All in song lyrics meaning
So, when "Heathens" first came out, I put out a couple of blog posts explaining the lyrics. My first one explained that "Heathens" was largely about the Skeleton Clique and letting in outsiders, but my second one retracted that and said that "Heathens" was about Christian witnessing and what it meant to share your faith as a quick fix for people with real troubles. I still really like that explanation, and it fit in really well with Twenty One Pilots songs like "Clear," but I've just gotten new evidence that I HAD to share with you guys. In a radio interview, Tyler Joseph gives the TRUE meaning of "Heathens," and I have a lot to say about it.
Imagine Dragons is working up to releasing their new album Evolve, and "Thunder" has got to be the most eclectic popular song I've heard all year. Seriously though. This song is fantastic, but in this podcast we're going to expose it for just how fantastic it is. Is it about epic conquest? Is it about deeper questions in life? Is it about Dan Reynolds's life? Yes, to all three! But we'll see how and more soon! Plus, we'll be looking at how the music, music video, and lyrics compliment each other perfectly.
The Weeknd does a masterful job of curating this track. Or should I say that Abel Tesfaye does? That's one of those things that trips up even the biggest fan of The Weeknd--Abel Tesfaye and The Weeknd are not the same person. And that's one of the things we talk about in today's episode of The Pop Song Professor Podcast.
Paramore dropped the music video for a new single just a few days ago, and it's been very interesting, between "Told You So" and the previously released "Hard Times" to try to predict the direction the band is taking. My impression of Paramore's earlier music was that it was fairly hardcore, but this new music seems to have Latin influence and seems lighter and easier to digest.
Harry Styles just released the next single from his upcoming album Harry Styles, and if any song from any former One Direction band member is going to claim indie influence, it's probably going to be "Sweet Creature." The name's already odd enough to be alternative, and the folksy backing vocals, simple guitar picking, and country-inspired vocal flourishes remind me heavily of acoustic alternative songs about summer days and childhood.
Just a few days ago, Imagine Dragons released "Thunder," and I have to say that I really like it. I remember hearing "Radioactive" for the first time. There was a girl I liked, and she, a few friends of ours, and I sat on her parents' livingroom floor sharing music. She brought out Imagine Dragons, and while relationally she didn't change my life, musically she might have. I was interning for a US senator at the time, and I remember pulling up Grooveshark and listening to Imagine Dragons songs non-stop.
Fall Out Boy just released their first new song in years. After the success of songs like "Uma Thurman" and "Centuries," I think a lot of Fall Out Boy fans have been waiting for something new from the band, and we now finally know that Fall Out Boy will be releasing a new album called Mania in September of 2017. The lead single off this album is "Young and Menace," and its lyrics are about riding the wave of feelings of isolation, anger and anxiety.
So, today we're talking about an absolutely wonderful song--Coldplay's "Viva La Vida." The lyrics are deep, interesting, and unique, and I think you'll enjoy this episode. Plus, while the sound quality may be a little lower than usual, we did this podcast live on YouTube, so we got viewers' comments in on it! So, you have a voice! We hope to do more of these and can't wait to see you on our behind-the-scenes live editions of the show!
Today, my guest and I are talking about "Pumped Up Kicks" by Foster the People. It's a fantastic song, and I think you're going to enjoy going deeper behind the meaning of these lyrics. The song is about a school shooter, but it's not glorifying it. Foster the People is trying to start a conversation about who school shooters are.
The Chainsmokers have released a new song! "The One" is slower and more purposefully emotional than most of the hits The Chainsmokers has been dropping recently. That being said, that slowness isn't what we expect from The Chainsmokers, so I'm curious to see whether people will take to it or not. Of course, it does sound like The Chainsmokers are diversifying their repertoire with "The One," which could be a sign that they're growing as artists.
Gorillaz is back after a half a decade hiatus, and I can't believe I've never listened to this music before. "Saturnz Barz" (not to mention the other three songs released at the same time) is artistically created, methodical, and cryptic. Some lyrics are clear personal narrative (a la Popcaan's rap), and the rest are near incomprehensible. Lay these down over a track that's just as new, weird, and edgy, and you have yourself a song worth listening to.
Clean Bandit, who has been touring with Zara Larsson, just released a new soon-to-be-hit single with the singer. Despite using the word "symphony" eight times, "Symphony" has got a strong dance beat and heavy synth, and sounds custom made for the club. But that's what one expects from Clean Bandit. And also as expected from Clean Bandit," Symphony's" music video has a strong emotional meaning. The music video shows a man recovering after the death of his boyfriend/husband. But does the song itself reflect this depth of meaning?
Lorde just released her newest song from Melodrama. And when I say "just," I mean "just." "Liability" is less than hour old, but it's already easy to hear how good it is. Interestingly, it's a different style from anything from Pure Heroine. The song sounds more singer-songwriter than any of the dark, synthy pop on Pure Heroine, but the lyrics are still angsty, dark, and sad. It's the same Lorde even if she sounds a little different in "Liability."
If you actually want to be hypnotized, the Coldplay lyric video for "Hypnotised" should do the trick for you. There's lots of slow motion water, flowers, bubbles, and landscapes. Combine that with the incredibly dream-like state the music itself will put you in, and you're really not going to have a chance against Chris Martin and the rest of Coldplay.
Folks, I love Lorde's music...like a lot. And so I'm really excited to be explaining "Green Light" by her, from her upcoming album Melodrama. This song is excellent, and I think you'll enjoy this unique and original look at heartbreak and the process of getting over heartbreak and what comes after. Lorde uses some pretty unique tactics in her song, and I think she pulls them off really well.
This is one of my favorite songs of 2017 because it's so deep compared to most pop songs. There are several allusions and many metaphors and symbols in here, and it's a very worthwhile song to try to figure out. You may not agree with the politics of "Chained to the Rhythm," but it's worth your time to try to understand it and grapple with the issues being mentioned here. Enjoy everyone!
I should preface this by saying that I'm a huge Lorde fan, but I won't let that color my explanation and analysis of her song. Pure Heroine was the first time, personally, that a new album came out that I could listen to straight through and then start again. Every song on that record was amazing, and I loved them all. It opened me up to the new experience of listening to an album as a whole, which is more difficult than you might think in a world that runs on singles.
“Chained to the Rhythm” by Katy Perry is about people who live live far away from difficulty or unhappiness and who aren’t willing to come down out of these “bubble[s]” to see real problems that need to be solved in the world. She doesn’t specify the kind of problems and leaves it to her audience to apply her song to situations on their own though there does seem to be a pretty substantial political charge to this song.
The conversation was good, and the topics were deep during the trip, but I especially enjoyed this conversation about how they integrate pop song lyrics into their Sunday School and youth group programs at their church.
Coldplay and The Chainsmokers are probably one of the more unlikely collaborations we'll see this year in music, but "Something Just Like This" may be one of the best collabs we'll see. Musically, it's entrancing. It's everything we love about The Chainsmokers' thoughtful and body-moving approach to EDM music with everything we love about the dry, smooth power of Chris Martin's voice. It's really the best of both worlds, and while the group is an unlooked for collaboration, personally, I'll be looking for more songs from these two groups.
