Carl's Favorite Lyricist's And a Mini Essay On Thrice(haha)(Favorite Lyricists Write-Off!) May 03 '06 (Updated Jul 07 '06)    Write an essay on this topic. Tweet Popular Products in Music The Dirtchamber Sessions, Vol. 1 by The Prodigy From $11 Jersey Boys [Original Broadway Cast Recording] by Original Broadway Cast From $8 The Bottom Line I love these guy's lyrics...and the last part of this write-off is massive... There's just something about a well written lyric, that intensifies music, explains emotion, and makes a mere song a experience beyond what mortal instruments string together. Good lyrics make a song, and at times a whole album seem more important then it would have ever been if it didn't contain those few lines that breathe life into the soul. The same goes for bad lyrics unfortunately, they can bring down a well executed musical suite with their paltry rhymes and forced delivery. For this write-off however, I'm going to focus on those songwriters who truly embody what a good lyric can really do. For some reason I have decided to write about six, not five or ten. To each his own, and after all it is my write-off. 6: Derek Webb Derek is somewhat of an enigma in the Christian music scene, one that is predominately filled with Conservative politics and Republican party mantra's, as he embraces somewhat of a more liberal or moderate viewpoint. The topics he frequently tackles in his songs are ones that many of the Christian realm are afraid to talk about, and even ones that may be skipped over in popular theology because of the implications they have on one's faith. Take for instance this line from A King And A Kingdom, from his newest album Mockingbird, "There are two great lies that I’ve heard: “The day you eat of the fruit of that tree, you will not surely die” and that Jesus Christ was a white, middle-class republican and if you wanna be saved you have to learn to be like Him." I just read, in the latest issue of Relevant magazine, that at a recent concert several people left one of Derek's shows after he sang this song. Isn't that what great lyrics are supposed to do, cause such a reaction? Derek has also taken some flack for the lyrics on his first album, She Must And Shall Go Free, in particular for the song Wedding Dress. Wedding Dress is a beautiful song of Christ's love and redemption complete with some rather strong language to depict the relationship us Christian's have to the Almighty God., "I am a wh*re, I do confess, but I put you on just like a wedding dress, and I run down the aisle." Derek has also never been afraid to address the issue of the commercialization of the church, as the lyrics to Ballad In Plain Red, from I See Things Upside Down show: "Don’t want the song I want a jingle, I love you Lord but don’t hear a single, and the truth is nearly impossible to rhyme." 5: Andrew Peterson Andrew Peterson, much like Derek Webb, is another writer whose lyrics tackle more than the average feel good lyricism that plagues most Contemporary Christian Music today. Unlike Derek, whose focus is primarily on the Church and the things that need to be changed, Andrew takes a more personal level with his lyrics, and while they may not be filled with large vocabulary or biting lines, they are honest, down to earth, and an example of everything Christian lyrics should be. One of his most beautiful and challenging lyrics comes from his first album, Carried Along, and the song Come Lord Jesus, a heart wrenching ballad which first decries the Church's legalistic attitude, then turns the spotlight on our own souls, and the hypocritical streak we all take part in, and ends with a quiet prayer for Jesus to come and rescue us. "And it feels like the church isn't anything more, then the second coming of the Pharisees....There's no end in sight, 'cause I've carried my cross into dens of the wicked, and you know I blended in just fine...So, Amen, come, Lord Jesus." One of my favorite songs by Andrew is Hold Up My Arms, off of the album Clear To Venus, which is just about the most honest love song I have ever heard in my life, in fact I am planning to play this at my wedding. Hope my wife thinks as highly of it as I do. "Girl, I'd be lying if I promised you that every word I said was true, but I can promise you this, that I'll do my best to try and do my very best for you, it the best I can do, its the best I can give." 4: Bob Dylan I'll begin talking about Bob Dylan recounting a conversation I had with my friend the other day. We were sitting in this seminar thing, and the guy speaking was using a song lyric as an example. When he said the title I thought it might have been a Bob Dylan song, so I informed my friend of this. The guy read the lyrics and I knew it wasn't a Dylan lyric as it had none of the characteristics or weirdness of Dylan. Then my friend turns to