even compares her to Cleopatra, Joan of Arc and Aphrodite - all women of power and seen as being "goddess" figures.
4. I LOVE YOU BUT I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO SAY / RYAN ADAMS
"I LET IT GO WHEN I MET YOU
THE CLOUDS INSIDE ME PARTED
AND ALL THAT LIGHT CAME SHINING THROUGH."
THE CLOUDS INSIDE ME PARTED
AND ALL THAT LIGHT CAME SHINING THROUGH."
From my knowledge, I do believe this song was written by DRA about his ex-wife, Mandy Moore. It makes me feel a little sad now hearing the song and realizing that it's all over now. This would've been the most perfect song to look back on one day and cherish - remembering back to days of youth and finding love. The most beautiful love song written could be true one moment, and completely distant the next. My favourite thing about Ryan is that he has songs for almost every mood, every car ride, every changing season, every triumph and every low. He is the soundtrack to some of my best times.
5. I WILL FOLLOW YOU INTO THE DARK /
DEATH CAB FOR CUTIE
"IF THERE'S NO ONE BESIDE YOU WHEN YOUR SOUL EMBARKS,
I'LL FOLLOW YOU INTO THE DARK."
This would be the 2nd Death Cab song on this list, if you were counting. I remember back to the summer, I briefly talked to my mother's friend on his wedding day about choosing the perfect wedding song - we both mutually agreed that this was it. It's really such a simple song with only a guitar backing up the vocals. I've always thought of this song to be some sort of assurance to whoever it was written about, that in life till death, they would always have someone following closely behind them. It's an anthem of following someone into the uncertainty. The most interesting thing to me is that this song could be easily used to walk down the aisle, maybe even a couple's first dance - but it could also be used at a funeral.
6. VISIONS / THE MAINE
"YOU TIED UP YOUR SILVER HAIR AND LEFT THIS TOWN.
YOU'RE THREE HUNDRED SOMETHING MILES AWAY,
I CLOSE MY EYES AND ALL I SEE IS YOUR FACE."
I guess it might have all to do with my silver hair, dreams, and distance. I remember hearing this song for the first time in the winter when the first snowfall of the season came down and it all seemed hazy to me. I often dream of people and wake up unsure of the meaning behind it. This song recalls a dream of kissing and fighting, laughing and screaming; haunting not only the conscious mind, but the unconscious as well. The specificity of the silver hair and 300 miles makes the song all the more important to me. To be thought of in an uncontrollable, unconscious form of a vision or dream is something I won't start to fathom. It's weird how we think we forget people completely, but somehow still dance in the back of our brains and appear again in a dream.
7. THIS TIME AROUND / THE TECHNICOLORS
"I KNOW YOU SHOULD'VE COME OVER,
'CAUSE IT MAKES ME FEEL GOOD ALL OVER"
Driving home one night from Portland with the silenced road ahead and the moon hung up in the sky, this song came on shuffle and held my attention. Specifically that line. It came up as well in a conversation with a friend of mine, who also said it stood out to her and inspired the mood for a novel she is currently writing. We agreed how crazy it is that one person's words could be interpreted and perceived into a million different things to different people - this song and these words do exactly that. And maybe the simple guitar and haunting vocals add the most to it, as well. The smoothest falsetto. The building momentum. Something screamed silence, regret, heartbreak, let-downs, feeling the weight of the world - yet feeling alright, all at once.
8. COFFEE / MIGUEL
"WE TALK STREET ART AND SARCASM;
CRASS HUMOR AND HIGH FASHION."
I've been told I talk about this song too much, and I would agree to an extent - only because it's that good of a song. Or at least, everything I envision my ideal 'love' to be. Every line in this song is built on detail and I think it's what draws me in every time. Love is street art and sharing sarcasm and crass humor. Talking high fashion under the glass peach skies watching the sunrise. Running away and taking Polaroids of each other; old souls finding a new religion. Everything above mentioned in the song makes me feel a little every time I hear it.
9. LOST ON ME / PEACE
"YOU'RE CHEMICALLY SO HEAVENLY."
At a first listen, I didn't quite get to the lyrics on this one because the sonic aspect is so powerful. I've loved Peace for a few years now and I do believe this is one of their strongest, grooviest tunes thus far. I'll be honest real quick here - this is probably the song with the least amount of 'detail' in it and it barely made the list, but the mention of the feeling of lighting from lips and someone being "chemically so heavenly," made me reconsider.
10. ALL THE RIGHT REASONS / THE JAYHAWKS
"YOU CAME ALONG, YOU HELPED ME WRITE THIS SONG;
I DON'T KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS, I CAN'T RECALL THE SEASONS
I DONT REMEMBER HOW WE GOT THIS FAR
ALL I KNOW IS I'M LOVING YOU FOR ALL THE REASONS
MY SKY, YOU'LL ALWAYS BE MY MORNING STAR."
What I love the most about 'ALL THE RIGHT REASONS' is how straight forward it is. It gives me that "I don't really know how we made it this far, but I know I love you with all the right intentions," kind of feel. I wish I had more to say about it, but I'll keep my commentary just as the song is. Simple. Love at its very core.
There's a look into how my mind sees things. Hope you enjoyed.
x lj
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