Bright Eyes - How To Paint Pictures With Lyrics
Lucy Cunningham
There is nothing quite like reading the lyrics to a song you love and discovering that it means so much more than you first preconceived. I have experienced this multiple times, on most of the occasions these hidden treasures becoming songs that I hold very close to my heart.
I have always been more so connected to muffled and hazy lyrics that lay low in the background of a track. I love when the melody is so powerful within itself that the lyrics almost seem an afterthought, that the artist could hum non-sensically throughout and still punch you in the gut with emotion. You are carried along by the tune with no worries, no thoughts, just feeling.
I believed this was my preferred musical ‘genre’ up until I stumbled upon a band, their lyrics so powerful that now it was the melody that no longer mattered, despite still being outstanding. Bright Eyes - their lyricist being Conor Orberst - paints images with words so profound it has meant that I could be falling from the sky in a failing aeroplane and feel cool about the whole ordeal. Listen to “At the Bottom of Everything” to understand this phenomenon.
Orberst’s imagery and metaphors immerse you in the disgraces and absolute joys of our world, giving new perspectives on war, love and what it is to be human. His philosophies truly transport you to a new view on everything you thought you knew and were.
Although every line of every track is beyond quotable and thought-provoking, here are some examples of lyrics that really stand out to me. I suggest listening along to the songs to really get a feel for the tone of the messages.
Bowl of Oranges (0:37) -
“And i came upon a doctor who appeared in quite poor health, I said there’s nothing I can do for you you can’t do for yourself, he said oh yes you can just hold my hand I think that that would help, so I sat with him a while then I asked him how he felt. He said I think I’m cured, no in fact I'm sure of it, thank you stranger, for your therapeutic smile”
At the Bottom of Everything (2:24)
“While my mother waters plants my father loads his gun, he says death will bring us back to god just like the setting sun is returned to the lonesome ocean.”
(Also listen to final section of this song)
Lua (3:03)
“Well we might die from medication but we sure killed all the pain, but what was normal in the evening by the morning seems insane. And I’m not sure what the trouble was, that started all of this, the reasons all have run away but the feeling never did.”
First Day of My Life (2:16)
“But I’d rather be working for a pay check than waiting to win the lottery”
Landlocked Blues (2:25) and (4:29)
“And the world’s got me dizzy again, you’d think after twenty-two years I’d be used to the spin”
“I’ve grown tired of holding this pose, I feel more like a stranger each time I come home”
Poison Oak (3:34)
“The end of paralysis, I was a statuette, now I’m drunk as hell on a piano bench, and when I press the keys it all gets reversed, the sound of loneliness makes me happier”
(When I listen to Poison Oak I am taken back to my childhood, growing up in a housing estate surrounded by friends and adventure and I reminisce of the simple pleasures of my life then. I can’t help but feel a sense of emptiness brought on by these lyrics that I can never return to such a time of innocence and unbreakable bonds.)
If the Brakeman Turns My Way (0:07) and (2:40)
“Raven thoughts blacken your mind until you’re breathing in reverse, all your friends and sedatives mean well but make it worse”
“All this death must need a counterweight, always someone born again. First a mother bathes her child, then the other way around, the scales always find a way to level out”
Amongst this collection is an outstandingly rich ensemble of beautiful songs, dedicated to tearing open your heart and filling it back up with understanding of the life in its truest form.
Despite the success of Bright Eyes - having toured with acclaimed artists such as Bruce Springsteen and R.E.M, multiple tracks gaining spotlight in the top two places of the Billboard Hot 100 Single Sales and winning Song and Artist of the year at the PLUG Independent Music Awards - I believe endless admiration should be given to such masterpieces.
These songs have really changed my outlooks on everything and brightened my eyes to the world. I will forever hold on to these songs and carry their messages through everyday life. Orburt’s music acts like a pair of glasses, that when put on, mutes everything bad until you can only see beauty in the pain, in the decay and in the madness.
Listen to Bright Eyes when you are exuding happiness, listen when you’re in tears, when you’re facing your greatest fear, when you feel like you can’t understand anything and everything. Ride the sensations it brings, feel the feelings it creates.
Laugh, live and love!