me and says, "That was too deep for Dylan." I just stared at him for a minute before informing him that Bob Dylan wrote some of more deep and interesting lyrics I had ever read/heard. He of course discounted this, not being a large Dylan fan. Some people just don't get Bob I guess. I know I love his lyrics, from the nonsensical ramblings, to the striking insight he has into the human condition, and to his tender love songs that offer about as much resolution as they are vague. One of my favorite songs by Bob, the seven minute epic It's Alright, Ma(I'm Only Bleeding), contains one of the more brilliant lyrical lines in a song that have ever graced my ears, "Disillusioned words like bullets bark, as human gods aim for their mark, make everything from toy guns that spark, to flesh colored Christ's that glow in the dark, its easy to see without looking to far to that not much is really sacred." Dylan however is not all seriousness, and many of his songs tell long, complex musical tales, especially Lily, Rosemary, And The Jack Of Hearts from Blood On The Tracks, an eight minute story that has to be heard to believed, if of course, you have the patience. Later on in his career, when Dylan became a Christian he released three distinctly Gospel flavored albums, and the title-track from Saved, marks a song I wish we would bust out on church sometime. Saved is one of those songs that is incredibly easy to sing along with, yet with lyrics that don't even come close to being idiotic, but portray the gladness of belonging to Jesus, "Nobody to rescue me, nobody was there, I was going down for the last time, but by his mercy I've been spared, not by works, by faith as him in all, for so long I've been hindered, for so long I've been stalled, but I've been saved..." There are so many more examples of Dylan's writing I could use, but for a desire to keep this short(somewhat), and also from not owning alot of his albums, I'll end here. 3: Bono, U2 What Bono lacks in outright skill in songwriting he makes up in straightforward emotion. U2's songs border on simplistic at times, and yet they always convey something more beneath the surface. This is greatly due to Bono's lyrics, which at times can be about God, a lover, friends, or all of the above. Who can deny the power of With Or Without You with some of the most moving, yet amazing widely interpreted lyrics of our day? What about One with its tremendous chorus and beautiful lyrics that stand out right away, asking painful yet necessary questions? In fact, all of Acthung Baby could act as a fundamental study in what makes an album about love and heartbreak really work. Take The Fly for instance, a devilishly clever idea from Bono, to have a man making a phone call from hell divulging various secrets to us up on earth, "It's no secret that a friend is one who gives you help, it's no secret that a liar won't believe in anyone else, they say a secret is something you tell one another, so I'm telling you child...It's no secret that a conscience can sometimes be a pest, it's no secret ambition bites the nails of success, every artist is a cannibal, every poet is a thief, all kill their inspiration and sing about their grief." The Fly stands as perhaps the best example of Bono's sarcasm and wit, much like Where The Streets Have No Name may stand as the most passionate and exuberant plea of Bono's songwriting career. Transformed as of late into a rallying cry for Africa(see Vertigo Tour dvd), Where The Streets Have No Name is one of those songs that captures body, mind, and spirit in a anthem for the ages, "I want to run, I want to hide, I want to tear down the walls that hold me inside, I want to reach out and touch the flame, where the streets have no name." Where The Streets Have No Name may have competition from Bad, a sweeping monstrosity of a song, in which Bono cries out to a friend to break away from an addiction. It's not so much the lyrics of Bad but the intensity and emotion Bono conveys through these words that make Bad, and the rest of the U2 catalog an impressive feat of emotion and beauty. "If I could throw this life, this lifeline to the wind, leave this heart of clay, see you walk, walk away into the night and through the rain, into the half-light and through the flame. If I could through myself set your spirit free, I'd lead your heart away see you break, break away, into the light and to the day." One can't mention U2 and Bono without failing to mention the social consciousness running throughout many of their most poignant and well known songs. Newer songs such as Crumbs From Your Table and Peace On Earth have taken the mantle from the old, but none of them have become as successful or as thought provoking as Sunday Bloody Sunday, a proclamation of U2's unease with the situation in Ireland at the time, and one of the most loved songs of their long career. "And it's true we are immune, when fact is fiction and TV reality, and today the millions cry, we eat and drink while tomorrow they die, the real battle has begun, to claim the victory Jesus won, on Sunday bloody Sunday." 