Ayo
I really like this girl's music, plus I think she's incredibly beautiful, and her personal history, being born in Germany to a Nigerian father and Roma mother, then living in London, Paris and New York is fascinating.
All that makes it even more of a shame that her lyrics are such a mess. No, not all of them, but some of them...
In the catchy as hell 'Down on my knees' she sings this:
I loved you unconditionally
I gave you even more than I had to give
I was willing for you to die
Cause you were more precious to me than my own life.
The first two lines are ok, but then she gives you this 'hang on...' moment. She obviously doesn't mean 'I was willing for you to die' (cause that would be pretty harsh really if you think about it - I love you so much, go die) she means I was willing to die for you, or at a stretch, I was willing, for you, to die if she needs it to rhyme (technically die doesn't rhyme with life but this sentence is already too full of commas and brackets so I should really get back to the main point of this sentence, which was that...), that's the thing about songs, no commas.
My fave song on the album manages to string a few cliches together and come out with something original and honest and heart-breakingly sweet that ends with a funky little upbeat section. I misheard her though on one of my early listenings and thought one of the lines was I don't need to see, just need to look at you, which got me going 'if you can't see sweetheart, how are you going to look?' but actually she sings I don't need to sleep, just need to look at you, which makes (a little) more sense. Still, she follows that with Then I'll be awake, much more than any rest could do, which is, let's face it, a bit rubbish. Then I'll be awake, refreshed and feeling good as new is a little more grammatical, and if I took more than two seconds to think something up, it could even be a little less jaunty.
Is anyone following this? Briefly, I think this girl is just great, I only thought I'd bitch a bit because she is too perfect otherwise.
She has the most interesting accent too - begging comes out bahgin and love is something between lorve and lahve.
I think I'm done now.
All that makes it even more of a shame that her lyrics are such a mess. No, not all of them, but some of them...
In the catchy as hell 'Down on my knees' she sings this:
I loved you unconditionally
I gave you even more than I had to give
I was willing for you to die
Cause you were more precious to me than my own life.
The first two lines are ok, but then she gives you this 'hang on...' moment. She obviously doesn't mean 'I was willing for you to die' (cause that would be pretty harsh really if you think about it - I love you so much, go die) she means I was willing to die for you, or at a stretch, I was willing, for you, to die if she needs it to rhyme (technically die doesn't rhyme with life but this sentence is already too full of commas and brackets so I should really get back to the main point of this sentence, which was that...), that's the thing about songs, no commas.
My fave song on the album manages to string a few cliches together and come out with something original and honest and heart-breakingly sweet that ends with a funky little upbeat section. I misheard her though on one of my early listenings and thought one of the lines was I don't need to see, just need to look at you, which got me going 'if you can't see sweetheart, how are you going to look?' but actually she sings I don't need to sleep, just need to look at you, which makes (a little) more sense. Still, she follows that with Then I'll be awake, much more than any rest could do, which is, let's face it, a bit rubbish. Then I'll be awake, refreshed and feeling good as new is a little more grammatical, and if I took more than two seconds to think something up, it could even be a little less jaunty.
Is anyone following this? Briefly, I think this girl is just great, I only thought I'd bitch a bit because she is too perfect otherwise.
She has the most interesting accent too - begging comes out bahgin and love is something between lorve and lahve.
I think I'm done now.
Labels: music
posted by Becca | 9:35 am
4 Comments:
Sounds like someone has been copy editing a little too long.
So so true. That's why May will be my last month copy-editing (yay!)
hmmm...does she actually write the lyrics herself?
After a pause (not necessarily for reflection) I think you may not actually be right on this. Bear in mind that on the Beatles' first LP the track "Saw her standing there" was originally written by Paul Macartney as "She was just seventeen, like a beauty queen..." and John Lennon said that was too clear and graphic. His revised line is more memorable and rock 'n' roll, you'd have to agree:
"She was just seventeen, you know what I mean...", though it means considerably less, really.
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