“Creep” by Radiohead (Mimi & Josefin cover) from The Voice Kids 2019

     We don’t often post a cover. The exceptions are when the cover gives us a greater appreciation or understanding of the original. That is the case with the performance of “Creep” by two sisters, who were 13 and 15 at the time.

“Baudelaire Waltz 2022” by Waste Of Paint – A Song Feature

 

     In the last several years and particularly during the lockdowns, the consciousness of and the sensitivity to the challenges of mental health struggles have been magnified. It’s not surprising that songwriters have addressed the issue. “Baudelaire Waltz” stands above the others in terms of its impact upon listeners. Waste of Paint wrote the song in the voice of a person who recognizes that losing the battle is on the horizon. “This button is red for a reason… We both know I’ll push it one day.”

 

     The song has been re-released as “Baudelaire Waltz 2022,” and we thank Waste of Paint for bringing the song to an expanding audience. Our perhaps flawed understanding of the lyrics sits at the bottom of this post. The lyrics are subject to interpretation, as is the case with most well-written songs. The impact of the song is based on several factors. The protagonist is speaking to the person (“My love”) most likely to be a helping hand when needed. But he tests the other person in order to see is she/he will run.

 

     Waste Of Paint is from Hull, UK and is driven by Adam Brodie and Dan Spooner. The other two members are drummer Jamie Dean (a founding member) and bassist/multi-instrumentalist Paul Sargeson. Brodie and Spooner note that “Baudelaire Waltz 2022” was inspired by the work of French poet Charles Baudelaire who wrote, amongst other things, about the self-destructive nature of the mind. They add:

  “This is something we can relate to. Sometimes you can be perfectly happy, but that part of your brain will not trust that happiness so ruins it. Destroys it just to see if it was real. It’s the mind craving misery just to feel alive. It is a horrible place to live. If this is you then understand, you are not alone.”

 

     Speaking about the video, Adam Brodie – with typically stark and brutal honesty – explained: “I had to let go and ‘break down’ in front of camera … I had to bear my soul, I had to cry. And I did, a lot. It was the only way I could do justice to the words that had poured out of me when writing the song. I had to tell my truth.”

 
     “Baudelaire Waltz 2022” by Waste Of Paint

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/wasteofpaintband

Bandcamp: https://wasteofpaint.bandcamp.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/wasteofpaintband/

   

Lyric of “Baudelaire Waltz 2022” by Waste Of Paint
Hah, I mean, I don’t have any
I don’t believe I have any chemical predisposition toward depression
But, huh, let’s just call it I was suffering from spirituality, I suppose
 
Move your hand
This button is red for a reason
I’m sure you understand
 
I know you’ll push it one day
We both know you’ll push it one day
 
Cause you need to fell lose
Throw it all away
There’s no drug like a broken heart
So give me that pain
 
I will get drunk
And full of hate
And I’ll burn the whole world around me in a fit of rage
 
You can call me a mess
A shell of a man
But I’m a victim, complex
I struggle to understand
 
Know that I’ll push it one day
We both know I’ll push it one day
My big red button
 
Sometimes I cry “Wolf”
Just to see if you run
When my self-loathing gets too much
And I need someone
 
And I know I hurt you
But it’s not by design
It’s just that the darkness inside of my head
Must extinguish the light
 
Know that I’m pushing you away
We both know I’m pushing you away
My love
 

“Halifax” by Rhineland – A Song Feature

 

      The vocals and guitar in “Halifax” radiate warmth and convey a sense of peacefulness. The serenity isn’t fully aligned with the lyrics, which are included at the bottom of this post. Rhineland explains that their single is about returning to a small hometown. The reference to four years can be interpreted as a return after graduation from college.

 

     Quoting a helpful description of the song:

  “’Halifax’ is Rhineland’s first release in over a year. It lyrically uses visceral imagery to describe moving back home and reflecting on strange nuances of growing up in a small-town/remote area and how different it can feel from others’ childhood and adolescent years. It sonically features intimate guitars, melancholic melodies, and driving percussion to create a nostalgic dreamscape. Rhineland recorded this song locally with their friends from Vacation Manor in their studio in central Virginia.”

 

     It is always interesting when a band holds an attractive contribution in its back pocket until the final seconds of a song. In the case of “Halifax,” an unintrusive, yet attention-grabbing, banjo makes its appearance in the outro. The banjo brings an appealing contrast, since the “twanginess” that is inherent to the instrument diverges slightly from the melodic intimacy felt through almost all of the single.

 

     Rhineland is an Indie Rock band based in Lynchburg, Virginia. The members are Troy Bittner, Josh Wright, Daniel Scicchitano, and Joseph Stevenson.

 

     “Halifax” by Rhineland

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rhinelandband

Website: https://www.rhineland.band/

Lyrics of “Halifax” by Rhineland

And I’m not close to your whisper

I’m not close to your whisper

The coal towns and carpet floors

Where I′m from they all want more

But the more I age the less I feel

Maybe I'll grow up this year

 

Something about the way this hurts

Four years but I'm the worst

And I lose sight where lines get blurred

Praying someday that I might learn

 

If I′m lost

Burn the churches

Cause there′s no souls

Left in Zion

 

The coal towns and carpet floors

Where I'm from they all want more

But the more I age the less I feel

Maybe I′ll grow up this year

 

Something about the way this hurts

Four years but I'm the worst

And I lose sight where lines get blurred

Praying someday that I might learn