Echoing the Soul
As I write this, Holly Brook is playing on my good old 2.1 pc speakers. I like Holly, she is quite distinct, despite being new to the music scene. The genre listing on the player lists her as 'slow rock', which, as far as my definition of rock goes, fits fine enough. Not that I like categorising artists into... well... categories. It just sort of makes sense, compared to all the other stupid labels there are out there... Screamo?
Right....
Ms. Brook was the same vocalist on that Fort Minor song, in case anyone is wondering. No worries, though, her music is not even remotely similar to that whatever-they-are. Holly Brook, for lack of a better comparison, is more of a female version of Chris Martin, with a generally darker tone. Fits right into the stuff that I am into. The songs are soft, for most part, and at times almost-radio friendly, but only to a station that is into good music. She does not perform nuclear science here, just the basics, and it works... good lyrics, piano-driven music, and an excellently breathy voice. To follow that Chris Martin similarity, she even has a song called 'Like Blood, like Honey' which is of the similar tempo and mood as 'Parachutes', by Coldplay, including the single acoustic guitar plucking. The song even has some tinges of classic Jewel. Coldplay, Jewel... still wondering why I like her?
Holly Brook is not quite the Breaking Benjamins, Evanescences, or Funeral for a Friends of this world, which is what I am more inclined to, so maybe it is a bit surprising for me to listen to her as well. No down-tuned, heavily distorted power chords, no vocalist screaming and bleeding their throats off, no poison laced lyrics... yet I think she is brilliant.
This whole thing called musical interests is a funny thing. It can, however, be summed up in one simple question; why do some people absolutely love one form of music while others absolutely despise it?
This question may take on many appearences. Here are some from my viewpoint:
1. Why does pop music suck so bad at times and are tolerable on others?
2. Why do I hate hip-hop and rap so much while others think its awesome?
3. Why do other people fall in love with hard alternative music the way that I did?
As you can see, these three questions are all centred around me... not because I'm a self-centred bastard (which I hopefully think I am not..am I?), but because I do not have the balls to even assume I understand what other people's perspectives on music might be like. I ain't that stoopid...
Music reflects the voice of the soul. The soul being the sincere, honest, and pure entity within each and every one of us. At least, that is how I look at it. Not really looking to venture into a discussion about the soul here, so let us, for the sake of this entry, assume that the soul is a substantial element of our make-up. Our FORM.
On the outside, we may be anything, and everything. We might try to be. WE put on masks, images, personalities... things that are not truly us, but we put them on anyway because that is how we want to be seen. Essentially, it is an easy exercise, because the part of us that is purest, the soul, is so well hidden and difficult to find anyway. It takes a really seasoned, wise, and sensitive person to be able to see through the layers... and how does one do it? Through music.
Nothing speaks to and understands our souls as well as the music we listen to. Be careful not to misunderstand me, I use the word "Listen" very deliberately. Not just hearing music, not just hearing a cool beat and thumping our body parts to it... but listening. The music that we listen to are those that bear special meaning to us, individually, uniquely... usually something that other people simply cannot understand. More often than not, each one of us will have a special song or two that seems to speak so truly to our deepest thoughts and feelings. Not just on special occasions, but at all times... a song that, in many ways, seems to define us. Just like a good book is able to read us, a good song listens to us... listens patiently to our pains, our secrets, our truths as we ouselves perceive them.
When I think about the kind of music that I enjoy, that I am able to appreciate, yes, there are certain similarities in all of them that I can identify, and they do reflect on many elements that are dear to me. The music reflects who I have become, why things are the way they are and what will be. The music that I listen to reflects the things that I believe to be important; purity, honesty and sensitivity. Sometimes, there are so many things, so many wounds and scars that we really want to just ignore and hide, but there comes a time when letting them go, seeking closure and freedom are the only way for us to move on. It is about dealing with the deepest thoughts and feelings we might have. That is what the music that I love does for me. That is how it speaks to my soul.
All that darkness and depressing music that I listen to is not me having a death wish... quite the opposite, these songs are about finding a way out that is true, not just illusions, they are about confronting the most hidden parts of the soul and seeing it for what it is. This kind of explains why I listen only to hard rock with hopeful, positive lyrics, and none of that death metal stuff.
Perhaps I am wrong, but maybe, just maybe, this is how music really affects us? For a fan of good music such as me, it is a journey that is ongoing and never-ending... and it is one we embrace willingly.
