Belle
Mt. excels at progressively building a song’s intensity and texture. A release
from the trio might begin with an intimacy founded on engaging vocals and
sparse instrumentation, but the song isn’t likely to simply linger in its
initial allure. “The Ashes” starts with delicate piano and emotive vocals. As
the track progresses, the introduction of various instruments is timed to
complement the song's atmosphere. We specifically highlight the segment that begins
around the two-minute mark and reaches its peak 45 seconds later. As the song
nears its end, it returns to its origin of piano and vocals.
The
vocals, piano and acoustic guitar on “The Ashes” are provided by Matt Belmont. Ben
Worsley contributes guitar and bass, while Chris Burgess is the percussionist/drummer.
In addition, Belle Mt, recruited Kirsty Mangan for the string arrangement.
The
shifts in the posture of the lyrics and vocals are perhaps even more noteworthy
than those of the instrumentation. At the outset of “The Ashes,” a relationship-gone-wrong
is described with a calmness that conveys an acceptance of finality – “There’s
a fire in this house // And there’s no one left to notice with the breath to
put it out.” In a later verse, the vocals convey some hope for a positive
effect. The verse is repeated more powerfully starting at the 2:45 mark – “But
maybe in the ashes we will find the meaning // And maybe as they scatter,
they’ll lead us to the healing.” But the hopefulness does not last long, as
the next verse begins “But I don’t think I’m learning // And I don’t think
we changed // Now we know that wisdom never really came with age.” The vocal
posture may shift and the instrument texturing may vary, but the intelligence
in the lyrics is a constant and the abilities of the vocals to embrace the
lyrics and emit the emotion remain undeniable.
Matt
Belmont explained the song as follows:
“’The Ashes’ was inspired by watching a close friend go through the dramatic breakdown of a long term relationship. I was the person my friend turned to in that moment and I ended up being right there in the trenches with them throughout, witnessing all the collateral damage and far reaching effects first hand. Right in the midst of it I sat at the piano in a writing session with Jessica Sharman and we created a song which encapsulates all of that. Love, heartbreak, confusion, pain, and conflicted state of mind. Stay or leave? Love or hate?”
Belmont added:
“Of all the songs on the album the production of this one stayed true to the blueprint set out in my original demo which was created at that time. We even ended up using all of the original demo vocals in the final mix rather than replacing with new takes, as it was impossible to beat the raw emotion. We love how it turned out.”
“’The Ashes’ was inspired by watching a close friend go through the dramatic breakdown of a long term relationship. I was the person my friend turned to in that moment and I ended up being right there in the trenches with them throughout, witnessing all the collateral damage and far reaching effects first hand. Right in the midst of it I sat at the piano in a writing session with Jessica Sharman and we created a song which encapsulates all of that. Love, heartbreak, confusion, pain, and conflicted state of mind. Stay or leave? Love or hate?”
Belmont added:
“Of all the songs on the album the production of this one stayed true to the blueprint set out in my original demo which was created at that time. We even ended up using all of the original demo vocals in the final mix rather than replacing with new takes, as it was impossible to beat the raw emotion. We love how it turned out.”
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bellemtmusic
Website: https://www.bellemt.com/
Lyrics of “The Ashes” by Belle Mt
There’s a fire in this house
And there’s no one left to notice with the breath to put it out
There’s a weakness in these walls
And the truth hides in the echoes and the whispers in the halls
Saying all we’ve ever known we learned here…
There’s a smoke that fills our lungs
And we suffer in the silence wondering why we didn’t run
Feel the cracks let out the heat
Stealing all the oxygen forbidding us to speak
Still all we’ve ever known we learned here
And all we thought was home will burn here
But maybe in the ashes we will find the meaning
And maybe as they scatter they’ll lead us to the healing
Waking in a fever the daylight is deceiving
And darling though you woke me hard we’d been oversleeping
Everything that’s burning… was everything to us
There’s a fire you tried to hide
But you let it in our home
You tainted everything inside
Though the mess cannot be seen
I’m still standing in the wreckage
I’m still longing for a piece of
All we’ve ever known and learned here
‘Cause all we thought was home will burn here
But maybe in the ashes we will find the meaning
and maybe as they scatter they’ll lead us to the healing
Waking in a fever the daylight is deceiving
And darlin though you woke me hard we’d been oversleeping
But I don’t think I’m learning
And I don’t think we changed
Now we know that wisdom never really came with age
And everytime I think that maybe we could put it out
Everytime I try to fight the fire in this house
Well my mind paints a picture ‘cause my mind’s never free
My mind shows the things that my eyes weren’t supposed to see
There’s a fire in this house
And there’s no one left to notice with the breath to put it out.
Lyrics of “The Ashes” by Belle Mt
There’s a fire in this house
And there’s no one left to notice with the breath to put it out
There’s a weakness in these walls
And the truth hides in the echoes and the whispers in the halls
Saying all we’ve ever known we learned here…
There’s a smoke that fills our lungs
And we suffer in the silence wondering why we didn’t run
Feel the cracks let out the heat
Stealing all the oxygen forbidding us to speak
Still all we’ve ever known we learned here
And all we thought was home will burn here
But maybe in the ashes we will find the meaning
And maybe as they scatter they’ll lead us to the healing
Waking in a fever the daylight is deceiving
And darling though you woke me hard we’d been oversleeping
Everything that’s burning… was everything to us
There’s a fire you tried to hide
But you let it in our home
You tainted everything inside
Though the mess cannot be seen
I’m still standing in the wreckage
I’m still longing for a piece of
All we’ve ever known and learned here
‘Cause all we thought was home will burn here
But maybe in the ashes we will find the meaning
and maybe as they scatter they’ll lead us to the healing
Waking in a fever the daylight is deceiving
And darlin though you woke me hard we’d been oversleeping
But I don’t think I’m learning
And I don’t think we changed
Now we know that wisdom never really came with age
And everytime I think that maybe we could put it out
Everytime I try to fight the fire in this house
Well my mind paints a picture ‘cause my mind’s never free
My mind shows the things that my eyes weren’t supposed to see
There’s a fire in this house
And there’s no one left to notice with the breath to put it out.
