Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Room to Grow

The flames licked at my feet. This I can still remember. I felt like whole city was burning down, instead of just a small field in the middle of nowhere.

I remember being so scared. We were just messing around, playing with matches, lighters, whatever normal ids do. Sure, we knew that it was dangerous, but we never thought anything would happen to us.

We were smarter than that.

But sure enough, a match fell out of my hand, and before I could stomp out the fire, it ignited on the dry grass. The flames spread so fast and quickly grew out of control. I started stomping at the fiery tongues, and called to my friends for some help.

They were gone.

For the first time in my life I remember feeling really alone. It was a new experience. Sure, I had been by myself, but never truly alone.

I was scared.

The wall of fire grew quickly, and the smoke enveloped me. I couldn't see, I couldn't breathe. I imagined being in front of a group of people. The judge had sentenced me to death, and I was tied and awaiting being burned alive. It served me right too.

I deserved this.

I was being so stupid, playing with fire. Everyone told me not to, but I did.

And now I was alone.

I remember blacking out. Or, rather, I remember not remembering blacking out. Regardless, I know it happened. Apparently, luckily, someone had called the fire department. A fireman found me and dragged me to safety, and I was taken to the hospital.

I guess the burns were so severe they weren't sure if I would ever survive. There I lay, attached to tubes and wires and God knows what else. Every passing day my chances of survival were getting lower and lower. The doctors resigned themselves to just waiting to see if I would awake.

I didn't.

The Stills - Everything I Build

[Go get Oceans Will Rise if you like the Stills at all. I might even like it more than Logic Will Break your Heart. Maybe]

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Between You and Me

I've been a lot of places in my life. I saw Australia, London, Dublin, Paris twice, New York City three times, and once I took a road trip through the former Eastern Block countries (that trip was kinda depressing, it's mostly slums and broken dreams, I don't recommend it).

I've also done a lot of things nobody else has. I've ridden on the wind, tasted colours, felt sounds, gazed upon the knowledge of the world and watched the birth of time (not our time, another time. Someday I hope you can understand).

I've also done all this without video games, dreaming or psychedelic drugs of any kind. I've merely led the kind of life everyone wishes they could experience.

Still, there are things I've missed. I haven't felt let down. I've never had a broken heart. Nobody has broken my trust. I haven't felt crushing sadness. I've never been bored.
I've never been misunderstood, I've never misunderstood something, nor have I ever felt confused.

My entire life has been one giant good experience, but I've never had a bad one. It's because of this I've never had a great experience, nothing is extraordinary to me, because there's nothing lower with which to compare it.

I don't have any regrets, and yet my entire life is one big regret.

Sometimes it's good to hurt.

David Byrne and Brian Eno - Life is Long

[Thanks to Said the Gramophone for posting this track first. I know I plug that site a lot, but I don't think I do it nearly enough. It's easily the best music blog on the internet, and you should be reading it right now. In case you haven't noticed, it influences me pretty heavily, so...I dunno...just go! Also, you can buy the new David Byrne and Brian Eno album Everything That Happens Will Happen Today directly from David Byrne.]

Monday, August 25, 2008

With that smile

Love is a lot of things. It can be a tremor, or it can be the full earthquake. It can be the first snowflake, or it can be the entire snowfall. It's not always easy, and it doesn't always work, but at least you can say you've given it a shot.

In this case it's a single butterfly (or an entire swarm, depending on what type of person you are). From afar it can be the most beautiful thing you've ever seen. It flaps its wings majestically, the colours swirling and coming together. It's the most simple and graceful thing alive.

But then you look a lot closer. It has all these tiny legs, it kind of looks like a creepy crawly, and all in all is sort of ugly. It really depends on where you want to look.

But even so, good luck finding many people who would say a butterfly is ugly. They see what makes them happy, they see it as they want to see it.

