Four Ears

Bela Bartok - Kontraste III: Sebes (Fast Dance)

The witches come out infrequently, but tonight they dance. Their motion begins slowly, hastens, and becomes the crazed flurry that this song brings to my mind. The “Fast Dance” leaves me no choice but to participate. I am more than enticed by the frenzied tempos; I am addicted to the beautiful melodies that punctuate the wicked tune.

This song is for all those staying in this Halloween. Experience the darkness set in, watch the youngins dressed to kill, recall the feeling you got every October 31st of your childhood.

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photo by flickr user nynewe

Smog - Cold Discovery

Get lost in the eerie woods and unsettling drawl that comprise Bill Callahan’s voice. Most Smog songs would qualify nicely for a Halloween post, but there’s something especially chilling about “Cold Discovery”. Maybe it’s Callahan’s choice of words–gnashing teeth, not-so-soft places on the body, busted locks–that cause me to shiver, but the incessant wail of instruments toward the song’s end doesn’t put me at ease either.

The most unsettling moment occurs when the song culminates into the verse “Well, I can hold a woman down on the hardwood floor”. Bill Callahan here as Smog claims responsibility to catalogue thoughts most minds would only briefly ruminate over before nervously dismissing them. He poses the question: is there anything more frightening than discovering what you’re capable of?

Check out Smog/Bill Callahan’s music here .

Blackball False, Truth! - Motion Sickness Conquers Heartbreak

There’s a Japanese tea commonly known as “flowering tea” that’s quite tasty and aesthetically appealing. Wound tightly into an unremarkably bland ball, the tea unfurls like a vibrant banner when exposed to the boiling water, exposing the gorgeous flower within.

I feel as if the first few minutes in this song by Blackball False, Truth! has scalding water being applied steadily, coaxing the inner bloom. And then all of the sudden, as if some cardinal wind simultaneously caught uncountable sails, the song flourishes, blooms, and flies into a beautiful clarity that warms my ears.

And the narrator thrives at the change. His voice swells at his realizations when he says “now I’m holding up everyone!” Far be it from anyone to be faced with sustaining everyone, most can hardly keep themselves up.

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