One of the neat things is to hear the lyrics sung with greater emphasis and clarity: “You see I’m finally catching on to it, the past is just a conduit, and the life there at the end of it is where I’ll be.”

“‘Cause it seems I get so hung up on the history of what’s gone wrong that the hope of a new day is sometimes hard to see.”

I loved the piano and guitar opening, like a gentle conversation flowing in the background; the gradual build up with drums and bass, and then the full band playing out.

Relient K has got to be one of my favorite bands, and on the list of most influential “rock” bands I’ve listened to (Dave Matthews, Chris Tomlin, Matt Redman, are three bands that immediately come to mind).

YouTube has a few of Relient K’s “unplugged” songs:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Za3jn5esbR0 (Who I am hates who I’ve been”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVj8ZxIorUc (Give until there’s nothing left)

Cause in my head there’s a greyhound station
Where I send my thoughts to far off destinations
So they may have a chance of finding a place
where they’re far more suited than here

And I cannot guess what we’ll discover
When we turn the dirt with our palms cupped like shovels
But I know our filthy hands can wash one another’s
And not one speck will remain

And I do believe it’s true
That there are roads left in both of our shoes
But if the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
So brown eyes I hold you near
Cause you’re the only song I want to hear
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere

Where soul meets body
Where soul meets body
Where soul meets body

And I do believe it’s true
That there are roads left in both of our shoes
But if the silence takes you
Then I hope it takes me too
So brown eyes I hold you near
Cause you’re the only song I want to hear
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere
A melody softly soaring through my atmosphere

Death Cab For Cutie

Lyrical Interpretation: The song is a rebel’s anthem, written in rage against the system, against miscarriage of justice. It is easy though, to miss the undercurrent of sorrow running though the lyric. Also pay attention to the play with numbers in the latter part of the song –

.
.
Six fathers still waiting
For their six sons to come home
Five mothers who know better
And accept that they’re gone
Four years I’ve been hunted
Still I breathe free
.
.

That reminds me a lot of Agatha Christie’s And Then There Were None

Guitar Play: Tom Morello stands tall, albeit alone, unlike his Audioslave and Rage Against the Machine moments. The intro to this song is amazing – great finger-style followed by a lesson in rhythm guitar. How Morello adapts his familiar-on-the-electric hammer-ons and pull-offs to the acoustic, is phenomenal.

Comment: Some people may find the vocals a bit dry, but for this song, that’s the mood. Its not a song with a character going berserk with rage or weeping with sorrow. Its about a contemplative character hardened by being wronged.

Tom Morello’s acoustic-electric split personality is definitely not a disorder. Both guys are amazing!

Video at Youtube:

The lyrics are not in order as they are in the studio version in the part with the numbers. To me that was very special

Soft and beautiful acoustic guitars and vocals betray the powerful observations found in the lyrics. Lyrically, this album focuses exclusively on relationships, and manages to never be corny. The only complaint I have about this album is the indier than thou production. Most songs sound like they were recorded with a tin can on a string. Mirah continues to release strong relevant material, surprising since Calvin Johnson signed her, but true none the less.

Rating: 12/15 Strangle worthy producers

Lyrical Interpretation: Another of the breed of simply written, but wonderfully thought songs, this is about a soldier disillusioned with his country. He expresses anguish over why he risks his all for the nation with no reciprocation at all.

Guitar Play: Not much here to talk about. A minimal melodramatic jazz is used to back a gem of a vocal track. The song can be played in the key of D but is probably played higher up by Matthew.

Comment: Its just the genuineness of emotion in this song which makes it worth it. The lyrics are simple and yet powerful and the minimal music suits the mood of the song very well. At just about 2 minutes, you’re left hoping they’d add a verse or two more, but the message of the song is fully driven home in the two minutes.

Video at Youtube:

Lyrical Interpretation: The song is so simply written, it hardly needs interpretation. It’s about how one commits to love forever, in death and even beyond. The lyrics are very soulful.