Sometimes it's good to have some perspective, to really understand something. But sometimes that knowledge just ruins things for us. Our ignorance is bliss, as they might say. People may argue that we should embrace knowledge, that it's what separates us from the animals. But isn't the point of life to enjoy it? There needs to be a line, where what we know doesn't destroy what we love.

David Ford - Go To Hell

[Wow, 15 days since my last post. Hopefully once I move into residence updates become a little more regular.]

Sunday, August 10, 2008

He's trash people

ThoompThoompThoompThoompThoomp

WeeooWeeooWeeooWeeooWeeooWeeooo

DanceDanceDanceDanceDanceDance

OohOohAahOohOohAah

1,2,3 Freeze.

The Rapture - No Sex For Ben

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

We only do what we're told

I can't find anything about this band. They have one EP (that I know of), they play fast, furious music (from what I've heard), and they might be broken up (I think).

The choruses explode, the solitary synth line meanders along, the vocals in the verses are restrained, the drums don't take any shit from anyone, and the rest of the music is no-nonsense and punk.

If you need a reference point...The Minutemen?

The Sea Attacks - Versus the Shores of Arch

[Speaking of the Minutemen, did you hear Mike Watt's bass was stolen while on tour with Iggy Pop? The whole band's equipment was stolen. Sucks too, that bass was a real piece of art.]

Thursday, July 31, 2008

Thunder only happens

A couple new ones today (again), so I'll make the blurbs short (hopefully) and sweet (possibly). Maybe I'll get to a point this time (we'll see).

The Morning Benders - Dreams (Fleetwood Mac Cover)

This song is much more restrained and lo-fi than the original Fleetwood Mac song, which is fitting for a song made in a bedroom using a couple acoustic guitars, some soaring voices and more reverb and chorus than any band should know what to do with. Regardless, The Morning Benders have turned a song I'm a little iffy about into a song I can leave on repeat at night and enjoy. It sounds like a late night pity party turned into an inspiring life-changing event. If you like what you hear, The Morning Benders have their entire covers album for download at their website.

The Rural Alberta Advantage - Frank, AB

A song about the town of Frank, Alberta that was destroyed by a landslide, (according to Music for Kids who can't Read Good, who posted the track first. Check out that blog for some damn good tunes by the way.) and sounds the part.

The track begins and slowly gains speed and barrels forward culminating in the awe-inspiring chorus consisting of nothing but whoo-ing and chanting and the music builds and it doesn't stop kind of like this sentence and it makes you feel like maybe you can't handle it because it's just so electrifying kind of like a mudslide might be like except I've never been in a mud slide and then it stops.







And the town is levelled.

The bands sounds a little bit like Neutral Milk Hotel (As MFKWCRG pointed out), but have the modern canadian indie pop sound, with the cynicism of a band that's learned some shit. If Jeff Mangum doesn't come back, at least we have someone who can step up to the plate.

[Once again, if you like this then The Rural Alberta Advantage has 5 tracks from their new album, for download at their website. You should go check it out.]

It's new year, and I'm glad to be here

In the near future, the world has become bleak. The threat of war has caused the major powers to begin building up nuclear armouries. Countries that were previously under-developed have become world powers based on previously unknown weaponry. Europe is in a state of flux, with the smaller countries being, for all intents and purposes, enveloped by the larger ones. A strike is launched. All hell breaks loose.

2 years later most of what we now know as the modern world has been wiped out. There are scattered outposts that have been sheltered from the radiation. The north is relatively safe, and also warmer from the outcome of the war. Tribes have sprung up, and we've been sent back to the early days of civilization, with only
scattered guns and twisted metal to remind of what was a reality but 3 years ago.

And still, there is song. Tribes chant, drums are beaten, children yell in tune. Despite our fears prior, those that survived are much happier. Life is harder, but it is also simpler. Technology no longer rules us.

400 years later, knowledge of the past has brought about the evolution of society much faster than before, and we are further ahead technologically than we were in the 21st century. There are superpowers and weaponry again. A war is imminent. It is all cyclical.

