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shadowkat1. Proof that I can change my mind or be convinced. Was directed to studio version and music vids of Arcade Fire's The Suburbs which won Record of the Year, and was rather impressed. Instead of just noise (which is what their performance sounded like at the Grammy's but to be fair this was true of a lot of the performances - the Grammy's often is not a good venue for indie rock bands to perform. Better for balladeers and pop stars - has something to do with acoustics.), I could hear lyrics and they are haunting as is the tune. The video and the lyrics bring to mind such films as Little Children, The Ice Storm, and Bob and Carol and Ted and Alice.
Here's the music video - which explains why they were nominated and loved.
Although to be honest, I think I liked We Used to Wait better - although that is part of the same Album, which may explain Album of the Year. While this is a haunting song, I have heard this tune before so it felt familiar - I have a lot of Alternative Indie Rock - The National being the most recent addition. Big Star/Third Sister, Lush, The Cranberries, The Decemberists, Cardignals, Counting Crows, Fiest, etc. Granted some of that is Grunge. Kidbro keeps supplying me with it at Xmas. Doesn't haunt or stick in my head. But enjoyable and I can see myself listening to it endlessly, losing myself inside the sound.
2. Love the Way You Lie on the other hand continues to haunt me, I can't get it out of my head and it admittedly had a better performance at the Grammy's partly because it was individual performers, but that said rap doesn't work well in that venue, in part due to how they feel a need to cut half of it out - angry words not for delicate network ears. Also I think they blended two different songs in the performance, making it confusing. The official music video however is quite breath-taking and a rather good depiction of what is going on inside the heads of people in a bad relationship. The video stars - Dominic Monagahan of Lord of the Rings, Lost, and Flashforward. Love the Way You Lie has a part 2 version as well and this was the version done at the Grammy's. This second version has some interesting introductory lyrics. [It's probably worth noting that I'm not a Rhianna or for that matter an Emimen fan nor had I ever heard of this song until the Grammy's- I find him a bit too angry, and rap generally gives me a headache. But this is an interesting song - particularly if you've ever worked with victims of Domestic Violence or know anything about it.]
This is what they performed at the Grammy's which is a combination of I Love the Way You Lie and I Need a Doctor.
And here's The Part I video of the song - which is a music video without lyrics and has much better sound. This is the video starring Dominic Monaghan and Megan Fox - with Rhianna and Emminen singing their duet in the background.
This song could literally be used in numerous videos of Buffy/Spike, Buffy/Angel, and other characters. It is a tough song for many to listen to. Because it expresses the pain in a relationship gone horrifically wrong.
Here's the backstory on it: "I think we tried as hard as we could to not glorify the violence, to try and explain that this was a relationship that is by no means ideal and a relationship that probably should have ended a lot sooner than it did," video star Dominic Monaghan told MTV News over the summer. "The concept of 'Love the Way You Lie' was essentially a look at the relationship that Eminem was in with his wife, Kim, so I kind of felt like I was playing Eminem a little bit, and Megan Fox was kind of playing Kim."
The fact that Rhianna — who was assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown before the 2009 Grammys — was featured on the song only added to the stirring "Love the Way You Lie" narrative.
"It just was authentic. It was real," Rihanna said of the song. "It was believable for us to do a record like that, but it was also something that needed to be done, and the way he did it was so clever. He pretty much just broke down the cycle of domestic violence, and it's something that a lot of people don't have a lot of insight on, so this song is a really, really powerful song, and it touches a lot of people."
What hits me is Rhianna who experienced domestic violence from the female standpoint, sings the woman's part, while Emminen who was the abuser in his relationship, sings the male part. It shows both sides and how complicated the situation is, and how human relationships in real life aren't ever simple or black and white, no matter how much we wish this was the case. We often simplify them in fiction, but in life they are far more complex.
Not sure if I'll purchase either from Itunes or not, but am oddly tempted. As stated above, rarely has a song haunted me all week the way I Love the Way You Lie has, I can't get the tune out of my head, with it's meld of smooth melody with blistering rapid fire rap, along with those lyrics - so simple yet so complex, and raw with layered vocal, lyrical and visual metaphor and emotion. Plaintive violin with the bang bang of drum, except voices used as the instruments. Haven't heard that type of duet done before - it's different and stands out in my head as a result - makes me rethink my thoughts on both artists and on rap in general. Also the marked contrast in medley and vocal instrumentation shows the fight of the personalities - what attracted them to each other, why their relationship was so destructive, and why it could not survive. Eminmen's voice sounds like a fist hitting a wall, and Rhianna's sounds like a plaintive plea. You hear the flames in her voice, and the rage igniting them in his. It's like listening to a beautifully orchestrated fight. Or watching the Buffy/Spike episodes Smashed and Dead Things. Rarely has anyone done a better job of telling the story of a relationship through song. In some respects it reminds me of Janis Joplin's haunting Frankie and Johnny. At least I think Joplin did it.
Here's the music video - which explains why they were nominated and loved.
Although to be honest, I think I liked We Used to Wait better - although that is part of the same Album, which may explain Album of the Year. While this is a haunting song, I have heard this tune before so it felt familiar - I have a lot of Alternative Indie Rock - The National being the most recent addition. Big Star/Third Sister, Lush, The Cranberries, The Decemberists, Cardignals, Counting Crows, Fiest, etc. Granted some of that is Grunge. Kidbro keeps supplying me with it at Xmas. Doesn't haunt or stick in my head. But enjoyable and I can see myself listening to it endlessly, losing myself inside the sound.
