Tag: The Polyphonic Spree

The Polyphonic Spree Nudges Us Toward Living Rather Than Existing on the Uplifting “Got Down To The Soul”

The Polyphonic Spree, photo by Marisa Halbach

The Polyphonic Spree is rightfully known for the orchestral spectacle of its shows featuring sometimes dozens of people on stage including locals when the band tours. What can get lost in that completely unique live show presentation is the impressive songwriting and heartfelt observations on life and the way it can yes hit you with heartbreak but also the ways you can seemingly find emotional and spiritual fortification and uplift in unexpected places and thoughts that strike you at exactly the right time. And that’s at the core of its single “Got Down To The Soul” in which singer and band director Tim DeLaughter describes a personal process of “breaking the spell, feeling the light inside” by connecting with your core instead of being weighed down and held back by focusing on the superfluous things that don’t serve us but which we are told to value. DeLaughter and what becomes a chorus of voices in the gentle flow of uplifting, bright melodies encourages us to find our future “by design” and “by the light” and that in trusting in some inner sense of authentic self the world around us tends to support our efforts. One hopes that nefarious types would have more doubt about the rightness of their actions but too often everyone else is filled with doubt and falls into a life more mundane and unfulfilling conforming to a standard of aspiration and living that doesn’t suit them and this song seems aimed at giving a boost to anyone down on life and going through the motions when they know deep down even modest mediocrity is a choice and its more inspirational to be at least somewhat on the path you’d prefer. Listen to “Got Down To The Soul” on YouTube and follow The Polyphonic Spree at the links provided.

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The Jerry Cans’ Electrifying and Rousing “Swell (My Brother)” Highlights a Need For Societal Action to Address Mental Health Issues With Compassion and Integrity Now

The Jerry Cans, photo courtesy the artists

Mental health issues used to be talked about in patronizing tones with a hint of moral failings and thus deserved pain and suffering and deprivation in some fashion but these days the public dialogue has shifted slightly with widespread information on how widespread it is and how the nature of these ailments has been misrepresented, misreported and pushed off into the realm of things other people have to deal with. The frustration at the gap between people suffering from these issues and the way they are administered is infused in The Jerry Cans’ single “Swell (My Brother).” It’s an uplifting, electrifyingly melodic song with rousing choruses and horns, percussion, keyboards and guitar coming together in a panoramic orchestral arrangement like The Polyphonic Spree with a bit more punk in the equation. The group, from Iqualuit, Nunavit, Canada, offers no pat answers or patronizing sentiments about how it’s all going to be alright. Rather, the choruses brim with compassion and questions demanding some kind of answer from society at large, a society that has chosen, and it is a choice to prioritize some concerns and not others, to try to not approach addressing root causes and offering real aid to those suffering. In the chorus the lines, “How long must we keep on dying? How long can we keep on dying?” leaves the question open regarding when will enough be enough for the issue to reach the policy making level or the action level in a national dialogue beyond empty sympathy. And yet the song doesn’t strike dire tones, just a passionate one calling for human action now. At a time when mental health issues are exploited for marketing purposes and employed by corporate propaganda to signal their supposed moral character, the song strikes an especially sincere and vital note. Listen to “Swell (My Brother)” on Spotify, connect with The Jerry Cans at the links below and check out the rest of the band’s new album Echoes which was released on May 15, 2020.

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCchGda0RiqbCeNWIVkja2QA
https://soundcloud.com/thejerrycans