I listen to a lot of music. I recognize, like any well-adjusted person (not to suggest that I am in all ways well-adjusted), that meaning in music is highly personal. But these are not the songs that have the most personal deep meaning for me. These are the songs from the most meaningful artists I listen to that have the most meaning. In general.
I know that seems like a lot of caveats, but there is something really powerful about listening to a song and just being able to sink, seemingly forever, into what it's communicating. I don't usually listen to music because I think it's meaningful, I usually listen to it because I like how it sounds. But some of the artists I follow do, in fact, write meaningful, important songs. These are the five that, to my ear, have the most meaning.
It's a message told in countless other places, but it needs telling from time to time, because it's apparently pretty easy to forget. Whether the silence is due to restrictions enforced by an authoritative figure or self-imposed through an addiction, we need to be aware that they do exist, and we need to watch for them.
Destination Moon speaks to that reality. It's a bit of a depressing song, despite music that couldn't be more upbeat. It all really happens in the last chorus of the song, and if you're not paying attention you might miss it. Might miss the band that wrote Time telling you you're running out of it. That we're all going to end up broken and unable to do what we love eventually.
There is a bit of a happy note, because imagination apparently doesn't have to dim with age. Unless it's about senility. There are some talking points, is what I'm saying.
But I want you to really listen to the lyrics. And while, yes, this song is totally about self-loathing, it's also about not fitting into an image. Not letting a label or a class dictate your own image of yourself. I've been labelled as a nerd for years, but I don't always like the things I should, based solely on that label.
It's the direction to be yourself no matter what the world expects or dictates that lifts this song. And I feel like it's probably an important message to hear.
I feel like sometimes songs of this vein have a tendency to say, in essence, "You may have heard bad things about this place/idea/person, but let me tell you why that's not the case!" With Queens, Misterwives tell us "Yeah, there were definitely some times it kinda sucked to live in Queens. But you know what? We made it work, and we're better for it."
They don't tell me to move to Queens, and what they say doesn't make me want to. It makes me rather glad I live right where I do. But it talks about this spirit of survival, of adaptation, that I admire. In some ways, it's the general feel of the Daredevil Netflix series set to music. And that's just fantastic.
It's a message that bears remembering. As night falls in our lives, through whatever hardships or triumphs we may face, we'll likely all find ourselves echoing the sentiments of this song.
I know that seems like a lot of caveats, but there is something really powerful about listening to a song and just being able to sink, seemingly forever, into what it's communicating. I don't usually listen to music because I think it's meaningful, I usually listen to it because I like how it sounds. But some of the artists I follow do, in fact, write meaningful, important songs. These are the five that, to my ear, have the most meaning.
The Sound of Silence - Simon and Garfunkel
This is basically Fahrenheit 451 in a song. But it's important. The suggestion is that the silence of this dream is a reflection on the freedom of the people who live in it. That silence, unwillingness to speak out, sing, whatever, reflects fear or ignorance. It's the idea that anything that restricts what we can do should be carefully examined to be sure it's not restricting who we are.It's a message told in countless other places, but it needs telling from time to time, because it's apparently pretty easy to forget. Whether the silence is due to restrictions enforced by an authoritative figure or self-imposed through an addiction, we need to be aware that they do exist, and we need to watch for them.
Destination Moon - They Might Be Giants
There's something inherently disheartening with growing old. Regrets, lost opportunities or abilities. Even as we strive to grow, our focuses change and we lose things we once had. It's reality, and there's not much we can do to stop it.Destination Moon speaks to that reality. It's a bit of a depressing song, despite music that couldn't be more upbeat. It all really happens in the last chorus of the song, and if you're not paying attention you might miss it. Might miss the band that wrote Time telling you you're running out of it. That we're all going to end up broken and unable to do what we love eventually.
There is a bit of a happy note, because imagination apparently doesn't have to dim with age. Unless it's about senility. There are some talking points, is what I'm saying.
Everybody's Fool - Evanescence
Evanescence songs tend to speak to the sense of loss and self-loathing in all of us. Aaaand nothing much else, really. It's all loss and self-loathing. Which after a while get's a little repetitive.But I want you to really listen to the lyrics. And while, yes, this song is totally about self-loathing, it's also about not fitting into an image. Not letting a label or a class dictate your own image of yourself. I've been labelled as a nerd for years, but I don't always like the things I should, based solely on that label.
It's the direction to be yourself no matter what the world expects or dictates that lifts this song. And I feel like it's probably an important message to hear.
Queens - Misterwives
There are so many anthems. To places, to ideas, to people, whatever. It seems like every band and artist has to anthemize something. But out of all of them, this is my favorite. And it's my favorite because it doesn't sugarcoat everything.I feel like sometimes songs of this vein have a tendency to say, in essence, "You may have heard bad things about this place/idea/person, but let me tell you why that's not the case!" With Queens, Misterwives tell us "Yeah, there were definitely some times it kinda sucked to live in Queens. But you know what? We made it work, and we're better for it."
They don't tell me to move to Queens, and what they say doesn't make me want to. It makes me rather glad I live right where I do. But it talks about this spirit of survival, of adaptation, that I admire. In some ways, it's the general feel of the Daredevil Netflix series set to music. And that's just fantastic.
Abide With Me - Hayley Westenra
This is straight up my favorite performance of any hymn. It's gorgeous, it's pure, and Hayley Westenra gets several lines without accompaniment, which is, you know, just grand. But I believe strongly that, as humans, we require something larger than us on which to rely. For this song it's God. But whether for you it's logic, a particular ideal, the rule of law, or somebody who changed the course of your life, we all have something we might want to abide with us through good and bad times.It's a message that bears remembering. As night falls in our lives, through whatever hardships or triumphs we may face, we'll likely all find ourselves echoing the sentiments of this song.
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