2: Christian Lindskog, Blindside When Blindside first burst onto the scene with their self-titled debut, Blindside, lead singer Christian Lindskog's lyrics were nothing to write home about. But between the debut and their sophomore release A Thought Crushed My Mind, Christian's writing improved greatly as evidenced by one of the greatest songs off that album and one of Blindside's biggest hits, King Of The Closet. Confessional in tone, King Of The Closet revealed a deeply honest view into the reality of our relationship between God, and the time when we don't want to see Him because of our sin. "And it'll make me say I'm ok even though it hurts more if I stay, And I'm ok. Yes, I'm ok. If that'll make your questions go away!" However, the album closer Nothing But Skin offers up perhaps Blindside's most potent declaration of faith, and one of the most beautiful praises to Jesus I know, "To be allowed to break into a thousand pieces, in her arms and in your hand, can't even form my lips to say Jesus, but I thank you for knowing where I'm supposed to land." Blindside launched themselves into the mainstream with the release of Silence, and Christian's lyric continued to shine. Especially on lead single, Pitiful, which was and continues to be one of my favorite songs of all time due to the stellar combination of lyrics and music. "And I admit that I was only waiting for the right time, night time, the right moment for you to look away, though you never did I pretended for a while, so I could walk where I don't belong." Much like King Of The Closet, Pitiful reveals the part of me that identifies with these lyrics. I want to love God and follow Him with everything, but so many times I fail, trying to pretend He doesn't exist and that He won't see that; but all the time He is there, and He stills love me, time after time. Christian is excellent at using vivid imagery to capture a song's emotion, and the title cut from About A Burning Fire executes this to perfection using fire to explore God's beautiful, destructive love. "Love is destructive, for the ego, and Your voice is the only thing, that speaks rebelliously in this world of claiming your own....I thought about fire in the sky, I thought about love burning in your eye." One thing I always enjoy about getting a new cd, is whipping out the lyrics booklet and reading them. Sometimes good lyrics will keep on bringing back to an album even when the music is not quite as good as the previous releases. This is the case with The Great Depression, Blindside's newest release. I loved the album at first listen, and I will say I think it is somewhat of a transitional time for the band, but Christian's lyrics only seem to get better. The Great Depression closes with When I Remember a stunning song which is easily the best on the album, and is quite possibly one of Christian's best songwriting attempts throughout the band's career. I'll let these lyrics carry you out into Carl's number one favorite lyricists, "A cloud moves in, rain falls, thunder strikes, and sunshine breaks through the clouds I can cry out of sorrow and joy, every drop of rain turns into a crystal in the sun, so wash my eyes, my clothes, my skin, my bones, my soul, my feet, my love, I'm not forgotten, I'm in your thoughts cause I feel sunshine in the rain." 1: Dustin Kensrue, Thrice What can I say about Dustin Kensrue? Amazing comes to mind, along with another slew of adjectives that would probably not be able to fully describe how much this man's lyrics have impacted my life. Thrice's music is incredible to be sure, but without Dustin's lyrics they would simply be another fly-by-night outfit who carries no real meaning beneath their instrumental exterior. Take To What End for instance, a pretty straightforward meld of punk and hardcore, off the quartet's debut album, Identity Crisis, that becomes something entirely amazing when coupled with some great lyrics from Dustin, addressing, as it says in the booklet, the reality of a naturalistic worldview. "If I have no soul to touch, no heart to love, no evil to rise up above, no angels and no ghosts, real victories to touch, if you believe that this is true, then I must ask, to what end do we proceed?" Even on the band's debut album his lyrics were head and shoulder's above the rest, and they only continue to get better. The Illusion Of Safety, Thrice's sophomore effort only continued to show Dustin and the band's evolution, now with Dustin weaving literary ideas and deep allusions to what lies beneath the human physce into his lyrics. The Illusion Of Safety is a winding