12 - The Shadows On My Wall Don't Sleep

The Concept:  Feature a song a day for every day of the most magnificent season of Autumn.  The songs are ones that capture the thoughts/ideas/images/feelings of the season for me. 

It's my "Autumnal Playlist" if you will.

New music is often a challenge for me to come by.  I'm not complaining.  I won't listen to the radio, Pandora rarely gets pulled up anymore.  And I don't enjoy browsing music stores for samples (do they even do that anymore?)  Occasionally I'll see something on iTunes that catches my attention at the store's home page. 

So it's exciting for me to hear a bit of music I really want to know more of in a trailer for a movie or scene in a TV show.  Today's song is an example...well...sort of.  Back in the Spring I saw a trailer for an upcoming movie titled, The Words, starring Bradley Cooper and Zoe Saldana.  There was a bit of music at the end (that I will probably feature later in this series) that really got my attention.  After seeing the movie, the music choice was great when comparing the lyrics to the plot of the movie.

After seeing the preview I instantly searched for what the song was, and went to iTunes.  The only thing available at the time was an EP.  So I got it.  The full album came out not to long ago, and it's great.  The full album included today's featured song.

Song 12/Day12

"Nothing Left to Say / Rocks," by Imagine Dragons from their debut album, Night Visions.

Overall the album is quite upbeat, even the lyrically "heavier" tracks there is a sense of weight and foreboding, with out desperation or fear.  Nothing Left to Say seems to be one of the heaviest of the album, but it balances it out with the incredibly hopeful and upbeat Rocks addition at the end.  The song seems to be mainly about someone giving up, (no real solid concept of what he is giving up on) and that there is surprisingly, nothing left to say about the issue.

There's nothing left to say now...
I'm giving up, giving up, hey hey, giving up now...

There is some great imagery with the lyrics, like those of the title of this post.  Then after the main song ends and fades out, there is a pause before the upbeat follow up comes in.  It starts off with the light and hopeful question:

Where do we go from here?

And then moves on to a swinging drum beat and and another question:

Why can't I see, what's right in front of me?

Now, the first part of the song is what really feels Autumnal to me.  The opening synth reminds me of the theme from The Neverending Story.  That was a movie I remember seeing in the Fall.  Possibly the first movie I ever watched, "on tape."  It was quite a memorable experience.  I remember being really freaked out by it as I was quite young, and it started to rain about the same time it was raining in the movie.  And the Nothing had me shaking for many nights after.  I don't know if I understood the concept of oblivion or whatever it represented...but trying to think about "nothing" as a state of existence or non-existence as a kid about 5...mind melting.

I loved it.

So, this song brings back all of that and more.  There is, to me, a sense of challenge in vocalist Dan Reynolds' voice.  As if he's saying, "there's nothing left to say now...but maybe you'll think of something I haven't."

There is also a sense of his place and that he doesn't have it all together.  He's not deluded that he's young and got all the answers.  It's refreshing and a bit humbling.  I also really like the line:

I'm drowning in the waters of my soul

It's a great song to blast in your car while you can still have your windows down, even if it brings on a slight chill.

Enjoy Imagine Dragons (and that name is just awesome) and their album Night Visions, featuring "Nothing Left to Say/Rocks."

-Jesse

04 - My Family Lives in a Different State

So here's the idea.  Feature a song a day for every day of the most magnificent season of Autumn.  The songs are ones that capture the thoughts/ideas/images/feelings of the season for me.  It's my "Autumnal Playlist" if you will.

 Today's choice was a hard one.  There are so many great songs out there.  I wanted to feature a Mumford & Sons song in celebration of their new album today, but decided to wait.  I was really feeling a few songs that would work.  I almost picked a few that were a bit more upbeat and celebratory in feeling.  In the end it was one that has a mournful hopefulness to it.

With out further ado (except to ado that there will be no more ado...)

Song 04/Day 04

Today's Song: "Rivers and Roads"
by The Head and the Heart from the album The Head and the Heart


My "discovery" of this album came sometime last year between October and Christmas I believe.  So, by default, most of the songs on it will make me think of Autumn.  For me, music tends to stick to the season/atmosphere I first heard it in.  Not always, but a lot of times.  If the atmosphere/season is in a bland nondescript mode...then the song/thing can find it's own legs.

For example:  When ever I eat pickles, I think "October."  I didn't know why for the longest time.  Then, last year my mom told me we would go to the Dillsburg, PA "Farmers Fair" in October, and I would have a pickle.  So...maybe my first memories of eating pickles was at this fair...in October. Hence my thinking that pickles taste like October.

Moving on.  Rivers and Roads was one of the tracks on this album that really struck me the first time listening to it.  It has such a subdued mellow opening, then abruptly starts to build.  The rest of the album is equally fantastic, and I'm sure there will be another song or two from The Head and the Heart in the rest of the 90 Songs.

I came across this band when I was in Target.  The cover art just kind of jumped out at me and said, "Hey!  This chick is hanging out with a dude in a sheep mask.  So...you'll want to take a listen to the tunes!"

So I did.  As I rarely purchase a physical CD anymore, I checked out iTunes when I got home.  Sure enough there was the interesting cover with the girl and sheep guy.  With in the first few samples I was sold.  Got the whole album.  A lot of the tunes are great for belting out when alone in my vehicle.  There is a folky rock vibe to their style.  I can say I haven't really heard anything else quite like them.  The instruments and vocals blend really well.  And the female singer has such a singular voice in today's music.

This particular song, while already an album favorite of mine, became more so this Spring.  When I finally got to watch the final season of Chuck (this show introduced me to a lot of good music) and got down to the final moment of the series, what song starts playing...yes...Rivers and Roads.  It was such an excellent choice for the scene it played over and behind...nigh perfection.

I won't spoil the show's ending, but if you ever get to watch it (the whole series, otherwise the impact of the finale won't be...impactful,)  I think you would agree.  It was quite pleasing to recognize a song I liked so much on a show I liked so much.  Especially since it was the last thing you heard on the show (besides closing credits.)

The reason it makes me think of Autumn, aside from having first heard it in Autumn, is the imagery the music and vocals make.  Not the lyrics exactly, but the soulful howls and starts and stops.  It's abrupt and choppy, but in the best possible ways. 

I'll spare you the scene it paints for me.  Take a listen and see what it paints for you.  Get caught up in it and get lost on some back roads as the leaves start to change.

Day 04/Song 04 - Rivers and Roads by The Head and the Heart

enjoy!

-Jesse