Headphones: Role Models For Raw Emotions
Role Model - Harmony Gerber
Being vulnerable is a beautiful thing to see in life. Letting oneself go and not giving any hesitation to feelings, whether that be love or loss or anything in between, is the true sign of both maturity and development. There are many different mediums to express vulnerability, and many of those ways can be artistic. Music is one of the superior forms of media to express vulnerability, and one of the most effective as well. It is simply astonishing to see a musical artist lay themselves out on the line and be themselves authentically. So, for this week’s Headphones, I want to look at some male artists who have, whether through albums or singles or music videos, shown their vulnerability and have expressed their emotions in such an artistic and special way. Whether these be emotions of heartbreak or anger or frustration or obsession, any feeling and any ounce of vulnerability is beautiful and something to be admired, and even despite this vulnerability, the music itself is something that needs to be heard.
Album of the Week
Tonje Thilesen / Missing Piece Group
Avatars of Love by Sondre Lerche: Ambitious. Authentic. Astounding. Those are just some of the words one can use to describe the new double album from Norwegian singer-songwriter Sondre Lerche called Avatars of Love. The album creates a world of its own, starting with the opening track of “Guarantee That I’d Be Loved”, which is calming yet euphoric and reminds me of Bjork’s song “New World”. The similarities with other Nordic and Scandinavian artists don’t end here, as they bleed through the entirety of the album even to the final track, “Alone In The Night”, which is a collaboration with fellow Norwegian AURORA.
The tracks on the album are soft and quiet yet they feel like they’re bursting with energy and noise. Songs like “Dead Of The Night” and “What Makes Me Tick” involve us into this calm and sweet atmosphere, but other songs like “Cut” and “The Other Side Of Ecstasy” provide a bit more strength and power that build this world of songs to be more interwoven within each other. The album, of course from telling its title, revolves around falling in love and being in love. But how Sondre approaches love is interesting, through his lyrics and through the music he makes. The album clocks in at almost an hour and a half, comprising of 5-to-6-minute songs across the board. This is a great device to get the listener involved in this world that the album makes, as it is a journey that they choose to make and that they endure for that amount of time. It is special, and there is no other way to describe this album besides it being an experience.
And it’s not just Sondre that drives this story along. There are various collaborations, even besides the one with AURORA. Songs like “Summer In Reverse”, “Special Needs” and “Magnitude Of Love” feature the likes of CHAI, Felicia Douglass, and Mary Lattimore. The inclusion of different voices is key, which diversifies this world of song and also makes the album as a whole feel more cohesive but also less monotonous. Every song is identifiable from one another, and the different voices on some tracks make this distinction even easier to identify, which thus makes it easier to enjoy.
From the softer, and somewhat shorter, side of songs like “Turns Out I’m Sentimental After All,” to the longer, more anthemic pieces like the 10-minute long title track, it’s a trip to go from song to song. I don’t think Sondre could’ve titled his album better, as it’s all about love and the avenues love can be expressed through. And the way these expressions happen are elusive, intricate, and extremely well-detailed. There is nothing here that seems out of place, and everything is cohesive while also being individual and distinct whilst going from track to track. The production is simple, but all that does is to put a spotlight deeper on the lyrics and the instrumentation, which further delivers the messages that Sondre wants us to receive. Love is all-encompassing and is what truly makes the world go round, and this album is simply a testament to that feeling.
Single of the Week
Alysse Gafkjen
“Hard Working Man” by Marcus King: Nowadays, rock is an extremely niche genre, and the rock that does exist in our current music scene doesn’t resemble the rock of the past at all. Whether that be classic rock of the 1960’s, or the heavier stuff of the 1970’s or even the hair wave of the ’80’s, it is almost transparent to see these genres and types of genres influence the modern music scene. But sometimes cracks show through that facade, and the transparency fades away into something that is easily identifiable and profound. I have discovered one of the most ’70’s-sounding rock songs I have ever heard, and it has just been released to the music-listening public. It’s Marcus King’s single “Hard Working Man”.