labyrinth of musical and lyrical ideas to uncover, one of the largest of them being the struggle with sin, and how we as humans deal with it. A Subtle Dagger addresses that issue from the perspective of pride with these scalding lyrics, "Our souls they speak of something more, but we cant look beyond ourselves. We implore empty skies because, our hearts hold room for no one else." Later on in the album, Deadbolt takes a more personal view at the issue with lyrics that detail a struggle birthed from the pages of Proverbs 9, one between lust and love. These lyrics have hit home with me on more than a few occasions, "And she calls from the doorway 'stolen water is sweet'....That this is not the first time I’ve stood in front of this door, with an overwhelming feeling that I shouldn’t go in, but it seems this is a battle that I never could win....What have I done? Is it too late to save me from this place?" If The Illusion Of Safety was an album about sin and trials, The Artist In The Ambulance is an album about searching for truth and also focusing on more political issues than other Thrice albums. But still Dustin plays the part of the herald to the world screaming for us to wake up. A modern day T.S. Eliot, Dustin implores the listener to look past what we can see, as he mourns the loss of faith and truth in the world. The lead single, All That's Left shows the loss of faith and its impacts in a startlingly personal way, "We are the ones who lost our faith, we dug ourselves an early grave. We are the dead, can we be saved?" The answer to that last question wouldn't come until Thrice's next release, Vheissu, as for the rest of The Artist In The Ambulance Dustin explores truth and its nature in this world. Dustin cries out in Stare At The Sun, wondering why truth is so hard to find and trying to find out where it has gone, " Do I trust my heart or just my mind. Why is truth so hard to find in this world?" A couple of songs later on Hoods On Pergrine and the search for knowledge and truth has brought Dustin nowhere as he recognizes the false truth spread by the media and religion(in many cases) to keep the public under control, and he tries to warn us all with this passionate plea, "YOU THINK THEY'RE SELLING YOU TRUTH, THE TRUTH IS THEY'RE SELLING YOU OUT!!!" The second to last track, The Abolition Of Man, acts as the final prophecy of a man warning the world, even though it is not the final track of the album as Dustin screams out to all listening, "Wake up everyone, its not too late to save the remnants of our hearts, stop giving up, our last shot at love, our only chance to find the meaning of the beat beneath the blood." The meaning of the beat beneath the blood, the meaning of life. With Vheissu Dustin begins answering the questions he had been asking, however the real question is was anyone listening to this man trying, much like Bono, to bring about change by asking questions, not shoving truth down people's throats. With a blast of energy Image Of The Invisible starts off Vheissu and begins the beautiful flow of this majestic album. A rallying cry to stop settling for sub-par, Image Of The Invisible gave the reason for this; made in God's image. "So raise the banner, bend back your bows, we are the image of the Invisible. Remove the cancer, take back your souls, we are the image of the Invisible." Vheissu dances through several more exquisite tracks before alighting on the mysteriously dreamy For Miles, a peaceful tribute to our trials which help reach other people, as it points back to the death of Jesus on the cross, "And as long as we live, every scar is a bridge to someone’s broken heart, and there’s no greater love, than that one shed his blood for his friends." But the crowning moment of Vheissu is yet to come and begins with the final two tracks, Stand And Feel Your Worth and Red Sky. The former despite its somewhat messy music sets up the final triumphant burst of ecstacy with some superb lyrics that can be easy to miss, "Wake. Feel your worth, oh my soul. Speak the word, the word that can save us all." Dustin is once again asking the listener to wake up as he did in The Abolition Of Man, but this time he connects it to a majestic day in the future, the day when the skies turn red. "Look and see the sky turn red. Like blood, it covers over me. And soon the sea shall give up her dead. We'll raise an empire from the bottom of the sea." So ends Thrice's impeccable work and Dustin's incredible lyrics up until this point, I'm sorry for the length of this last section I simply could not stop. This also concludes my entry into my Favorite Lyricist's Write-Off. If you would like to join, hit up that page write your stuff and give me a comment in any of my reviews, and I'll put a link up to you. Thanks for reading.

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