Wednesday, May 8, 2024

May 8 - Besties: Hollow (Icon for Hire)

  [English version below]

Este blog va a acabar siendo un arma de doble filo para mí, porque en 31 días no puedo abarcar ni una pequeña parte de toda la música que me gustaría. Lo tomaré como un ejercicio de resumen; ya me ha quedado claro que tengo que dejar atrás grupos que adoro si quiero incrementar la variedad. En cualquier caso, Icon for Hire tenía que aparecer, y su momento es este. Esta banda, formada en 2007 en Illinois, Estados Unidos (¡sí, otra vez!), está actualmente formada por la cantante Ariel Bloomer y el guitarrista principal Shawn Jump, que también toca el piano y hace algunos coros. Anteriormente también contaron con Joshua Davis (bajo y voz "no limpia"/gritada), Adam Kronshagen (batería) y Josh Kincheloe (bajo y coros). Entre los géneros que cubren se encuentran el rock alternativo, el rap rock y el pop punk.

Eligieron el nombre de la banda como comentario satírico hacia el estado de la industria de la música, y esa sería la primera de las muchas críticas que han hecho desde entonces. El álbum con el que se dieron a conocer, Scripted, da que pensar con la letra de sus canciones, que alientan a confrontar nuestros demonios interiores y a menudo se centran en la autocompasión. Si queréis conocer algo de su material, os recomiendo Theatre o Pieces, aunque si os gustan acabaréis escuchando el disco entero, porque no tiene despercidio.

La canción que traigo hoy es bastante más nueva, de su álbum Amorphous. Hollow presenta una cuestión sobre la salud mental: ¿será que ahora todo el mundo está mal y esta es la nueva normalidad en la que vivimos? ¿Será que todo el mundo ha estado mal siempre, pero antes no se decía? Hace unos días escuché una frase muy interesante, que venía a decir que el conocimiento es como una esfera: cuanto más se expande, mayor es su frontera, es decir, mayor es la cantidad de cosas que sabemos que desconocemos. De algún modo, siento que hay una analogía, puesto que ahora somos mucho más conscientes y libres que en el pasado. Y estamos viendo las implicaciones de todo ello. Me encanta cuando dice: si todo el mundo está mal, ¿quién se supone que va a arreglarlo entonces? El final del vídeo también es muy revelador. Sobra decir que me declaro fan del pelo de Ariel.

Otra gran baza de Amorphous es Only Be A Story. Y si retrocedemos un poquito, en You Can't Kill Us podemos encontrar War entre otras genialidades. Por último, como seguramente esta sea la única ocasión en la que haya algo de rap en mis temas principales, aprovecho para colar El Idioma De Los Dioses de Nach. Os imagináis cuál es, ¿no? Por si acaso, al final de la canción podéis descubrirlo ;) 

Como me habéis dicho por ahí que os viene bien recibir una notificación de las entradas nuevas, he creado canales de difusión tanto en Whatsapp como en Telegram. Si queréis el enlace de Whatsapp, solamente tenéis que pedírmelo. El de Telegram lo tenéis aquí.


  [Versión en castellano arriba]

This blog is going to end up being a double-edged sword for me, because in 31 days I can't cover even a small portion of all the music I would like. I'll take it as a summary exercise; it has already become clear to me that I have to leave behind bands that I adore if I want to increase the variety. In any case, Icon for Hire had to be part of this, and its time has come. Formed in 2007 in Illinois, USA – yes, again! –, its current members are singer Ariel Bloomer and lead guitarist Shawn Jump, who also plays the piano and does some backing vocals. Previously, they also featured Joshua Davis (bass and unclean vocals), Adam Kronshagen (drums), and Josh Kincheloe (bass and backing vocals). Among the genres they cover we can mention alternative rock, rap rock and pop punk.

They chose the band's name as a satirical comment on the state of the music industry, and that would be the first of many critiques they have made since. Their debut album, Scripted, is thought-provoking with its lyrics, which encourage their listeners to confront their inner demons while often focusing on self-pity. If you want to know some of its content, I recommend Theatre or Pieces, although if you like them you will end up listening to the entire album, because it is priceless.

