Musical Inspiration

This Is America

As products of our societies it can sometimes be difficult to separate ourselves and our egos from the truth. No matter what country you live in, your government has made stupid laws, done terrible things, or assumed they were in the right. This can be especially difficult for citizens of the United States, where people living in the “melting pot” of the world can sometimes struggle with their cultural identities or pride.

As Americans we have a lot of pride in coming from wherever we came from, because no matter where it was it was difficult. I think a lot of other cultures perceive the United States in particular as being cultureless. Although the United States is unique with its culture and there are a unique set of problems that come with that, I do not think that they have a “lack of” culture. Culture is something that is built upon. People make their own cultural identities.

Unfortunately, with the cultures we are brought up in and create for ourselves come drawbacks. We are sometimes blinded by nostalgia or privilege. This is why it is so easy in the United States to ignore problems that only affect certain groups of people if the problem does not directly involve us.

“This Is America” by Childish Gambino  is a great example of how millennials are forgetting about their ego and pride in hopes of getting people to stop ignoring big issues. As the song starts out, it is melodic and ambient. The lyrics say “we just want to party” for a while until suddenly there is a gunshot, tone change, and it says “this is America”. The popularity of the song is really representative of how huge of an issue gun violence and systemic racism are.

The compelling statement that gun violence and racism are being eaten up like candy in the entertainment industry is clear enough in the music, but Donald Glover didn’t stop there. He enhanced his message with a chilling video. With black girls in school uniforms, wide grins, and dance routines, part of the video and music is about staying sane in this mixed up world. But on the other hand, all around them are guns and terrorizing events. The main message of the song is that people either stay sane or go crazy. I think this is an incredibly brave statement to admit and bring attention to the fact that there are problems in America and they are disproportionately affecting black youth.

Men At Work “I Can See It In Your Eyes”

When I was a kid, my dad used to always play his records on the weekend. I remember breezy summer days with the front and back doors open while his albums rang through the fields outside. Although he was a pretty quiet guy, he really loved music. I would find out in my early teens that he played heavy metal cassette tapes in his light blue Toyota Corolla going to work. I never really realized how much my dad loved music until he died, and upon reflection I realized the songs he listened to were a way for him to relax and feel connected to his life. In many ways, the albums that resonate with my childhood represent a lot of who he was as a person.

The song that really put this into perspective for me was, “I Can See It In Your Eyes” by Men At Work from 1981. The tone of this song itself reminds me of my dad and the fact that it was probably in his top 10 most played albums only stands to benefit this. The reason this song reminds me of my dad is because it is the least toxically masculine story there could be. The lyrics of the song are basically about a man on a date with his girlfriend who realizes she doesn’t want to be there and is both sad but understanding towards the situation. He never raises his voice, and along with the rhythm of the music that seems to suggest to just keep going, he tries to be reasonable.

Above all, this song is very self-reflective. The lyrics never address anyone and often wonder off on tangents about who might be in his old college rooms or dreaming of ships at sea. Listening to this song, I get the sense that the girl sitting across from him has no idea about any of the beautiful thoughts going through his mind. My dad was the exact same way. He was a brilliant Chemical Engineer and an amazing person, but often went completely unnoticed by anyone. The song often goes into long reflections. With the mellow beat of the song, I myself find it difficult not to drift off into daydreaming, which was a notorious trait of my father.

All in all, I think this is a beautiful song to listen to for how genuine it is. Although it never struck me as a song representing the popular attitudes of the 80’s, I think genuine art can always live on and help people like me remember their dad.

Frank Zappa and the -Cringe-

1968 into the 70’s is arguably the best time we have had for music all over the world. It was a time of globalism, for example the “British invasion”. Occasionally, however, I come across a song released around that time that for whatever reason hasn’t aged well or has become ridiculous with age. Frank Zappa’s album “Apostrophe’” represents the kind of music that I find has value but for whatever reason aged terribly.

His song “Cosmic Debris” invokes an incredible sense of curiosity. The lyrics from start to finish needs to be digested and listened to at least a few times before you realize what is actually happening. He begins his story with the “mystery man”, who we know is some strange figure promising him great things if he pays a fee for a fortune telling.

“The mystery man came over

And he said I’m outta sight
He said for a nominal service charge
I could reach nirvana tonight
If I was ready, willing and able
To pay him his regular fee
He would drop all the rest of his pressing affairs
And devote his attention to me”

This chunk of lyrics is about Frank himself going to a psychic and realizing that the man in front of him has no psychic ability whatsoever. The rest of the song is about Frank Zappa almost making fun of the fact that the psychic thought he could scam him, which explains the main lyric: “Look here brother who you jiving with that cosmic debris?”.