Guitar Play: This is the best kind of song for coffee house playing. Ben Gibbard walks alone here. His style of palm-muted strums with light picking in between adds life to this song which would otherwise have been a pretty run-of-the-mill chord pattern in C major.

Comment: In spite of Ben Gibbard being the lone hero here, the band was among the Grammy nominees in 2007 for this song. Its a very simple yet enchanting song and Ben Gibbard makes the most of his voice here. The song was mono recorded with very little editing and it shows in that the volume of the guitar is rather subdued in comparison to the vocals.

Video at Youtube:

Lyrical Interpretation: The song conveys the agony of someone who has received the traditional yellow envelope from the armed forces informing them of the loss of a loved one in combat. It is such an unsealed envelope which is referred to in the opening line. Eddie is said to have called the song an ‘anti-patriotic’ one, set in the backdrop of the Gulf-war. The unusual title is said to have come from the actual name of one of Eddie’s friends (Tim Ledbetter).

Guitar Play: The song’s ornate intro is an immediate attention grabber, and gives notice of the greatness it leads into. The song follows a I-V-IV chord progression in the key of E major (which means E-B-A) but Mike incorporates much more by way of Hendrix style picking weaved into the guitar play. Mid-way through, is a fabulous solo lasting about 40 seconds. This solo was featured on Guitar World’s “100 Greatest Guitar Solos” list in 2007 (deservedly so). If there were a best intro list, this song would perhaps be even higher on that one.

Comment: The complete package: Eddie Vedder uses his voice as a most extraordinary instrument to deliver a most touching lyric, and still is delegated to being an accompaniment by Mike McCready’s soulful guitar play. Mike adorns an already sweet chord sequence with beautiful hammer-ons and pull-offs, to achieve the mesmerizing effect which entirely justifies the song’s distinguished position as the regular closing song at Pearl Jam concerts. An interesting aspect of this song is its free form, which gives Pearl Jam generous freedom with the lyrics, as well as the music, at concerts. Eddie has sung several different versions of lyrics across concerts, very often humming parts of the song in his characteristic style. Likewise, Mike improvises on the solo on a regular basis. This results in every rendition of the song being unique.

Video at Youtube:

In my dreams I’ll always see you soar Above the sky

Yah sama dia agak dimodif dikit jadi “I soar above the sky” sih, tapi tetep aja gue masih bisa tau itu dari lagu mana. Itu asalnya dari lagu Faith Hill yang judulnya There You’ll Be.

Lagu ini dalem banget maknanya buat gue. Soalnya gue pernah dibikin sedih banget sama lagu ini. Gara-garanya sih gue dapet album kompilasi lagu-lagu cinta, dan lagu ini ada di album itu. Tapi setelah gue denger lagu ini, entah kenapa gue malah jadi inget sama almarhum bokap gue.

Sebenernya lagu ini ngga bener-bener lagu tentang kehilangan seseorang sih. Tapi pada saat itu, itu yang gue tangkep pas gue denger lagu ini. Makanya jadi lumayan dalem banget lagu ini buat gue. Dan liriknya sendiri emang dalem banget sih. Gimana rasanya kita punya seseorang yang selalu ada buat kita. Walau ngga harus ada secara fisik. It feels nice to have someone who’ll always be there for you. Dan Alhamdulillah saat ini gue udah punya seseorang yang selalu ada buat gue.