Yeasayer - 2080






Monday, July 28, 2008

All my life I'm looking for the magic

The circus rolled into town the other day. I went, if only because I had nothing else to do. This carnival had been built up so much by my six year old mind. I remembered lions, fire, elephants, a charismatic ringleader. I looked forward to this carnival like Christmas and my birthday all rolled into one. I wasn't even disappointed when I went, it was all a huge spectacle, larger than life, everything I wanted it to be.

But the circus never came again. I remember waiting for an announcement every summer, wanted so badly for it to roll back into town. Perhaps because of this it had been built up so much.

Anyway, it came back, many years later, and I bought my ticket to go. I sat in my seat and waited for the ringleader to arrive, jubilant and peppy. Imagine my surprise when an older and less self-assured man strolled out, speaking into a microphone (a microphone for God's sake). His voice was a little more warbled, less confident in himself. I was let down immediately.

Then out came the animals, but they weren't as big as I remembered them. The lions didn't seem as terrifying, the elephants weren't as towering.

But then I realized, it was these little things, the cracks and flaws, that made the circus so endearing to me as an adult. I wasn't as easily awed or scared anymore, instead I found the magic in the way the lions were so agile, and less barbaric. I found the ringleader to overcome his insecurity and begin clicking wit the audience.

It wasn't the same as my six year old's circus, but I loved it all the same.

Dwight Twilley Band - Looking for the Magic

Saturday, July 26, 2008

I'm Tired of Fighting

This is a song about sipping whiskey by yourself. It's a song about sitting in the dark. It's a song about quietly strumming an acoustic guitar and imagining a piano and strings and drums behind you. It's a song about giving up. It's a song about trying again. It's a song about moving on. It's a song about looking at the future. It's a song about rooting yourself in the past. It's a song about losing someone. It's a song about finding someone. It's a song about realization. It's a song about being naive. It's a song about love. It's not a song about hate.

Why do we insist on clinging to things we can't have? We understand they are unattainable, and yet we fight for them with every fiber of our being. If only we could move on and accept our fate, we would be happier and healthier, and even if we lose our shot, we can always gain another. Life is a one shot deal, there's no need to spend it fighting for a lost cause.

Here's the best song Beck has ever done.

Beck - Lost Cause

Thursday, July 24, 2008

I'll lean on your arm

I'm not a religious person, but not too long ago I stopped into a church. I don't know why I did it. Maybe I wanted to believe in something, maybe I wanted to make it seem like I was more spiritual than I am, maybe I was just curious about what happened in this place of worship.

Regardless I stepped in and found a seat near the back. The tone was very reverent, with heads bowed and hands clasped. It was so alien to my usual nightlife style of living.

I was seconds from leaving, disappointed in what I had seen, ready to give up on religion forever.

But then they started singing.


The choir was, at a glance, a motley collection of parishioners. Some old, some young, not the uniformed clapping women we expect to see. Just some people who truly love their God and want to praise him the only way they know how. They sang, occasionally out of tune, but always with a conviction that made you believe them.

They sang.

And I wept.

I walked out of the church at the end of the mass. I still wasn't sure what I wanted to find when I walked in. I hadn't found religion or anything.

But I found hope.

I found love.

I found strength.

I found myself.

Bonnie "Prince" Billy - I'll Be Glad

Sunday, July 20, 2008

I'm wondering why

So I was lying in bed the other night, listening to some M Ward and thinking about the future, when I just started smiling. This feeling of happiness came over me. This unrelenting joy. Then I realized, I couldn't remember the last time I felt like that. The last time I was really happy.

I wish I could feel like that all the time.

I think we all wish we could feel like that.

We all walk around, looking for that magical something or someone that will make us happy. Some of us find it (at least for a while), some of us don't.

I don't know, maybe I force it upon myself, maybe I don't really want to be happy.

I mean, let's face it, it's easier to write when you're depressed.

But when you truly feel happy, and not just content (which I have felt), you never want to give it up, as much as you know it will leave. They say happiness is a state of mind. Maybe they're right.