The song I am bringing today is much newer, from their album Amorphous. Hollow presents a question about mental health: is it that everyone is not okay now and this is the new normal we live in? Could it be that everyone has always been like this, but it wasn't said before? A few days ago I heard a very interesting statement, which essentially said that knowledge is like a sphere: the more it expands, the greater its boundary, that is, the greater the number of things we know that we do not know. I feel there is sort of an analogy, since we are much more aware and free now than in the past. And we are seeing the implications of all this. I love when she says: if everyone is crazy, then who's supposed to fix it? The end of the video is also very revealing. Needless to say, I declare myself a fan of Ariel's hair.

Another great asset of Amorphous is Only Be A Story. And if we go back a little, in You Can't Kill Us we can find War among other brilliant tracks. Finally, since this is probably the only occasion there will be some rap within my main songs, I will take the opportunity to sneak in El Idioma De Los Dioses by Nach. You can guess what the Language of the Gods is, right? Just in case, you can find out at the end of the song ;)

As some of you have told me that it is good for you to receive notifications of new posts, I have created broadcast channels on both WhatsApp and Telegram. If you want the WhatsApp link, please ask me. You have the Telegram one here.


SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/icon-for-hire/hollow




Lyrics/Letra:
I don’t wanna break down but I’m feeling low 
Let me sink to the bottom 
Air in my lungs keeping me afloat 
Inside I’m still hollow 
I know I’m not my thoughts, but my thoughts don’t know that yet 
Sometimes I try to sneak up on the voice inside my head 
I've tried to meditate 'cause they tell me it’ll help 
But the last thing I need’s more time alone inside myself 
I know I’m not unique, we all got broken brains 
Culture recently decided being crazy is okay 
And now we all can talk about it on our social feeds 
"Having a rough day", hashtag mental health awareness week 
I know that’s progress, we don’t have to hide no more 
But it leaves me wondering why we ain’t said this stuff before 
Like were we always all crazy, and we all just kept quiet? 
Are we on the same page, with what we’re identifying? 
And if crazy's the new normal, then it’s not that crazy, is it? 
'Cause the word by definition means it sits outside the system 
And how can we tell the difference between sick and trying to fit in 
And if everybody’s crazy then who’s supposed to fix it? 
I don’t wanna break down but I’m feeling low 
Let me sink to the bottom 
Air in my lungs keeping me afloat 
Inside I’m still hollow 
I don’t wanna break down so where do I go? 
My screams sink to the bottom 
Top of my lungs just an echo 
Inside I’m still hollow 
No one told me it could get this bad, this fast 
Guess we only hear about the struggle after its passed 
Getting easier to open up, share what we’ve lost 
Good to know I’m not alone, but if I’m really being honest 
I kind of hope there’s something wrong with me 
I kind of hope this isn’t how it’s supposed to be 
I pray to god it’s not normal 
Crying on the floor, I don’t wanna do this anymore though
I don’t wanna break down but I’m feeling low 
Let me sink to the bottom 
Air in my lungs keeping me afloat 
Inside I’m still hollow 
I don’t wanna break down so where do I go? 
My screams sink to the bottom 
Top of my lungs just an echo 
Inside I’m still hollow 
I kind of hope there’s something wrong with me 
I kind of hope this isn’t how it’s supposed to be, supposed to be
I pray to god it’s not normal 
Crying on the floor, I don’t wanna do this anymore though
I kind of hope there’s something wrong with me 
I kind of hope this isn’t how it’s supposed to be, supposed to be
I pray to god it’s not normal 
Crying on the floor, I don’t wanna do this anymore though
I don't wanna break down, but I'm feeling low (x3)
I don't wanna break down
I don’t wanna break down but I’m feeling low 
Let me sink to the bottom 
Air in my lungs keeping me afloat 
Inside we're still hollow 
I don’t wanna break down so where do I go? 
My screams sink to the bottom 
Top of my lungs just an echo 
Inside I’m still hollow 
I know I’m not my thoughts, but my thoughts don’t know that yet 
Sometimes I try to sneak up on the voice inside my head 
I've tried to meditate, they tell me it’ll help 
But the last thing I need’s more time alone

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May 31 - Old but gold: Adiós Dulcinea (Mägo de Oz)

  [English version below] Mägo de Oz es una banda española de folk metal fundada en Madrid en 1988 por Jesús Hernández, conocido como Txus d...