Greetings from Highland Park, Illinois. I spent most of yesterday on a plane and am happy to report that nobody tried to see me nekkid or grope me. Tucson International isn't on the TSA's list of airports to get the scanners. Midway Airport in Chicago doesn't have them yet.
In celebration, I leave you with this (hat tip @New Research Findings Two):
Showing posts with label protest songs. Show all posts
Showing posts with label protest songs. Show all posts
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
There's no stopping us this time
When my parents came out to see us play yesterday, we got to show off a few new songs they'd never heard before. Their reactions were almost uniformly positive. "That's a very powerful song," they'd say. Or, "You have to put that on your next album!"
But at the end of the first chorus for "Now You See Us," my father started laughing. And I couldn't figure out why. Did I do something wrong?
I asked him about it after our set, reciting the chorus to jog his memory:
He's right, of course, but what's the alternative? "Someone's got to keep the faith / Someone's got to hold the line / I'll keep singing at you people / Though it's just a waste of time"
The point is to convey a common purpose, and to give ourselves just enough optimism to carry us through to the next little action we take.
You can't rally the troops by being realistic, dammit!
But at the end of the first chorus for "Now You See Us," my father started laughing. And I couldn't figure out why. Did I do something wrong?
I asked him about it after our set, reciting the chorus to jog his memory:
Someone's got to keep the faith"There's no stopping us this time," my dad echoed. "Every protest song is like that. They all think they can change the world."
Someone's got to hold the line
I can build a mighty fortress
With the power of my mind
I'll do anything it takes
Gonna take back what is mine
And there's no stopping us this time
He's right, of course, but what's the alternative? "Someone's got to keep the faith / Someone's got to hold the line / I'll keep singing at you people / Though it's just a waste of time"
The point is to convey a common purpose, and to give ourselves just enough optimism to carry us through to the next little action we take.
You can't rally the troops by being realistic, dammit!
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Why so serious?
Over the weekend I finished writing a protest song. I have no idea if it's any good.
As far as the music goes, I'm happy. It's a decent little na-na piece. Lyrically? Hard telling. I've never written this sort of thing before. I tried to convey righteous indignation without falling over the edge into preachiness. I tried to avoid a technique that annoys me in other protest songs, namely getting too detailed about the specific issue at hand.
Mostly, I wanted to give the song's target audience a sense of optimism, a sense that it really is possible to change things for the better. I wanted to inspire people -- including myself -- to take action, even if that action is small.
After finally watching United Breaks Guitars and getting a few good laughs out of it, it struck me that if I want to effect change through music, protest songs might not be the best way to go. Humor is so much more effective. Make the thing you're fighting appear ridiculous, and listeners can't help but understand where you're coming from.
The problem, I realized, is I don't have the slightest clue how to write that kind of song. An interview from today's Songwriting Scene contains a few good tips, but I still wouldn't know where to start.
Shortly after posting about "United Breaks Guitars" and contemplating whether I could do satire or parody, I came across a news item on Ryan Baldwin. Ryan is the kid who's in foster care because he has ME/CFS, and the authorities suspect his parents of "factitious illness by proxy." The parents have been fighting this decision in court. Apparently they lost the case in June. Ryan is staying in foster care.
This is exactly the kind of thing that inspired the song I just wrote.
I don't know how to make something like this funny. I don't think I can.
As far as the music goes, I'm happy. It's a decent little na-na piece. Lyrically? Hard telling. I've never written this sort of thing before. I tried to convey righteous indignation without falling over the edge into preachiness. I tried to avoid a technique that annoys me in other protest songs, namely getting too detailed about the specific issue at hand.
Mostly, I wanted to give the song's target audience a sense of optimism, a sense that it really is possible to change things for the better. I wanted to inspire people -- including myself -- to take action, even if that action is small.
* * *
After finally watching United Breaks Guitars and getting a few good laughs out of it, it struck me that if I want to effect change through music, protest songs might not be the best way to go. Humor is so much more effective. Make the thing you're fighting appear ridiculous, and listeners can't help but understand where you're coming from.
The problem, I realized, is I don't have the slightest clue how to write that kind of song. An interview from today's Songwriting Scene contains a few good tips, but I still wouldn't know where to start.
* * *
Shortly after posting about "United Breaks Guitars" and contemplating whether I could do satire or parody, I came across a news item on Ryan Baldwin. Ryan is the kid who's in foster care because he has ME/CFS, and the authorities suspect his parents of "factitious illness by proxy." The parents have been fighting this decision in court. Apparently they lost the case in June. Ryan is staying in foster care.
This is exactly the kind of thing that inspired the song I just wrote.
I don't know how to make something like this funny. I don't think I can.
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