Maybe I'll find it someday. Maybe you will too.

Cloud Cult - Happy Hippo

Thursday, July 17, 2008

Split Myself In Two

We all get the feeling that we want to go home sometimes. Even when we haven't left, we feel like we want to go back. We've been pushed away so much, we just want to be the way we were before.

Even so, we can't help but look back. Our lives are perpetually conflicted between yearning for the past and striving for the future, and this is what tears us apart.

M Ward - You Still Believe in Me

I sat on our couch one day, alone, when she came in. This was another night that she was out and I was in. It was kind of our thing. All our friends wondered how two best friends could be so different, with one striving for human contact and the other striving to avoid it. Truthfully, I couldn't bear to see her when we were out. I hated seeing her with other men. But I digress.

She walked in the door, visibly tipsy, but still making sense. Too much sense if you ask me.

After the requisite greetings and waiting for her to shed her jacket, she sat down on the couch beside me. A little closer than usual. My heart skipped a beat.

She told me of the night she had, the shooters, the guys, the dancing. Getting more and more drowsy as her story meandered on. Finally, her head drooped over and landed on my shoulder, her eyes closed.

"You know I love you, right?" she asked.

I was speechless. I love you too, I thought. I wanted to say it out loud.

"You've been my best friend for so long. I wish I could find somebody just like you."

That ain't enough I thought, you want me to run.

She turned her head towards me, opened her eyes the slightest bit, and gave me that smile that made me die inside.

"I almost feel like I've waited too long to have you"

No, you haven't I thought.

I waited what seemed like an eternity. I grappled with myself.

I didn't kiss her that night. I don't know why.

I should have.

I never had that chance again.

M Ward - Carolina

[I know this is yet another M Ward post. I'll try not to post another one for a while, but I can't promise another song won't grab my heart. Just bear with me, and I'll move on to someone else soon enough.]

Friday, July 11, 2008

The First One to Ask Where You Were

I thought I forgot about you, but then you come back into my life. Not even with a roar, but a putter. Like you can waltz back in any god damned time you want, and I can forget everything, forget what I felt for so long.

Well guess what, you can't.

That's right, I'm past you. I pined over you for so long, more than you'll know. Just when I thought I was fine, I wasn't, and then you left.

Just left.

I finally moved on. I was perfectly happy with everything.

And then you returned.

Well guess what, not this time. I've got my vinyl, I've got my old transistor radio. I'm fine without you.

Who am I kidding, I'll always be your bird. I'll come back anytime you want. I can refuse to help you, I won't be your "DJ on late night radio", but I'll still do whatever you want. I can't help it.

I'll be your bird.

M Ward - I'll Be Yr Bird

[If you get the chance, pick up M Ward's delightful Transistor Radio, on vinyl if you can. I don't know how he does it, but the man manages to sound like he's singing on old time radio all the time. As well as make beautiful music.]

Friday, July 4, 2008

Play Me a Sad Song

The happy, poppy music and chipper vocals betray the actual message contained in the song. The fact that we all must separate eventually. There will be people in our life that we will grow extremely attached to, and we will lose them. They will leave our lives, or we will leave theirs, and we will never see each other again.

There will even be those we love, those we have grown attached to. Maybe we never told these people we loved them. Even after reading/writing this, we will immediately think of somebody we are or were madly in love with that we never told, and we will tell ourselves that we will make this fact known.

This will not happen.

We will not tell them anything. This unrequited love will be our little secret, and eventually we will grow away from this person. We may not love them forever, but we will regret the fact that we never told them.

We will live with this.

And we will need a sad song.

This one will not be it.

Au Revoir Simone - Sad Song

P.S. You don't know who you are, but I love you. You may never know.

