Music As Poetry

Liquid Sovereignty

By Eyedea and Abilities


Everyone wants to get out of the rain

Wants to be free, wants to see no more pan

We're guaranteed that the season will change

'Till then, I'm keeping sunshine on my brain

When the drops hit my head they leave a stain

Everyone wants to get out of the rain

We cannot avoid nature's bleeding vein

But I smile while it trickles down the rain



Harvested love only comes after rain

Even though it brings overwhelming strain

It falls from all skies so I can't complain

Without it, our growth would not be the same

Most people like to have someone to blame

But it falls randomly, not taking aim

It makes up one half of the yin and yang

Without the water, you can't have the flame

Without the water, you can't have the flame

Some are content holding ground in their game

But when my soul steps to exit this frame

I will be reincarnated as



[Chorus]



Rain

Harvested thought only comes after rain

Artists may talk and give it different names

When they appear wet, they may feel ashamed

So they don't walk but instead take the train

And when that ride stops they notice the strange

Sense of degeneration they've obtained

While the world evolves, they stand and turn lame

Storm is prerequisite to mental gain

Storm is prerequisite to mental gain

Philosophy's life

That's simple and plain

Poets play with words to keep themselves sane

You do your thing while the clouds pour the



[Chorus]



Harvested skill only comes after rain

Architects build under sun, so they claim

But when the puddles decided to hang

Is when their hands sketched the plans that remained

Every man secretly hopes he can tame

The beast he fears most 'cause it can't be slain

Towering, gray faces laugh so deranged

One day we all will break free from their chains

One day we all will break free from their chains

And rise towards the sun with good health sustained

It's almost impossible to explain

But I owe all my success to the rain


Analysis

What strikes me most about these lyrics is the use of metaphors. The lyricist uses rain as an explanation for humanity's growth, just as rain generates growth in nature. "Harvested thought only comes after rain" illustrates this point. The author shows the importance of rain in his life and the life of others by pointing out the growth rain produces. That's what I find so poetic about these lyrics, that something as mundane as precipitation can serve as a symbol representing life. This is all done in a rhyming package, which only adds to the beauty of the lyrics.

"Artists may talk and give it different names

When they appear wet, they may feel ashamed

So they don't walk but instead take the train

And when that ride stops they notice the strange

Sense of degeneration they've obtained"


When the rhyming is coupled with thematic elements explaining rain as a catalyst for life, poetry ensues.

Girls Gone (Kehinde) Wiley

It's cool that Wiley uses random people off the street as models, but I remain unmoved by his art. It seems he's aiming to convey a certain urban swagger, but I don't actually know. Like all visual art, I find the meaning nebulous.

At Least I'm Not in Math...

A Little Hanky Banksy

1. I'm sure Banksy thinks he is commenting on the world around him, but his work does nothing for me. It renders me with no sentiments about him whatsoever. I'm utterly nonplussed. Anyone can make art that "speaks" to his or her audience, and Banksy's art certainly does that, but the reason I don't like visual art is that it is too open to interpretation. It can mean anything to anyone, which may be what he is shooting for, but it ends up turning off people like me who want savvy, rather than pretentious commentary.

2. Art is art whether it's located in the Louvre or on the side of a building. The problem lies with authority; the police and/or community leaders might not consider graffiti art. If one selects a pseudonym, he or she can publish, paint, or draw whatever he or she feels without tangible consequences (i.e. fines, jail time). The alternate persona distances the art from the person who creates it. It allows people to rationalize more creative risk because it isn't Scott Gannis writing a book about his feelings, it's F. Scott FitzGannis.

3. If you are proud of your work and not a self-conscious artist, it is always a good idea to put your art where people can see it. Some art is too intensely personal for that, but the vast majority of art deserves an audience. Good art makes people look at the world differently, and the best way for that to take place is growing one's audience.

Visual Artist that Doesn't Actually Speak to Me, but Will Serve as Good Filler

Snoop Blog

Blog Name

I tried the name "Who Let the Blogs Out?" but it's already in use. A disappointing start indeed.