OH MY GOD! WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOUR HAAAANDS?!
This one is going to be a short one, but I am certain that you’ll get the point. While I may not write or play music, I am an avid listener of almost all genres of music. It can be a great way to relax and party, but every once in a while a band comes along that really sets itself apart from the mainstream. For the sake of this case study, I will use the English rock band Florence & the Machine, as it exemplifies a form of music that is all too rare on the radio nowadays. Why?
Is it because the lead singer, Florence Welch, is incredibly gifted? Is it because their shows are well done and they know how to work a crowd? Is it because they have well crafted musical arrangements that can seem whimsical or spiritual or are just plain great examples of rock and roll?
While those all may be true, that is not what I am getting at here. What mainly sets them apart is the fact that:
It’s Hard To Tell What Their Songs Are About.
Believe it or not, this actually works in favor of the band and is also the single biggest thing that makes them unique. With most other bands, you usually know what you are getting because they tend to talk about any number of the following subjects:
- Dating.
- Their Car.
- Hanging Out with Friends.
- The Kitchen Sink.
To contrast the mainstream with this band, can anyone tell me what Never Let Me Go is about? It’s very hard, isn’t it? Personally, I view it as a yearning song about drowning in love, but I’ve also heard interpretations that range from feeling completely lost in your life to more religious ideas to thoughts of suicide. That’s the beauty of music when it’s at it’s finest, mainly because it rewards repeated listenings and can give you a clue about how you relate your own personality to it.
Anyway, that is all.
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