Tuesday, July 1, 2008

All the Songs I Know You Hate

I'm sure we all remember making mixtapes, or at the very least mixed CDs. Tapes were always the way to go. Something about the time it took to wait for the right song on the radio, or line up the needle just right, or to wait through the song previous on the CD just so you could press down the record button with just the right amount of hissy tape silence to separate the songs. There was always something about the clunk of the button that was more satisfying than the click-click-click of burning a CD. There was something about knowing how much time and effort you put into it, of thinking about the choices of songs, of thinking about the order. There was much more planning than making a playlist, listening through it a few times and changing the order before hitting the burn button.

Even the minor imperfections of the mixtape felt nicer than the crisp perfection of a CD. The hissing between songs, the pops of the magnetic tape (amplified by the pops on that record you recorded from), the barely audible clunk of the button used to stop the tape while you cued up the next song. Even the handmade liner notes felt better to make than the photoshopped CD cover you printed out. The little printer lines aren't enough to make you forget about pulling out all your pencil-crayons and making an incredibly personal cover, tailored especially for the one you made the tape for. Flipping over the sheet of shiny plastic/paper, you write the song titles and artists, being careful to mask your terrible writing so the person can read the song list. You though carefully about this, and a copy paste from your music player of choice just won't cut it.

Beyond just the songs you chose, the order in which you chose them is extremely important to you, especially since this was ordered especially for the one you wish to give the tape to. If you wanted Song A to follow Song B, the person has little choice but hit play and let the songs fall as they may. On the other hand, with a CD, they'll look at the song list (typed) and skip to their favourites. The effect isn't there. Every song was chosen with love and precision.

You then had deliver the tape to this person, and with any luck, they will hear it and realize exactly how you feel. And maybe, just maybe, they'll feel the same way.

Daniel Ledwell understands this. He sings soothingly, with a love and dedication that he has undeniably felt while picking out the perfect songs. He places all his hope on this selection of songs. "And if you think it's alright/can I come see you tonight?". Honestly, this is what we do with a mixtape, we put everything we feel into it, and hope it translates. Then the song ends, abruptly, like we hit the stop button just a second too early. But we "took the songs from the radio", so this was our only shot.

And it's these imperfections that we love about mixtapes.

Daniel Ledwell - I Have Made You A Mixed Tape

Friday, June 6, 2008

Don't Live Your Life

From the opening squalls to the actually melodic mishmash (clip-clop? clam-tram?) of the mid-song, Napoleon IIIrd (no relation to the dictator, I hope) wants us to cease living our lives 'through the TV', and we are wont to believe him, as he seems to be making a fine run of things living his way. He's not polished, but he makes his case.

It's very British, but not in a 'hail to the queen' way (and no, I don't mean the punk song), it's more of a small British town, overshadowed by London, but still quaint enough to maintain itself. Though the tourism and cash may not flow through, this town is happy enough in its analog glory, sustaining itself through local radio (classical, soft-rock, talk shows) and the stray scrambled television station that they receive (news? soccer?). This doesn't bother them, they live just fine in the small pub and the large town wide festivals. They aren't run by the rest of the country, they just exist.

And so does this.

Napoleon IIIrd - This Is my Call to Arms

Sunday, May 4, 2008

What You Know Can Only Mean One Thing

A short one today, because I'm tired and want to get back to absorbing this.

No metaphors. No long winded explanations this time. I honestly couldn't think of one that would live up to this. The omnipresent Wolf Parade wall of sound is present, the rolling, the building, the growing. The song is a beast if it's a kitten (of which it is both). The song is a civilian if it's a soldier (okay, so a pun and a small metaphor). The song, nay, the album opens with a light guitar hook that is quickly overcome. A great statement for a great band. "There won't be space here. Go find that somewhere else."

Early in the song, Dan Boekner, in my opinion the weaker vocalist on Apologies, opens up and starts wailing, and has never sounded better. Perhaps his time with side project Handsome Furs has made him more confident, maybe the new songs are more suited for him. Either way, while I still find Spencer Krug the better singer/songwriter overall, it's Dan that really steals the show here.