Awalnya sih gue sempet bingung mau gue masukin ke song review ato great lyrics. Tapi setelah gue pertimbangkan lagi. Lagu ini lebih cocok buat masuk ke great lyrics. Lagu ciptaan Dianne Warren yang masuk ke soundtrack film Pearl Harbour ini emang punya lirik yang kuat plus aransemen yang bisa bikin merinding ditambah lagi sama suara Faith Hill yang merdu banget. Great Song…

“There You’ll Be”

When I think back On these times
And the dreams We left behind
I’ll be glad ’cause
I was blessed to get
To have you in my life
When I look back On these days
I’ll look and see your face
You were right there for me

In my dreams
I’ll always see you soar
Above the sky
In my heart
There will always be a place
For you for all my life
I’ll keep a part
Of you with me
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be

Well you showed me How it feels
To feel the sky Within my reach
And I always Will remember all
The strength you Gave to me
Your love made me Make it through
Oh, I owe so much to you
You were right there for me

In my dreams
I’ll always see you soar
Above the sky
In my heart
There will always be a place
For you for all my life
I’ll keep a part
Of you with me
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be

‘Cause I always saw in you
My light, my strength
And I want to thank you
Now for all the ways
You were right there for me
You were right there for me
For always

In my dreams
I’ll always see you soar
Above the sky
In my heart
There will always be a place
For you for all my life
I’ll keep a part
Of you with me
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be
And everywhere I am
There you’ll be
There you’ll be

Lagu ini punya makna yang dalem banget buat gue. Soalnya waktu itu pas bokap gue meninggal, baru aja selese di kubur, di radio lagu ini diputer. Damn… Gue langsung nangis. Sebenernya bukan karena lirik lagu ini juga sih. Soalnya ngga semuanya bener-bener ngegambarin hubungan gue sama almarhum bokap gue, tapi lebih karena gue ngerasa belom ikhlas… Gue belom cukup bikin bokap gue (alm) bahagia. Jadi ada sedikit rasa penyesalan yang bikin gue nangis saat itu.

Anyway, cukup sedih-sedihannya… Let’s talk about the lyrics. Lirik lagu ini dalem banget guys. Liriknya nyeritain gimana kacaunya hubungan anak sama orang tua, dalam hal ini diwakilin sama pihak ayah, yang ngga berjalan baik. Emang Simple Plan jago banget kalo bikin lagu galau. Lagu ini nge-rock tapi sedih. Sebenernya walaupun liriknya ngga dalem. Lagu ini tetep enak banget buat didengerin.

Entah apa yang jadi background anak-anak punk ini waktu bikin lirik kayak gini. Bisa jadi mereka emang lagi ada masalah sama ortunya. Tapi yaaa… Lagu ini punya lirik yang dalem banget. Pantes banget masuk ke list Great Lyrics.

“Perfect”

Hey dad look at me
Think back and talk to me
Did I grow up according to plan?
And do you think I’m wasting my time doing things I wanna do?
But it hurts when you disapprove all along

And now I try hard to make it
I just want to make you proud
I’m never gonna be good enough for you
I can’t pretend that
I’m alright
And you can’t change me

‘Cuz we lost it all
Nothing lasts forever
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect
Now it’s just too late and
We can’t go back
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect

I try not to think
About the pain I feel inside
Did you know you used to be my hero?
All the days you spent with me
Now seem so far away
And it feels like you don’t care anymore

And now I try hard to make it
I just want to make you proud
I’m never gonna be good enough for you
I can’t stand another fight
And nothing’s alright

‘Cuz we lost it all
Nothing lasts forever
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect
Now it’s just too late and
We can’t go back
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect

Nothing’s gonna change the things that you said
Nothing’s gonna make this right again
Please don’t turn your back
I can’t believe it’s hard
Just to talk to you
But you don’t understand

‘Cuz we lost it all
Nothing lasts forever
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect
Now it’s just too late and
We can’t go back
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect

‘Cuz we lost it all
Nothing lasts forever
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect
Now it’s just too late and
We can’t go back
I’m sorry
I can’t be perfect

Tapi yang pengen gue bahas bukan lagu itu, tapi lagu laen dari mereka yang diambil dari album kedua mereka, Duality, yaitu Swimming Upstream. Lagu ini nuansanya akustik. Sangat sederhana. Pure akustik. Grip dasar yang dipake juga ngga terlalu bervariasi. Aransemennya kedengeran sedih banget. Sangat mendukung lirik yang ada di lagu ini.

