Seeking Solace in Gnarls

Well the roller coaster just keeps going downhill! Without getting into too much, the tax man had some pretty grim news for me today and I think I’ve completely lost it. The news came as a shock and now I have a lot of lot of thinking to do…

This works out just great with all of the other things that have been going on in my life lately and I find myself in the lowest of places. Once again I've turned to music to seek comfort in my desolation through the words of others.

At the moment I’m listening to Gnarls Barkley, a group whose music I’ve been a fan of for a long time. When I first discovered them, after their song “Crazy” became so popular, I found the lyrical content of the majority of their stuff dark and attractive. Many of these songs spoke to me in one way or another, and they telll me that I'm not always alone in the way I'm feeling.

Though afterwards I learned to like their more up tempo stuff just as much, the darker songs are ones which I can identify with during times like these. Here’s some of what I’m talking about:

Crazy

I remember when, I remember, I remember when I lost my mind
There was something so pleasant about that place.
Even your emotions had an echo
In so much space

And when you're out there
Without care,
Yeah, I was out of touch
But it wasn't because I didn't know enough
I just knew too much

Does that make me crazy?

This song has always been a work of pure genius to me. I think we all think we're a little crazy sometimes and as long as we accept that, we're ok!



Just a Thought

Here’s one that got me the first time I ever heard it. The song’s called “Just a Thought”, and it’s about something I think we all go through in our minds when things aren't looking so good. Read on and take a listen below:

All I want is your understanding
As in the small act of affection
"Why is this my life?"
Is almost everybody's question

And I've tried
Everything but suicide
But it's crossed my mind

I prefer peace
Wouldn't have to have one worldly possession
But essentially I'm an animal
So just what do I do with all the aggression?

Well I've tried
Everything but suicide
But it's crossed my mind

Life is a one-way street, and if you could paint it
I'd draw myself going in the right direction
So I go all the way - like I really really know -
But the truth is I'm only guessin'

Well I've tried
Everything but suicide
But it's crossed my mind

It's even dark in the daytime
It's not just good - it's +Great Depression+
When I was lost I even found myself
Looking in the gun's direction

Well I've tried
Everything but suicide
But it's crossed my mind



This is some powerful and dark stuff, huh? I couldn’t help but hear it in my head as I left the tax man’s office today, as this newest bad news hit me like a ton of bricks. “What else can happen to me?” I think to myself, and yes, the chorus runs through my head over and over. But like they say in the song, it’s “just a thought.”

Who’s Gonna Save My Soul



Woof! I just saw this video for the first time and I couldn’t help but relate to it big time. Though the video pokes fun at breakups, the song itself is soulful, deep, and very sad. I think it just may make it to my “Favorite Slow Songs” list, although I'd better not listen to it too often if you know what I mean. Check out the lyrics and the video below:

I got some bad news this morning
Which in turn made my day
When this someone spoke I listened
All of a sudden, has less and less to say
Ohhhhhh how could this be?
All this time, I've lived vicariously
Who's gonna save my soul now?
Who's gonna save my soul now?
How will my story ever be told now?
How will my story be told now?

Made me feel like somebody
Hmmm, like somebody else
Although he was imitated often
It felt like I was bein myself
Is it a shame that someone else's song
Was totally and completely dependent on
Who's gonna save my soul now?
Who's gonna save my soul now?
I wonder if I'll live to grow old now
Gettin high cause I feel so low down

And maybe it's a little selfish
All I have is the memory
Yet I never stopped to wonder-ahhhhh
Was it possible you were hurtin worse than me
Still my hunger turns to greeeeed
Cause what about what I neeeeeed?!
And OHHHH~! Who's gonna save my soul now?
Who's gonna save my soul now?
Ohhhh I know I'm out of control now
Oooh-oooh, tired enough to lay my own soul down


Gnarls Barkley - "Who's Gonna Save My Soul?"
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These are just a few of the Gnarls Barkley songs that have spoken to me in times of sorrow and worry. There are others, but for me these three songs tell the story of my life in the present, and so these are all I’ll share for now. If you don’t know the music of Gnarls Barkley, then you’re really missing out on something. Though they’ve never been too mainstream, other than the smash “Crazy”, I think their music is relevant, poignant, and somehow strangely comforting.

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