And now so I can get back to soaking this album up, here is the mp3 you've been waiting for, the song that Wolf Parade has chosen to be the first thing you hear after the entirely too long of a wait (aside from Call it a Ritual, if you grabbed that): Soldier's Grin.

Tuesday, April 22, 2008

Top 10 of 2007

Because I realized that I never posted this at the end of 2007, here's my belated list. mp3s might come later.

10. Spoon – GaGaGaGaGa
A great example of rolling and rocking, of not looking back, and of putting the basics into rock music. There’s some filler on this album, but the best songs are so good that it makes up for it. The brass section in The Underdog, far and away the best song on the album, almost makes the song, and You Got Yr Cherry Bomb, and Don’t You Evah are both amazing as well.

9. The Besnard Lakes - …Are the Dark Horse
The CD flows, wanes and holds your attention. It’s not a ‘busy’ album, and is one you could easily throw on in the background, but when you give it your attention it gives everything back. Besnard Lakes didn’t exactly make a splash this year, despite a stellar effort, making the title quite apt for them. Check out And You Lied to Me, and For Agent 13.

8. Okkervil River – The Stage Names
This is still a new find for me, but the entire album is a wonderful mix of Alt-Country and traditional rock values. The opening song, Our Life is Not a Movie or Maybe builds and builds into an explosive chorus, while Savannah Smiles, and A Girl in Port are both nice pretty songs, with an alt-country twist. For fans of country and rock, this is an album that you can't afford to miss.

7. Panda Bear – Person Pitch
The first of two Animal Collective-related albums on the list, and one of three released. This is a very solid solo release from Noah Lennox, also known as ‘Panda Bear’. Person Pitch is a sprawling example of sampled sounds, tribal drumming, reverb-laden chants, and the freedom to do whatever he wants without the rest of his band. Comfy in Nautica opens the album with machine related sounds, and melds into chorusy vocals and a driving drum beat, which describes this album perfectly: Obviously machine-made, but obviously organic.

6. Sunset Rubdown – Random Spirit Lover
Coming off making the best album of 2006, Random Spirit Lover is a let down from frontman Spencer Krug. However, even a letdown from Spencer Krug is top-10 worthy, and he’s crammed some of the best, and quirkiest, sideshow chants and poppy masterpieces, punctuated by his trademark yelp, into an album also crammed with filler. Not as good as Shut Up I Am Dreaming, better than a lot of what else was released.

5. Animal Collective – Strawberry Jam
Possibly the best live show I’ve ever seen, and one of the best albums of their career. Strawberry Jam is chock full of the some of the best pop songs, the best melodies, the best sheer experimentation of the year. The whole thing is very upbeat, from the opening Peacebone, the randomness of For Reverend Green, and the melodiousness of Fireworks. You may have to dig deep to find it in Strawberry Jam, but it contains some of the best pop music of the year, easy.

4. Arcade Fire – Neon Bible
Who hasn’t been moved by Keep the Car Running yet this year? If that song hasn’t made you realize good music is still being made, you’re either a robot or you don’t have a soul. Arcade Fire have made some bloody amazing music this year, and even played with Bruce Springsteen when he came to Ottawa, performing Keep the Car Running. The remake of No Cars Go, the swells of Intervention, Neon Bible deserves the number 4 spot.

3. Radiohead – In Rainbows
It’s Radiohead. It’s not as good as OK Computer or Kid A, but it’s a close third. That should be all you need to know. Listen to Faust Arp, 15 Step, or Bodysnatchers.

2. The National – Boxer
The National have followed up the stellar Alligator, with the equally stellar, if not more so Boxer. While the songs here are more restrained than on Alligator, they carry a sense of polish and urgency not yet seen. Matt Berninger’s distinctive Baritone pushes the music along, spouting stream-of-consciousness lyrics without pausing to think about them. The frantic drumming of Bryan Devendorf drives the music with his calm, yet intense drumming. Apartment Story and Start a War are standout tracks, with each showing the two extremes of the album.

