We all have at least one song that,
although it did not lead to commercial prosperity, it would be high on the list
of songs we wish we had composed. Perhaps it’s a song with lyrics that are somehow
both insightful and aligned with your view on life or relationships. Perhaps it’s
the expertise and attention to detail in the instrumentation or the brilliance
in the use of crescendos and drops. For Indie Obsessive, our short list of composition-envy
songs is dominated by Cloud Cult.
While
the Minnesota-based band has a devoted fan base, it does not receive the love
it deserves. Performances by Cloud Cult should be sold out. But there are two
shows in San Francisco (as well as other cities) that have tickets available.
The band will be at The Chapel in San Francisco on July 6th and 7th.
For ticket information, go to https://thechapelsf.com/calendar/. UPDATE: We just received an email stating that the SF shows were cancelled because of COVID among band members.
If
we were to point to the Cloud Cult song that particularly excels in the use of
crescendos and drops, “No Hell” would be the target. That song would share the designation
of most lyrically insightful with “One Way Out of a Hole.” In the category of
most motivating to consider the proper perspective on life, we nominate “The
Best Time” and “When You Reach the End.” All of the songs are included in the Spotify playlist at the bottom of this post.
We
have tried to determine why the fan base of Cloud Cult is not even larger than
it is. Of course, “Orchestral Folk Rock” is not a genre that immediately draws
attention. And sometimes the lyrics are not easily parsed. For example, the
first verse of “The Best Time” runs together and it required several careful
listens to determine that the verse has three sentences in which the second and
third stem from the first:
It’s a perfect day to remind myself to feel.
I’m always (too) busy pushing rocks uphill.
With a pillowcase over my head, (I) couldn’t
see that this might be the best time of my life.
Note: “Remind
myself to feel” because “Habit is the enemy of (feeling) presence.”
Recently,
we began paying more attention to “What Would You Do?”. The lyrics are included
in this post. The song is an invitation to consider being able to view a
relationship from the eyes of your significant other. It is a series of questions
in which “they” is used as the gender-neutral pronoun for your love interest.
In the final portion of the song, Cloud Cult shifts to first person pronouns
and reveals personal answers to the questions.
“What
Would You Do?” by Cloud Cult
Lyrics of “What Would
You Do?” by Cloud Cult
What
would you do if you had to trade shoes with the love you once knew?
And
what would you say if you had to replay the fits you both threw?
Would
you self-medicate, or jump off a fire escape, divide your belongings in two?
What
would you do?
What would you do?
What
would you do if you finally knew the pain they've lived through?
And
how would it feel if what they felt was as real as the feelings in you?
Would
you just leave, cause you cannot believe that you can be full of it too?
What
would you do?
What would you do?
What
would you do if you could see through the games you both do?
Would
you be surprised if you could see through their eyes and saw how they see you?
Would
your life be better if you never met or would you still be dealing with you
and
your monsters too?
What
would you do?
What would you do?
If
this was the end. and I never saw you again, what would I do?
Do
you know what I'd change if I could do it again?
I'd
stop trying to change you
If
our past went away, and we just met today, what would we do?
Love
at first sight or the start of our first fight?
All
I know is I'd never let go of you
So
much is the same, and yet so much has changed
And yet
I still have these feelings for you
and the things you do
What
would you do?
What would you do?
No comments:
Post a Comment