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Last Active 01-01-70 12:00 am
Joined 01-01-70
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| A List of Words from Songs I Love
As per title. Let me know your favourite lyrics. | | 1 |  | Phoebe Bridgers
Stranger In The Alps
“I buried a hatchet, it’s coming up lavender”
from 'Smoke Signals'
Bastardising idioms is fun, and this line works best out of context. I’m not too convinced that it has much of a bearing on the album as a whole, so my enjoyment of it is purely aesthetic, but there’s something so wonderfully poignant about it. Props to whoever gave birth to the idiom, no other usage has made me picture it quite like this, however; that is, with the hatchet as a seed, and its fruits lavender, which: interesting choice – fragrant and beautiful, but also the colour of bruises. | | 2 |  | Phoebe Bridgers
Killer
“Sometimes I think I’m a killer, I scared you in your house
I even scared myself by talking about Dahmer on your couch”
from 'Killer'
Conversely, this line contextualises most of the album for me: it introduces Bridgers’ serial killer thread, and intertwines it super interestingly with Stranger’s love themes. I don’t know how literally people actually do take the serial killer subtext(?), but regardless – whether it’s taken literally or as a metaphor – Dahmer was a good point of reference given his tendency to carry around his victims’ bones. | | 3 |  | McCafferty
Sum of All Fears
“When the headlights come, I’ll step into them bravely”
from 'Sorry'
Nick’s super inconsistent as a lyricist (and everything else, it seems), but there’s something particularly endearing about the messiness of his words. Unlike most of his lyrics, though, this line isn’t messy at all. It’s actually quite beautiful, and fiercely to the point; and weirdly self-effacing, despite the “bravely” being triumphanty sad. | | 4 |  | Julien Baker
Sprained Ankle
“White flag blindfold, covering my sunken eyes
And a line of rifles aimed at my sick, my sick mind”
from 'Brittle Boned'
I think perhaps Julien’s poeticism get more props than it deserves. Which isn’t to say her lyrics are bad – quite extremely the opposite – but it’s definitely not their poetic quality that makes them special, and rather the sheer brutality of her self-effacement; she’s so unabashedly honest in her delusions, and I think that’s cool and kinda refreshing. I’ve seen a lot of comparisons to her and Leonard Cohen, but whereas Cohen’s lyrics often felt measured and hyper-deliberate, Julien’s mostly sound as though they were written in a flurry of despondency – especially on Sprained Ankle, even when she’s being reflective (as on Brittle Boned). | | 5 |  | Leonard Cohen
Songs of Love and Hate
“I stepped into an avalanche
It covered up my soul”
from 'Avalanche'
Speaking of Cohen – well, same goes for this line. I will concede to one point of comparison between him and Baker: both are quite impressionistic in the way that they spin narratives, only Cohen more deliberately so. As with most of my favourite writers, he refuses to expound on a lot of his images – the avalanche might be a biblical allusion, or it might not be; regardless, its general conceit is clear, and the way that it frames the album’s two extremes – that is, in Cohen willingly giving himself to both – is sweet and really powerful, I think. | | 6 |  | Haley Heynderickx
I Need to Start a Garden
“Is it the pull of my hips that you couldn’t let in?”
from 'No Face'
This is the second last in a relatively long string of questions to an ex-lover, begging for an answer as to what about the speaker made her partner leave. Its mopiness is dope; I don’t know. It’s definitely the most evocative of the list; there’s something vaguely sensual and perhaps suggestion about the “pull of… hips”, but Heynderickx’s weary, though no less bright-eyed delivery makes the line profoundly sad. | | 7 |  | Yung Lean
Stranger
“Isolation caved in
I adore you, the sound of your skin”
from 'Agony'
Perhaps the most beautiful line of 2017. | | 8 |  | The Smiths
The Smiths
“I decree today that life is only taking and not giving
England is mine, it owes me a living
But ask me why and I’ll spit in your eye”
from 'Still Ill'
You’d need a well-sharpened axe to even dent the bitterness in this line. I imagine Morrissey throwing himself carelessly through a crowd of people as he sings this one, realising he won’t achieve anything without embodying everything that he hates – the anger, the entitlement. | | 9 |  | James Blake
The Colour in Anything
"If the car beside you moves ahead
As much as it feels as though you're dead
You're not going backwards"
from 'If the Car Beside You Moves Ahead'
Perhaps the most beautiful line of 2018. | |
BlushfulHippocrene
07.14.18 | Hello! This list is self-serving, but I'm interested in other's favourites, so if people are interested: give me some favourite words and an explanation and I'll add it to the list. | Rowan5215
07.14.18 | let me get my hands on your mammary glands!
amazing list | Dewinged
07.14.18 | Makes me realize I should spend more time reflecting on lyrics. The description of 1 left me in awe. Great stuff Blush. | BlushfulHippocrene
07.14.18 | I love you two. | luci
07.14.18 | Lovely! 6 and 9 are definitely standout lyrics for me. I'm not lyrics-oriented with my listening anymore and quite content with that. Have a few in mind I might contribute though, great list concept. | Chortles
07.14.18 | This is beautiful (like u) | Papa Universe
07.14.18 | “I buried a hatchet, it’s coming up lavender” is a damn beautiful line.
here are some more...