1. Bon Iver – For Emma, Forever Ago
Up until a few weeks ago, Boxer was the frontrunner for album of the year. Once I heard Skinny Love, however, off the new album from Bon Iver, my mind was completely changed. Skinny Love was by far the song of the year for me, with the perfect amount of emotion, songcraft and lyrical abilities. It simply blew me away. After a frantic search, I finally found the rest of the album, praying that the rest would be as good as Skinny Love. While I expected to be let down, the rest was pretty close. While nothing was quite as good, the whole thing was a rewarding listen, with closer Re:Stacks being another standout. For Emma, Forever Ago would be on this list based on Skinny Love alone. The fact that the entire thing is wonderful makes this no contest. Boxer, you’re a great album, Radiohead, you’re a great band, but you’ve been usurped. Expect good things from Bon Iver.

My Mind has a Mind of its Own

Have you ever heard a song that made you so happy and so sad at the same time? A song that was a complete cacophony of mixed sounds from alternate sources, yet was so original at the same time? A song that was so sure of itself that it allowed itself to fade in and out of the background, confident that you would be awaiting its calm return.

You have?

Well then here's another to add to your list. Another song that you can pore over, put on repeat, ignore other songs with, and grow to love.

You haven't?

Well then I truly feel sorry for you. You have what we in the medical field like to call "no soul". There is a prescription, though it is quite experimental. It's a little something we like to call music.

In this case, I recommend "The Future, Wouldn't That be Nice?" by seminal acoustic/cut-up artists The Books. The track opens with a sparse handclap, and builds to emotional vocals, strings that linger just long enough to loop back upon themselves, and a chattering crowd that occasionally overtakes the music, until it subsides, as if it too is awaiting what comes next.

You find yourself wanting the music to continue, to never end, to carry itself with you wherever you go. If only this were your background music, you think, you could do anything. You'd never be apprehensive or scared.

But it doesn't. It ends.

And you play it again.

Sunday, April 13, 2008

Maybe If I Lay Low

Opening Credits

Some fireworks explode. More shoot into the air. From afar we see a couple sitting on a large rock. They hold each other as their silhouettes are deepened with every burst. The music kicks in. The title flashes onto the screen.

The Rising Action

The couple are fighting, there is love in their eyes, but also a growing resentment. They've come to the end of their ropes as they both realize that they may be stuck in a situation neither wants to confront. "your cold eyes, baby, tell me I should be looking for love with some other girl", he shouts, before the slamming the door behind him.

The Climax

He sees the girl with another man, before confronting her. He tells her he loves her, but as the camera pans out and the music builds, we see her letting him down. In anger and sadness, he shouts "maybe if I lay low, love will fall around my door".

The Resolution

In a fit of drunken agony, our hero leaves his house for a walk. He sees a pair of headlights, and considers leaping in front of them. A woman sees this, and grabs him. As they look into each others eyes, we see that spark of love missing since the beginning. The picture fades as the closing credits rise.

Sunday, April 6, 2008

Gay Sons of Lesbian Mothers

You sit a a table, hands folded. The woman across from you looks down, averting her gaze. She is shy, this much is obvious, but what confidence she actually holds is a secret. It is entirely possible that she knows exactly what she is doing to you, what she stirs up inside with that quick smile, the casual glance, another aversion of eye contact. You know each other, but no words are uttered.

This is not an awkward silence.

You admire the freckles on her face, but only in secret, for you are as shy as she is. She looks at you and you look away, afraid to let her know you were staring. She knows, and you know she knows, but neither says anything about it. You both look away.

This is an awkward silence.

You search for something to break the spell upon you both, but nothing comes to mind. The music is bare and dense all at once. Layers are added, but still nothing is said. There is an electricity between you two, as her slender frame changes position. You are the only two in the room, even while there is hubbub and commotion all around. More music is added. Sounds and beats intertwine between you both.

This is no longer an awkward silence.

Her mouth opens, and the words that erupt break the silence.

Kaki King - Gay Sons of Lesbian Mothers