2. Love the Way You Lie on the other hand continues to haunt me, I can't get it out of my head and it admittedly had a better performance at the Grammy's partly because it was individual performers, but that said rap doesn't work well in that venue, in part due to how they feel a need to cut half of it out - angry words not for delicate network ears. Also I think they blended two different songs in the performance, making it confusing. The official music video however is quite breath-taking and a rather good depiction of what is going on inside the heads of people in a bad relationship. The video stars - Dominic Monagahan of Lord of the Rings, Lost, and Flashforward. Love the Way You Lie has a part 2 version as well and this was the version done at the Grammy's. This second version has some interesting introductory lyrics. [It's probably worth noting that I'm not a Rhianna or for that matter an Emimen fan nor had I ever heard of this song until the Grammy's- I find him a bit too angry, and rap generally gives me a headache. But this is an interesting song - particularly if you've ever worked with victims of Domestic Violence or know anything about it.]
This is what they performed at the Grammy's which is a combination of I Love the Way You Lie and I Need a Doctor.
And here's The Part I video of the song - which is a music video without lyrics and has much better sound. This is the video starring Dominic Monaghan and Megan Fox - with Rhianna and Emminen singing their duet in the background.
This song could literally be used in numerous videos of Buffy/Spike, Buffy/Angel, and other characters. It is a tough song for many to listen to. Because it expresses the pain in a relationship gone horrifically wrong.
Here's the backstory on it: "I think we tried as hard as we could to not glorify the violence, to try and explain that this was a relationship that is by no means ideal and a relationship that probably should have ended a lot sooner than it did," video star Dominic Monaghan told MTV News over the summer. "The concept of 'Love the Way You Lie' was essentially a look at the relationship that Eminem was in with his wife, Kim, so I kind of felt like I was playing Eminem a little bit, and Megan Fox was kind of playing Kim."
The fact that Rhianna — who was assaulted by then-boyfriend Chris Brown before the 2009 Grammys — was featured on the song only added to the stirring "Love the Way You Lie" narrative.
"It just was authentic. It was real," Rihanna said of the song. "It was believable for us to do a record like that, but it was also something that needed to be done, and the way he did it was so clever. He pretty much just broke down the cycle of domestic violence, and it's something that a lot of people don't have a lot of insight on, so this song is a really, really powerful song, and it touches a lot of people."
What hits me is Rhianna who experienced domestic violence from the female standpoint, sings the woman's part, while Emminen who was the abuser in his relationship, sings the male part. It shows both sides and how complicated the situation is, and how human relationships in real life aren't ever simple or black and white, no matter how much we wish this was the case. We often simplify them in fiction, but in life they are far more complex.
Not sure if I'll purchase either from Itunes or not, but am oddly tempted. As stated above, rarely has a song haunted me all week the way I Love the Way You Lie has, I can't get the tune out of my head, with it's meld of smooth melody with blistering rapid fire rap, along with those lyrics - so simple yet so complex, and raw with layered vocal, lyrical and visual metaphor and emotion. Plaintive violin with the bang bang of drum, except voices used as the instruments. Haven't heard that type of duet done before - it's different and stands out in my head as a result - makes me rethink my thoughts on both artists and on rap in general. Also the marked contrast in medley and vocal instrumentation shows the fight of the personalities - what attracted them to each other, why their relationship was so destructive, and why it could not survive. Eminmen's voice sounds like a fist hitting a wall, and Rhianna's sounds like a plaintive plea. You hear the flames in her voice, and the rage igniting them in his. It's like listening to a beautifully orchestrated fight. Or watching the Buffy/Spike episodes Smashed and Dead Things. Rarely has anyone done a better job of telling the story of a relationship through song. In some respects it reminds me of Janis Joplin's haunting Frankie and Johnny. At least I think Joplin did it.
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no subject
Date: 2011-02-18 01:50 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-18 03:25 am (UTC)Because my father beat my mother. Badly. She still has physical scars. Just once. But their relationship prior to this outburst was emotionally manipulative at best. So for me, hearing this song: Pisses me off. Because as a child in this scenario: it sucks. It's not complicated for me. He was in the wrong. And Rihanna's melody seemed, to me, to be a justification of violence: that somehow women are drawn to the violence. Which icked me.
After reading your thoughts I watched the music video. There's a pathos in the artistry of the music video that wasn't accessible for me in just the music alone. My life was context for the words before, instead of the song creating it's own context. I'm still surprised that this song hasn't gotten more mixed reviews, like mine.
And honestly, the song still breaks my heart and disgusts me. The video: beautiful context and I appreciate it, your thoughts were illuminating.
But sitting in my cubical with only the words and melody: not the right context. Not for me, anyway.
no subject
Date: 2011-02-18 05:31 pm (UTC)I'm still surprised that this song hasn't gotten more mixed reviews, like mine.
Oh, it has. Google and Youtube are filled with them. Not what I would call a safe or a pleasant song. And very controversial.
A good portion of it was cut from the Grammy's - due to the rage filled language in the version they did. The music video is a less-explicit version.
But sitting in my cubical with only the words and melody: not the right context.
Not a song that I'd want to listen to at work. It's too emotionally charged and filled with negative emotions, grief, longing, rage, fear, pain. Rap isn't work place safe in any event nor meant for a work-place. I'm amazed people haven't complained - playing that song at work where others have to listen to it is inappropriate.
no subject
Date: 2011-02-18 05:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-02-18 07:49 am (UTC)