Untuk liriknya sendiri, sedih banget. Makanya gue masukin ke kategori great lyrics. Kalo diperatiin liriknya, ini kisahnya tentang cowo yang suka sama cewe tapi cintanya bertepuk sebelah tangan. Dalem banget emang. Cocok buat orang-orang yang masih memperjuangkan cintanya. Emang cinta harus diperjuangkan…

Yah intinya sih, kalo lagi galau karena cinta, mungkin lagu ini cocok banget buat didengerin. Tapi jangan keterusan! Patah hati jangan disimpen lama-lama. Ngga baek buat kesehatan. Hallah…  Tapi walaupun loe ngga lagi patah hati pun, lagu ini enak juga kok buat didengerin… Hehehehe…

“Swimming Upstream”

The sun disapeared right before my eyes
My heart turned and walked away
I gave you the keys to an open door
and you threw them right back at me
Once again I’m alone with a pain in my chest
so sad so sad so long
And the clouds start to gather
here comes the rain
You meant more then you can know

I can’t say I miss you you’re always around
I can’t say I love you cause you’ll cut me down
I’m wounded and hurt and that’s my fault
But I’ve made my decision with my back to the wall
And I gotta move on from here
I’ve done all that I can do
Yeah I gotta move on from here
I’ve been swimming upstream for you

A storm passes by I can’t explain
It’s hard to be next to you
Is it my face or is it everything
That your not attracted to
I’m so lost and confused when I look at you
Your eyes your lips so soft
And then when you see me I turn away
Cause I know that I turn you off

I can’t say I miss you you’re always around
I can’t say I love you cause you’ll cut me down
I’m wounded and hurt and that’s my fault
But I’ve made my decision with my back to the wall
And I gotta move on from here
I’ve done all that I can do
Yeah I gotta move on from here
I’ve been swimming upstream for you…
I’ve been swimming upstream for you
I’ve been swimming upstream for you

Avril Lavigne

Hehehe… Mungkin ada yang aneh sama judul postingan gue yang ini. Tapi ini beneran kok. The Scientist bukan lagu baru dari Avril Lavigne. Juga bukan gue salah ngetik penyanyi di mana harusnya gue nulis Coldplay. Tapi ini bener-bener Avril Lavigne bawain lagu romantis ciptaan Chris Martin. Gue juga nemunya secara kebetulan aja sih. Tapi setelah gue dengerin versi cewe cantik ini lumayan juga.

Suara khas Avril walaupun agak kurang cocok, tapi ngga ngerusak lagu ini. Agak penasaran juga kenapa dia mutusin buat nyanyiin lagu ini. Tapi yang pasti dia udah milih buat nyanyiin salah satu lagu Coldplay yang terbaik. Kenapa gue bilang terbaik? Yah, karena gue suka banget lagu ini.

Lirik lagu The Scientist emang penuh banget sama analogi, dan sekilas agak susah buat langsung ditangkep maknanya. Chris Martin sendiri emang seneng banget maenin kata-kata di lagu-lagunya. Tapi tetep kita bisa nangkep kalo lagu ini sebenernya adalah lagu cinta. Banyak banget kata-kata di lagu ini yang maknanya agak susah ditangkep. Dan bisa jadi buat tiap orang, nangkep maknanya beda-beda. Faktor ini juga yang gue rasa bikin lagu ini masuk ke dalem salah satu lagu yangpunya lirik bagus.

Hehehe.. Lagi-lagi lagu Coldplay. Mudah-mudahan ngga bosen aja sih kalo gue ngulas Coldplay. Tapi banyak lagu yang punya lirik bagus. Dan ntar bakal gue kasih di sini. Kebetulan aja dapet versi yang unik dari Avril Lavigne.