As I write this, Holly Brook is playing on my good old 2.1 pc speakers. I like Holly, she is quite distinct, despite being new to the music scene. The genre listing on the player lists her as 'slow rock', which, as far as my definition of rock goes, fits fine enough. Not that I like categorising artists into... well... categories. It just sort of makes sense, compared to all the other stupid labels there are out there... Screamo?
Right....
Ms. Brook was the same vocalist on that Fort Minor song, in case anyone is wondering. No worries, though, her music is not even remotely similar to that whatever-they-are. Holly Brook, for lack of a better comparison, is more of a female version of Chris Martin, with a generally darker tone. Fits right into the stuff that I am into. The songs are soft, for most part, and at times almost-radio friendly, but only to a station that is into good music. She does not perform nuclear science here, just the basics, and it works... good lyrics, piano-driven music, and an excellently breathy voice. To follow that Chris Martin similarity, she even has a song called 'Like Blood, like Honey' which is of the similar tempo and mood as 'Parachutes', by Coldplay, including the single acoustic guitar plucking. The song even has some tinges of classic Jewel. Coldplay, Jewel... still wondering why I like her?
Holly Brook is not quite the Breaking Benjamins, Evanescences, or Funeral for a Friends of this world, which is what I am more inclined to, so maybe it is a bit surprising for me to listen to her as well. No down-tuned, heavily distorted power chords, no vocalist screaming and bleeding their throats off, no poison laced lyrics... yet I think she is brilliant.
This whole thing called musical interests is a funny thing. It can, however, be summed up in one simple question; why do some people absolutely love one form of music while others absolutely despise it?
This question may take on many appearences. Here are some from my viewpoint:
1. Why does pop music suck so bad at times and are tolerable on others?
2. Why do I hate hip-hop and rap so much while others think its awesome?
3. Why do other people fall in love with hard alternative music the way that I did?
As you can see, these three questions are all centred around me... not because I'm a self-centred bastard (which I hopefully think I am not..am I?), but because I do not have the balls to even assume I understand what other people's perspectives on music might be like. I ain't that stoopid...
Music reflects the voice of the soul. The soul being the sincere, honest, and pure entity within each and every one of us. At least, that is how I look at it. Not really looking to venture into a discussion about the soul here, so let us, for the sake of this entry, assume that the soul is a substantial element of our make-up. Our FORM.
On the outside, we may be anything, and everything. We might try to be. WE put on masks, images, personalities... things that are not truly us, but we put them on anyway because that is how we want to be seen. Essentially, it is an easy exercise, because the part of us that is purest, the soul, is so well hidden and difficult to find anyway. It takes a really seasoned, wise, and sensitive person to be able to see through the layers... and how does one do it? Through music.
Nothing speaks to and understands our souls as well as the music we listen to. Be careful not to misunderstand me, I use the word "Listen" very deliberately. Not just hearing music, not just hearing a cool beat and thumping our body parts to it... but listening. The music that we listen to are those that bear special meaning to us, individually, uniquely... usually something that other people simply cannot understand. More often than not, each one of us will have a special song or two that seems to speak so truly to our deepest thoughts and feelings. Not just on special occasions, but at all times... a song that, in many ways, seems to define us. Just like a good book is able to read us, a good song listens to us... listens patiently to our pains, our secrets, our truths as we ouselves perceive them.
When I think about the kind of music that I enjoy, that I am able to appreciate, yes, there are certain similarities in all of them that I can identify, and they do reflect on many elements that are dear to me. The music reflects who I have become, why things are the way they are and what will be. The music that I listen to reflects the things that I believe to be important; purity, honesty and sensitivity. Sometimes, there are so many things, so many wounds and scars that we really want to just ignore and hide, but there comes a time when letting them go, seeking closure and freedom are the only way for us to move on. It is about dealing with the deepest thoughts and feelings we might have. That is what the music that I love does for me. That is how it speaks to my soul.
All that darkness and depressing music that I listen to is not me having a death wish... quite the opposite, these songs are about finding a way out that is true, not just illusions, they are about confronting the most hidden parts of the soul and seeing it for what it is. This kind of explains why I listen only to hard rock with hopeful, positive lyrics, and none of that death metal stuff.
Perhaps I am wrong, but maybe, just maybe, this is how music really affects us? For a fan of good music such as me, it is a journey that is ongoing and never-ending... and it is one we embrace willingly.
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