The song itself sounds like a perfect blend between the lightness but edginess of Creedence Clearwater Revival and the more hard-hitting instrumentation of acts like The Who. That late-’60’s and early-’70’s type of rock dominates this song, with vocal harmonies and reverb galore in the song. The subject matter is simple, with our narrator being a ‘hard-working man’ who just wants to come home to a girl and not have to deal with any problems or frustrations there. This notion and archetype, of course, is a bit outdated, but it is presented here in a more modern lens, which doesn’t put down or blame the woman in this situation and only seeks to ensure that the woman understands what the man is going through. That is the extent of the situation.
It’s catchy, hard-hitting, and straight to the point. The guitars provide strong backing and keep trucking along throughout the song. What dominates the song the most, in my opinion, and makes it have this special flair that sounds more 1972 than 2022 is the production. All of the elements could be there, and it could sound modern, but the choice of using feedback and fuzz, and warping the vocals to be more muffled and strained than clear and smooth is an inventive choice of engineering. Of course, this doesn’t correspond to just the vocals, but the guitars and the bass as well. But it’s not just the lyrics and the production that make the song sound the way it does. It leans into songs like “Fortunate Son” and provides a similar feel and aesthetic to them, and what’s most important is that it still has appeal and feels timeless despite sounding from an exact period of time and being distinct in the way it is delivered.
And yet, it’s modern. Rough around the edges is how rock is exactly supposed to be done, and Marcus King does it here flawlessly. Being able to blend the sounds of the past and the sound of today isn’t hard to attempt, but it is hard to master. Here is a masterful example of merging different eras of rock together. Nowadays, we have a new take on what rock is supposed to look like and sound like, and it isn’t always influenced on the rock of the past. However, when it is influenced by the rock of the past, it becomes stronger and grittier, and most of all, greater. Who knew such a simple song about working hard and being tired and only wanting love could hold such great value and have such potential surrounding itself? I guess Marcus King knew, though.
Must-See Music Video
Role Model’s - rx: What works to comfort someone in their loneliest moments? What brings joy in the darkest hours? What is therapeutic enough to solve someone’s problems? That’s what Role Model’s song “rx” and the music video for the song are trying to ask. As he sings these lyrics out to himself, he drives from one destination to the next. The simplicity of this music video really gets the viewer thinking about the lyrics and what they mean, both to the viewer themselves and to the artist who is singing it. “rx” takes the simplest notion of wanting more in life and in love and just wanting to be a little less lonely and turns it into a beautiful work of art, and it makes for a magnificent music video.
It’s crucial to get into the nitty gritty details when looking at the video, from the lyrics to the visuals. Role Model sets the story in the first verse: “It’s the ways I’m medicating / It’s the apps for meditating / It’s the ways they never work / It’s the high I’m always chasing / It’s the friends I’m never making / It’s the people that I’ve hurt”. Those lyrics hit really deep and can be interpreted as really vulnerable and relatable to some. Laying your heart out on the line from the first moments of the song lets people know that they’re taking themselves really seriously here and are meaning what they say. This is juxtaposed in the music video with our narrator simply starting their car and driving through the countryside, with cars passing by in the background. This creates a whole situation of its own, and an entire atmosphere that is detailed and intricate. There is no lack of storyline here, despite it being simple, it is beautiful regardless.
What is even more special about its music video is its ending. It leaves the viewer on a happy note instead of a dark and depressing one. We see the car stop all of a sudden, and the camera pans out of the position it’s been in for the entire song and transform into another. We still see Role Model, but now his face and his head are on the lap of his girlfriend, solving all of the problems that were detailed throughout the song and providing us the solution: both visually and lyrically. This resolution of the music video is genius and smart, but it doesn’t reinvent the wheel, nor does it have to.
All in all, a music video can be simple yet effective, and that is exactly what “rx" is. It’s clear-minded, forward-thinking and leaves nothing to be interpreted besides what is directly presented within the video. It is a beautiful piece of work, song regardless, and just shows the lengths to how much love and loneliness impact the human life, whether it be our very own or somebody else’s. It all culminates in a message that is very important, which is to cherish the things you love the most and keep that close to heart, never letting anyone or anything get in the way between those things.
