“Timeless Melody” – The La’s
(Words/music: Lee Mavers, available on The La’s, Go! Discs / London Records 1990)

That quote “talking about music is like dancing about architecture” bothers me mainly because it’s out of order.  It should be “talking about music is like designing a building about dance” – with the “less artistic” medium being used to convey the “more artistic” medium.  Regardless, I see truth in that sentiment, even though I spend a chunk of time every day writing about music.  Even on my best days, where the words come together in just the right way, I wouldn’t dream of one of these blog posts replacing a song.  That’s part of the reason why I have the song at the top of the post – it comes first.  I’ve used this space to defend writing and discussion about music because songs aren’t these static, one-sided pieces of work.  There are a number of different ways to approach a song, think about it, and process it, and the problem with writing about it is that it usually only tackles one way of entering a song.  The beauty of art, songs included, is the different levels and entrances into it, leading to as many different interpretations as people who encounter it.  I think that the reason that many of us (well, me at least, I’ll let everyone else speak for themselves) gravitate towards music rather than some other art forms is that it hits us on a level that other mediums don’t reach as easily.  I’ve experienced profound moments of connection and enlightenment through books, film, visual arts, and even architecture, but music touches a nerve more frequently than all of those combined.  In my case, melody, harmony, and rhythm know the roadmap to my soul.

“Timeless Melody” captures the experience of listening to a great song as well as any song I’ve heard.  The “even the words they fail” me line touches on the hours I spent making mixtapes – sometimes to capture a specific mood or feeling, sometimes to introduce a part of myself to someone, and sometimes even to learn something about myself.  I especially love the way Mavers describes (gasp! he’s writing about music!) the way music intertwines in our lives by freeing us from our “memory chains.”  The pun on chord/cord really drives this home too, describing the way that we emotionally wrap ourselves in songs for myriad reasons.  For me, when a song snakes in, it becomes part of that memory chain, adding another link (and often, an entire new strand of associated memories).  Most importantly, Mavers’ song does all of this while crafting an impeccable pop song.  From the opening scuttle through that irresistible melody that carries this treatise about the power of music, Mavers makes the most of his three minutes of pop bliss.  Ultimately, even with well written lyrics, the words give way to the melody and rhythm, letting the song dance around our hearts, build skyscrapers in our minds, or paint vivid portraits of our favorite melodies. 

I don’t dance, I don’t draw blue prints, but I do spend a lot of time thinking about music, and writing and talking about how it affects me only broadens my appreciation of it.  Whether you come by here just for the songs or you come by to take part in the discussion, I’m just happy to share.

More on The La’s: Allmusic | Amazon MP3 | Emusic | Last.fm