“The Scientist”

Come up to meet you, tell you I’m sorry
You don’t know how lovely you are

I had to find you
Tell you I need you
Tell you I’ve set you apart

Tell me your secrets
And ask me your questions
Oh, let’s go back to the start

Running in circles
Coming up tails
Heads on the science apart

Nobody said it was easy
It’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be this hard

Oh take me back to the start

I was just guessing
At numbers and figures
Pulling the puzzles apart

Questions of science
Science and progress
Do not speak as loud as my heart

Oh tell me you love me
Come back and haunt me
Oh and I rush to the start

Running in circles
Chasing our tails
Coming back as we are

Nobody said it was easy
Oh, it’s such a shame for us to part
Nobody said it was easy
No one ever said it would be so hard

I’m going back to the start

Oh ooh ooh ooh ooh
Ah ooh ooh ooh ooh
Oh ooh ooh ooh ooh
Oh ooh ooh ooh ooh

Dan mungkin karena moment juga sih yang bikin lagu ini punya nilai lebih buat gue. Selaen karena pada saat itu gue ada di acara nikahan, gue juga lagi bersama cewe yang gue cinta banget. Gue diem-diem peluk cewe gue, sambil berusaha nutupin kalo sebenernya gue lagi hanyut dalam perasaan pada saat itu. Deep down in my heart I cried. Kadang-kadang moment yang pas bisa bikin sesuatu menjadi luar biasa…

Anyway, lagu ini sendiri punya aransemen yang sangat romantis. Kolaborasi dua penyanyi ini pas banget waktu nyanyiin lagu ini. Walau gue bilang Bryan Adams bukan penyanyi yang oke banget, tapi dia pencipta lagu yang bagus banget. Dan lagu ini juga diproduserin sama David Foster yang udah lumayan dikenal jago bikin lagu romantis. Liriknya sendiri romantis banget, cerita tentang dua orang yang ketemu kemudian mereka sadar kalo kalo dari pertemuan yang sederhana kita bisa nemuin orang yang tepat buat kita.

Duh, jadi merinding lagi. Hehehe… Great song to be listed in your “Greatest Love Song of All Time”. And I’m gladly to share the lyrics with you….

“I Finally Found Someone”

I finally found someone, who knocks me off my feet
I finally found the one who makes me feel complete
It started over coffee, we started out as friends
It’s funny how from simple things, the best things begin

This time is different (la, la, la, la)
It’s all because of you (la, la, la, la)
It’s better than it’s ever been
Cuz we can talk it through
My favorite line was can I call you sometime?
It’s all you had to say
To take my breath away

This is it
Oh, I finally found someone
Someone to share my life
I finally found the one to be with every night
Cause whatever I do
It’s just got to be you
My life has just begun, I finally found someone

Ooh, someone
I finally found someone
Ooh

Did I keep you waiting (I didn’t mind)
I apologize (baby, that’s fine)
I would wait forever
Just to know you were mine
Ya know, I love your hair
(are you sure it looks right? )
I love what you wear
(isn’t it too tight)
You’re exceptional
I can’t wait for the rest of my life

Oh, this is it
Oh, I finally found someone
Someone to share my life
I finally found the one to be with every night
Cause whatever I do
It’s just got to be you
(oh, yeah)
My life has just begun
I finally found someone
And whatever I do
It’s just got to be you
Ooh, my life has just begun
I finally found someone

liriknya baguuusss… gw bold yah, beberapa bagian yang menurut gw bagus dan super!

Coldpay

Kayaknya gue ngga pernah bosen-bosen dengerin lagu yang satu ini. Selaen karena enak banget didenegrinnya, liriknya juga gue rasa bagus banget. Coldplay emang suka bikin lagu yang enak-enak. Dan Chris Martin juga jago banget bikin lirik-lirik yang menyetuh. Setelah kemaren gue bahas tentang Fix You, gue ngerasa lirik lagu Lost ini juga layak buat gue bahas. Liriknya lumayan dalem, dan bisa dibilang cukup memotivasi. Lagu ini punya dua versi, versi akustik piano dan versi full band. Tapi aransemen apapun yang dipake, lagu ini masih tetep enak banget buat didengerin. Gue sendiri lebih seneng versi akustik piano sih..

