"Golden Chords" by Deakin
Updated: Feb 17, 2022
This song came to me through a cloud of cigarette smoke in a waking dream. Every evening, my fiancé and I take part in something that we call a "kitchen talk." During these nightly chit chats, we discuss life, love, cinema, music, philosophies, who is making good moves on survivor, what we want to eat next, when we want to eat next, and sometimes how we want to eat next.
Usually these talks are over a glass of wine, but always these talks are over a playlist of jams, curated for the night's mood. "Golden Chords" happened to seep into the fore-mentioned evening through a #spotify algorithm-ed #discoverweekly playlist. Many times, these songs act more as wallpaper- giving a setting for discussion, but never becoming a topic themselves. However, Deakin's unexpected chord changes and melodic arrangements stuck out right away. As we were in the middle of a thrilling banter, no doubt, I simply clicked the like button. Beauty recognized, but moving on with the night.
Cut to:
A couple weeks later, we're taking a "journey" together in our living room. Bathed in the afternoon light washing through our balcony door, I laid motionless. Well, not motionless, my eyes were moving quite a bit- mostly back-and-forth between the rounded ceiling of our home and the noodling arm movements of my whimsical lover. Then, my eyes got stuck. On account of the rounded walls, one is able to find a sliver of sky to stare at if one's head is closely positioned enough to that sliding glass door. One (I) did.
In that moment, "Golden Chords" re-entered by life. This time, it was not glossed over as a pretty tune. All of my energy immediately shifted in Deakin's direction, and about halfway through the song I looked to my fiancé and said "this song has been inside of me my whole life." Those exact words. And in that moment, it was not hyperbole.
I listened to the track maybe a dozen more times over the next 48 hours, not yet able to decipher the words and not yet desiring to do so. Then, I dove in head-first to grab a deeper meaning of the writer's work. It was more masterful than I could have ever imagined.
Spirituality.
Self image.
Self help.
Change.
Acceptance.
Humanity.
Love for a friend.
Love for a lover?
I was blown away by how closely the track spoke to me, and by how easily I could project that same level of connection onto other folks in my circle. Global mother-fucking pandemic aside, it can be easy to focus on the negative at times. Some argue that it is hard-wired and potentially a default setting to get out of. I've read (or heard) some things about how that ties back to our caveman baggage. LION = BAD is very important- even more so than PURPLE BERRY = TASTY + ENERGY.
"You talk about frights
In the verse of the every song
You tell me what's wrong
But what's right?
Deakin approaches this subject and many others with a poetic genius that very few humans on this (round) Earth possess. I even mentioned that he may be beyond the "Fionasphere." If you love music, you can probably put together what that might mean.
The more I listen to "Golden Chords", the deeper it goes. I believe this to be the mark of any good piece of art. You can't take it in with one sitting and then toss it aside. If you listen, it will sit with you. I sat there, thinking of all of my friends that would appreciate the track, but how would I ever be able to articulate the brilliance without hyping that shit up too hard?
So, here's the genesis story for you (if I ever make more of these things): I picked up the camera, and decided to shoot some visual accompaniments for a video, main goal being to display the incredible lyrics. I'll let you infer any other intentions I may have had based on your own perspective.
Now, I'm thinking that I may keep doing this with other songs I love. I've never blogged before, so let me know if you want some more of these thangz?
Cheers,
Tyler
PS: Don't forget to water your garden.
Lyrics
Days fog
Can't see past the edge of what's gone but i'm hoping i'll try
And the rain shines
And the showers and the fawns in the field arrange in my eyes
So why fight?
With nature's call around
You talk about frights
In the verse of the every song
You tell me what's wrong
But what's right?
You're seeing creation
That crushing never ending change is so full of love
And so you're waking to face the change in your role
And with each restless shiver you wretch from your soul
You're asking
Is that something I'm not anymore?
A brother to shake these broken chords till they turn gold
And I tried
To survive without that gold
And wondering why
Our exchange can never hold
Am I what's wrong?
Well what's right?
Stop trusting in demons
You're scattered ever lonely buddy but so full love
Please stop repeating your terror you choose what you see
It's always "what if?" and "why not?"
Man you gotta just be
Simplify define your goals and watch them grow
Be your own true self the you that I know
Days gone
As I peer past the edge of what's lost I'm starting to cry
But the rain's fine
And the tears feel warm and my body is humming alive
In time
You'll revive what you thought dead
You've stopped your own climb
On the verge of every end
You tell me what's wrong
But what's right?
Stop believing your being's been shattered and distorted cause brother your so full of love
And so you're hoping to make a change in your role
Repeating mantras to find some ground for your soul
Stop asking
Is that something I'm not anymore?
A brother to shake these broken chords till they turn gold
Artist Wiki Bio
Dibb was born on January 6, 1978, in Orange, California to Jessica B Mendlovitz and David C Dibb, who married in 1977.[1] He began writing and recording music with childhood friend Noah Lennox (Panda Bear) in 1991. While at The Park School of Baltimore, Josh met David Portner (Avey Tare) and Brian Weitz (Geologist) when they asked him to join their band, Automine. Josh introduced Noah to Dave and Brian and over the next few years the four spent time playing music together and sharing tapes of music they made individually.[citation needed]
After high school, Panda Bear and Deakin went to Boston, where Deakin attended Brandeis University. Avey Tare and Geologist moved to New York City to attend NYU and Columbia University respectively. After months of playing the band finally settled on the name "Animal Collective". After touring with the group from 2004 to the end of 2006 and recording two albums, Feels and Strawberry Jam, the Water Curses EP and the visual album ODDSAC he decided to take a break from the increasingly rigorous touring schedule. After not participating in the recording of the album Merriweather Post Pavilion, he rejoined the band live on April 10, 2011 in Petaluma, California after a three-year absence.[2]
Performing a solo set in September 2010
On January 1, 2010, he played his first solo show as Deakin at The Ottobar in Baltimore, MD where he grew up.[3] In December 2009, Deakin raised $25,985 through the Kickstarter crowdfunding platform to travel to Mali to play at the music festival Festival au Désert outside of Tomboctou in January 2010 and to record an album in early 2010.[4] After playing the music festival, Deakin played five shows in Europe, including a few shows opening for Panda Bear.[5]
On January 7, 2016, Dibb sent backers of his Kickstarter campaign an announcement that his long awaited solo album was complete.[6] The album, titled Sleep Cycle, was released on Bandcamp on April 6, 2016.[7] "Just Am" was the first track shared from the album, accompanied by a music video.[8]