"Somebody shouted your name and I swear they yelled 'FIRE!'" - Damien Jurado, '1973'
"Only want to glean the purpose
Only to scratch the surface, raise the plow
Suffering whiteout conditions
Forget your mission, just get out somehow" - The New Pornographers, 'Whiteout Conditions'
"Was it a huntsman or a player that made you pay the cost
That now assumes relaxed positions And prostitutes your loss?" - Rodriguez, 'Crucify Your Mind'
"Tinsel and angels and tiny bells
Terry cloth shoes from resort-hotels
The postcards from tour, the Rome's one fake
It's from Bologna" - Get Well Soon, 'It's a Catalogue'
"We sold ourselves for love, but now it's free." - Leonard Cohen, 'Treaty' | Atari
07.14.18 | Awesome Blush, loved your insight here | SandwichBubble
07.14.18 | You should continue this if you feel inclined to | Sowing
07.14.18 | alright fine I'll check Phoebe Bridgers | Aberf
07.14.18 | where is Lil Pump in this list?
Anyway, I guess I have to pay attention more to lyrics, hehe. | neekafat
07.15.18 | Sowing you haven't checked Bridgers!!!!??? | neekafat
07.15.18 | Lovely choices Blush < 3 Should I check 9? | BlushfulHippocrene
07.15.18 | ""We sold ourselves for love, but now it's free." - Leonard Cohen, 'Treaty'" Hell YES, Papa. Just bought a book of Cohen's poetry. I love that Rodriguez line, too, might check him out.
@lovely friends, I love you.
@lovely Sowing, YES!!!
@lovely Neeka definitely check the song; it's not on the album's listed under here, but it's damn good, one of my favourites this year. | Dewinged
07.15.18 | It's too long to quote but there is a song in the last Typhoon album called "Algernon". The song is about a woman trying to make her husband, who has Alzheimer, remember who she is and who he is, showing him pics. This is told by his perspective and he refers to her as "a woman" with "a familiar face". The whole thing kills my heart, give it a go if you have the chance Blush. | AsleepInTheBack
07.15.18 | love ya blush | AsleepInTheBack
07.15.18 | it's a tad cheesy, but "I don't know what I want / what I want's where I've been" from End of Reel on The Hotelier - Goodness is a personal fave; the alliteration and cadence / rhythm of the delivery is so satisfying, and the line's meaning is also lovely | AsleepInTheBack
07.15.18 | also the imagery throughout The Microphones - The Glow Pt2 is fab. ALSO Sowing good lord you've got to jam Phoebe Bridgers | cylinder
07.16.18 | Nice list. I have no idea which line i’d pick from 5 | Conmaniac
07.17.18 | such a beautiful list from a beautiful user! much love and I agree with many of these, esp the Yung Lean one as it's absolutely my fav line of 2017. the julien one you picked surprised me tho! def a deep cut in terms of lyrics but I whole-heartedly agree with your analysis | BlushfulHippocrene
07.17.18 | "It's too long to quote but there is a song in the last Typhoon album called "Algernon"." Beautiful pick, Dewi... The excuse he makes about waiting for his wife to pick him up is heart-wrenching.
"I don't know what I want / what I want's where I've been" from End of Reel" Oh jeez, nice. It's simple, but so good. Beautiful song, too. You're right about the aliteration/cadence; its smooth and rounded, but so sad. OH, also: the first time he sings it, does he add "I don't know" at the end, or am I hearing it wrong? Like, "I don't know what I want, what I want's where I've been, I don't know". And that allows him to loop the sentence toward the end. Which, GENIUS. My gosh, need to listen to Goodness again... | BlushfulHippocrene
07.17.18 | "Nice list. I have no idea which line i’d pick from 5" Thanks! Mine's a bit of a cop-out, given it's the first line and all. Contextualises things super well, though. Miss you, btw, haven't seen you around much.
@Con Love you :heart: -- you and Sach got me listening to that Yung Lean, so I owe a thanks. I jam Agony and Yellowman A LOT. Brittle Boned might be my favourite Julien song, actually; that or Claws or Good News or Rejoice. Have a fave Julien lyric? (Or any other artist.) | Conmaniac
07.17.18 | aw no problem blush! def agree that Goodness is a gem and you should def relisten to it....as for Julien I'm really not sure. one that jumps out is, "But if no one sings along in praise / Are you still proud when I open my mouth?" from Blacktop but I'm sure there's many others that personally hit really hard | AsleepInTheBack
07.17.18 | yeah Blush that's right, at least that's what I hear too. hope you delve back into The Hotelier mate; even if the music isn't for you the lyricism and poetry is sublime. the lyricism of the opener of "Home..." and Your Deep Rest (the elegant, running tree metaphor in particular) still melts me
for Julien I would never know what to pick | Conmaniac
07.17.18 | julien is amazing yes, re-reading her earlier lyrics and I totally agree on blush's poetic-ism point |
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