I think that the song itself is objectively cool and fun to listen to. However, throughout the entire song he keeps the same creepy grumbly tone with no inflection in his voice. It makes the song seem claustrophobic and it builds tension. In the same way that putting many people into a small room during a tense situation in a novel makes the reader expect something to combust, the lack of inflection in Frank’s voice makes the listener expect that any moment he might run out of breath or something in his tone will change.

These qualities are very uncommon in songs today, which is why “Cosmic Debris” is especially difficult to get used to. Listening to this album is like immersing yourself in another culture, and it takes time to start to enjoy it.

The value in this song today is that if someone takes the time to listen to it, they will find that it is a very cool song about being genuine. I think it is worth putting the song on repeat to get that message.

Polish Sung Poetry

Since living in Poland, I have felt a strong empathy toward Poland and how they have not been recognized for their heroism in history. They have a rich culture of science, art, and standing up for what they think is right, even for other countries. For example, they contributed immensely to the fall of the Soviet Union. There are many stereotypes about Polish people that I find wrong and horrible. People call them Nazis and think they are stupid. I find this disgusting because Polish people were the first to be sent to Auschwitz. They have an incredibly unfortunate geographic location and because of this they have a great struggle.

I am very passionate about the Polish language because I think it is a necessary part of understanding the culture and a lot of the beautiful art they produce. One of my favorite genres that I have been trying to understand through the language is sung poetry. My favorite sung poems that I have learned so far is called “Mury”, which in Polish means “Walls”.

Most Polish sung poetry is political and “Mury” by Jacek Kaczmarski is no exception. The song was written for the people of Catalonia but was also written at the time of the solidarity strikes in Poland. The poem is about breaking down walls, which at the time could be a variety of different political problems.

I like this poem for its bravery as well as its beauty. Accompanied by acoustic guitar, at first if you don’t speak Polish it sounds like a love song. Gradually it sounds stronger and more powerful as more people and instruments join in. The chorus is the strongest part. The lyrics of the chorus roughly translated mean, “The teeth of bars – pull them from walls! Tear off the shackles, break the whip! And the walls shall fall down, fall down, fall down. And they’ll bury the old world!”. The repetition of the walls falling down builds throughout the sung poem creating an even more powerful feeling.

Today, I think Poland struggles culturally. In my personal experience they feel so proud and protective of their culture (understandably) that they are not willing to make changes for the general advancement of society. In this particular poem, burying the old world is a statement of power and positivity about standing up for improvement and freedom. Today, I think Poland has a kind of identity crisis. For example, sexual education and health is extremely poor compared to the rest of Europe. As a majority Catholic country, the lines of culture and progress are a constant struggle. After all, where does culture begin to fade away with change?

Happy Songs With Substance

Often times I find myself getting stuck in a rut because of my song choices. I can’t count how much I have played Celine Dion’s “All by Myself” and convinced myself that at 19 my younger days are gone. Many times, a song can create its own world which entraps us like a quicksand of vibrations. In my opinion, her song is so incredibly genuine and powerful that it is too much for the human empathy. Recently I have asked myself why I listen to these kinds of sad songs so frequently. The pathetic answer I had for myself was that sad songs have more substance. After this was brought to my attention, I could not accept it. There had to be happy songs with substance.

On my hunt for happy songs with more meaning, I actually found so much it was overwhelming. I started with “Hooked on a Feeling” by Blue Swede. There are so many layers to this song and it has just a genuine and original take on love. The way he yells with joy his description of being hooked and high on believing can only make those familiar with the feeling grin.

Although I was genuinely uplifted by this song, I was still skeptical that there would be very many more songs on topics other than just being in love. I was wrong! Johnny Nash with his song “I Can See Clearly Now” stopped me dead in my tracks. This song along with Dancing Queen, Footloose, I’m Gonna Be, and so many others started to improve my mood long term. Just by swapping out the sad song for these happy songs I realized I was sleeping better and excited for my job and lectures.

I realized the power of music and art in my own life. Beyond this, music has given me an understanding that it is my choice how I live my life. By this I mean I control the people I talk to, and the negativity I allow into my life. This includes sad songs, junk food, bad friends, and bad choices.

I think the path to eliminating negativity in your life starts with musical inspiration. Listening to happy songs is a simple and conscious thing anyone can start doing to train their brain to be happier. It may take practice. In my own personal experience, the more I listened to the happy songs, the more I wanted to listen to more and find new artists. I think it is worth it to make this small and easy adjustment for a healthier mind.