FAWM: "Turn"

Turn

2 weeks ago by @namjunerobot · @stephenwordsmith

Turn

namjunerobot +1

00:00

Liner Notes

I read the lyrics by @stephenwordsmith and I started playing this. I don't know if this is what he had in mind but, this is where it took me.
#country-esque #collaboration

Lyrics

You came in from the rain-kissed alley  
By the market wet, your hair  
Was ashen grey and smelled of rising smoke
 You wore a ruined coat  
And an expression of surprise and fear,  
Like some long-slumbered evil had awoke

  I was lost in indecision
 Trapped in time and line alike until  
You burst my thoughts with language raw and rough  
You screamed in words I'd never learned  
Of how I'd bring a turning world  
Unto a halt, until I cried 'enough'   

 But I would have turned and listened
Turned upon my heel, turned tail  
And turned away if I knew then what I know now   

You wouldn't take my protest  
For an answer, as you pushed through  
Frightened faces, reaching out to turn the cart  
But faced with their resistance
 I could only stand and watch you flee  
With turn of stomach, quickening of heart   

You wrestled with your angels  
As you curled a shaking finger
 Round the trigger from the window where you hid  
And the scales would dip and waver  
As your answers turned to questions  
Would you live with what I'd do - or what you did?

Comments

@moonraccoon 1w

That beat and groove is irresistible.
I don't know why I'm so surprised to so clearly hear 6 lines into 2 sets of three. Especially when that's the rhyme scheme.
Great tune!

@negasi 1w

Ooh I love the good vibes this one brings. I like how its very upbeat but also like sad? (not sure that's the right word but I digress) Very cool. Really like the lines: You burst my thoughts with language raw and rough  
You screamed in words I'd never learned

@stephenwordsmith 2w

This is quite a catchy piece of pop rock! The sort of thing that would make AskMojo's list of 'Top 10 songs which sound cheerful but are actually dark'. People would groove along to it on the radio until someone says 'hey, wait a minute, someone's trying to shoot this guy'

As a point of distinction - your repetition of the last two lines is very effective. It is a very important question, and something the entire mystery hinges on (regardless of how the scenario is interpreted, and there have been quite a few different readings into the lyric).

@mtmelodie 2w

Hmm interesting how we approach the same lyrics in such a different way, I get a late 80’s early 90’s powerpop vibe with a little bit of alt country vibe, and like how you approach what I think of the last verse as a sort of a chorus,

@paulotteson 2w

Oh man, this is so good. Your lyrics are as usual, top notch.. The last stanza is among my favorites. I could be wrong, but I read this as wrestling inner demons.. as opposed to separate characters. The conflict is perfect for this, and the inability to avoid one "pushing through". A fantastic interpretation by @namjunerobot - Love the relaxed delivery of what becomes a dark scene. The upbeat guitar progression among the pop/country-esque melody is a great contrast to the lyrical tone. Well done, you two!

@namjunerobot 2w

Thanks @tcelliott . I'll feel a bit of responsibility to do my best on someone else's lyrics. I hope this interpretation is ok. it is a bit of a contrast but some of my favorite songs have this kind of upbeat thing masking a darker story. like you hear it and your toe is tapping but then later you read the lyric and are like oh... that's way darker than I thought. "Girl" by Beck comes to mind.

@tcelliott 2w

What lovely slice of pop rock or whatever delicious genre this is, it reminds me a bit of Marshall Crenshaw, maybe? (Oh, I've seen your tag and yeah, that I hear it now. Maybe a bit of alt country goodness from the 90's.) Regardless, it sounds great. I love the guitar break. I love how well the sestet stanzas work with this music.

The lyric has a surprising amount of conflict in it but the artful writing smooths over the rough edges of conflict a bit. Likewise, the musical accompaniment sounds so good that it was easy to enjoy the flow without digging into it too much. But both the lyric and the music go a big deeper with further attention. Repeating the line in the music allows that last line to really gain some added weight. I found this one very enjoyable.