Feist Live

I don’t like to admit that I like The Carpenters, because in my mind I wouldn’t count them as a personal favorite but as it turns out I do like how their songs sound like without necessarily subscribing to The Carpenters shrine ring. I sometimes find myself bopping my head to the kind of song that reminds me how The Carpenters write their songs.  I’m not saying that, the song that I hear which then remind of another, lacks originality.  My guess is that people who write these somewhat parallel songs simply share outbursts of sensation, whether melancholy or joy, and share sensibilities that cut across age gaps.

I also say music is always inspired by another music or the sounds of nature, which sounds just the same for everyone if they just listen carefully.

For that matter, I truly admire Feist‘s latest ruminations. Her album The Reminder interestingly evokes that kind of musical fervor in me.  Her song reverberates in the room in your brain where they keep memories and nostalgia, real or imagined.  And washes you with body tingles with each deep instrumental vibration.

It may sound a bit exaggerated, but I’m writing to you now as I listen through this beautiful album…

A cold heart will burst / if mistrusted first
A calm heart will break / when given a shake

The Carpenters is by far the most articulate pop band of their time when it comes to love melancholy.  People who grow up to their songs will not wonder why the story of these two siblings is as tragic as, say, their song Aurora.

Yesterday, I felt rain on my head.  Walking through a crowded place, everyone is bustling, running for cover, scrounging for a ride home.

Yet I moved through the noisy crowd like the film and music was slow and sad. Like Karen Carpenter cooed at my ear with her cold voice.  I have always wondered why the rain was such a sad occasion on most literary references.

Oh, and by the way Scarlett Johansson can sing.