As the world panics over a virus that no one I know personally has contracted, no one seems to know how to deal with the results of its befuddling statistics. This includes musicians. Here are four entries for this week (as if by eerie coincidence, "four" is considered a bad luck number in Japan). Here are this week's entries:
"Caution" by The Killers: "Caution" is what we all need to be taking during this unprecedented time in our lives! The fact that the song has the title it does and was released on the week that it was is pure coincidence, though. Whether that's good coincidence or bad coincidence is a bit hard to say, but what I can say is that it sure sounds good! Fans of groups like The War on Drugs will probably dig this song, dominated by synthesizers in a distinctly Springsteen-ian manner circa the '80s. The lyrics of the song are neither political nor apocalyptic, but rather surrealist, which lead vocalist Brandon Flowers is no stranger to in terms of the words and phrases he puts into his songs. Adding to the already gung-ho dynamic of the song is the song's surprise guitar solo that it ends on, played by none other than Fleetwood Mac's Lindsey Buckingham! When the going gets tough, the tough certainly get going here!
"Domino" by Nicole Atkins: It's the end of the world as we know it (so far), and Nicole Atkins feels fine! In the sleek, funky song, "Domino", she lets the world know she's not gonna go down without a fight! "I'm not gonna play safe and sound when the world comes tumbling down", Nicole sings during the chorus. Partially inspired by musicians like Prince, "Domino" could be for 2020 what the song "1999" was to 1984, a disaster warning disguised as a fun party song. The title of the song comes from how Nicole feels watching society "fall, like dominoes". Two songs into this week's blog, and my anxiety is through the roof already. Not exactly a good thing, is it?! I suppose that's what music is for, though!
"4 American Dollars" by U.S. Girls: This song was actually released a few weeks before the world went into panic mode, but this song still deals with rather dark subject matter nonetheless. Like our previous entry for this week, this song is also a funky party song on the surface with a bleaker message underneath. "You can do a lot with 4 American dollars", lead singer Meg Remy sings during the chorus, before going into how, "No matter how much you get to have, you will still die and that's the only thing". Wow...ummm...thanks?! I suppose this serves as a good reminder to all of us that even if we are poor, a few scraps of money is better than none at all, but as the whole WORLD heads into poverty, this message isn't exactly the most comforting thing in the world. Perhaps that was intentional, though.
"Temple" by Thao with The Stay Down Get Down: Our last entry for the week still brings us no comfort during increasingly dark times. This song is about how lead singer Thao Nguyen lost her city. She goes into great detail to describe her loss, too, mentioning helicopter blades, thick smoke, and even war. A mere 40-ish years ago, the radio was blasting songs about how we built this city (WHICH city is unknown, though) on rock and roll...now we have lost our cities with rock and roll. Electric guitars set to a funky beat tell the saddening story of Thao's struggle to survive. The year mentioned in the song was 1973, but it seems even more relevant now, sadly.