Kalo kebanyakan lagu Coldplay yang gue bahas di sini, maaph yak.. Tapi emang lagu ini punya lirik yang bagus. Mudah-mudah maknanya bisa ketangkep dan bisa lumayan memotivasi. Kalo yang gue tangkep dari lagu ini, ini isinya tentang kita jangan nyerah kalo gagal, dan kalopun kita merasa sukses, jangan seneng dulu karena mungkin masih ada yang lebih baik…

“Lost!”

Just because I’m losing
Doesn’t mean I’m lost
Doesn’t mean I’ll stop
Doesn’t mean I would cross

Just because I’m hurting
Doesn’t mean I’m hurt
Doesn’t mean I didn’t get
What I deserved
No better and no worse

I just got lost
Every river that I tried to cross
Every door I ever tried was locked
Ohhh and I’m…
Just waiting ’til the shine wears off

You might be a big fish
In a little pond
Doesn’t mean you’ve won
‘Cause along may come
A bigger one

And you’ll be lost
Every river that you tried to cross
Every gun you ever held went off
Ohhh and I’m…
Just waiting until the firing stopped
Ohhh and I’m…
Just waiting ’til the shine wears off

Ohhh and I…
Just waiting ’til the shine wears off
Ohhh and I..
Just waiting ’til the shine wears off

“So Close”

You’re in my arms
And all the world is calm
The music playing on for only two
So close together
And when I’m with you
So close to feeling alive

A life goes by
Romantic dreams will stop
So I bid mine goodbye and never knew
So close was waiting, waiting here with you
And now forever I know
All that I wanted to hold you
So close

So close to reaching that famous happy end
Almost believing this was not pretend
And now you’re beside me and look how far we’ve come
So far we are so close

How could I face the faceless days
If I should lose you now?
We’re so close
To reaching that famous happy end
And almost believing this was not pretend
Let’s go on dreaming for we know we are
So close
So close
And still so far

“Fix You”

When you try your best, but you don’t succeed
When you get what you want, but not what you need
When you feel so tired, but you can’t sleep
Stuck in reverse

And the tears come streaming down your face
When you lose something you can’t replace
When you love someone, but it goes to waste
Could it be worse?

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

And high up above or down below
When you’re too in love to let it go
But if you never try you’ll never know
Just what you’re worth

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

Tears stream down your face
When you lose something you cannot replace
Tears stream down your face
And I…

Tears stream down on your face
I promise you I will learn from my mistakes
Tears stream down your face
And I…

Lights will guide you home
And ignite your bones
And I will try to fix you

“You And Me”

What day is it? And in what month?
This clock never seemed so alive
I can’t keep up and I can’t back down
I’ve been losing so much time

‘Cause it’s you and me and all of the people with nothing to do
Nothing to lose
And it’s you and me and all other people
And I don’t know why, I can’t keep my eyes off of you

One of the things that I want to say just aren’t coming out right
I’m tripping on words
You’ve got my head spinning
I don’t know where to go from here

‘Cause it’s you and me and all of the people with nothing to do
Nothing to prove
And it’s you and me and all other people
And I don’t know why, I can’t keep my eyes off of you

There’s something about you now
I can’t quite figure out
Everything she does is beautiful
Everything she does is right

‘Cause it’s you and me and all of the people with nothing to do
Nothing to lose
And it’s you and me and all other people
And I don’t know why, I can’t keep my eyes off of you
and me and all other people with nothing to do
Nothing to prove
And it’s you and me and all other people
And I don’t know why, I can’t keep my eyes off of you

What day is it?
And in what month?
This clock never seemed so alive