Hello Internet!
I hope everyone is doing well and staying healthy! I also hope you are staying warm if you are in a place that is currently experiencing winter weather. I know where I live, the weather has been all over the place. Some days it’s cold and snowy and some days it feels like Spring out there. I almost get whiplash when I check my weather app. I honestly don’t mind it being either cold or warm, but the back and forth it throws me off. Anyway I hope mother nature decides what it wants to do so I know if I need to wear my coat or not.
I have an interesting Weekly Blog topic for all of you (especially those in New Zealand), but before I talk about that, I want to quickly talk about the things I’ve written and published in the past week. First of all, last Sunday I published a Weekly Blog talking about Persona 5 Royal. This is a video game that I had heard a ton about and when it came to Nintendo Switch, I finally picked it up. Then I proceeded to put 140 hours into this wonderful JRPG. Read my Weekly Blog if you want to get all my thoughts about the game, but the short version is that I really loved it. I had a blast playing Persona 5 and I enjoyed it so much I’ll probably end up picking up Persona 4 Golden as well. Then on Wednesday I published a Poem titled “Ripples.” This is a very short Poem about a boy throwing a rock into a pond. But like all or at least most poems, it’s about more than that. To me this Poem is about actions and consequences. Some people want to make a splash in this world and they don’t care how it’s done. Even if it’s done through destructive means, it’s still a change. I personally try to create positive change in life. Anyway, if you haven’t checked out either of those pieces, I highly recommend it.
Now let’s move on to this week’s Weekly Blog topic which is the Album “Expert In A Dying Field” by The Beths. I usually don’t cover music or musicians or albums, especially since I’m not very knowledgeable about any of those things. The last time I covered a band or album was a year and a half ago when I talked about “Ok Orchestara” by AJR. That Weekly Blog was basically me saying that I really love this band and these songs over and over again. And this Weekly Blog is going to be no different! I really just want to highlight this band that I recently discovered and hopefully all of you will enjoy their music too. When I covered AJR’s newest album it was because I was already a fan of the band and was excited for the newest album to come out. They were pretty popular or at least popular enough to have their songs on the radio. However, The Beths is a band I had never heard about a few months ago and I’ve definitely never heard their songs on the radio. The only reason I know about The Beths and their music is because YouTube recommended one of their songs. I gave it a listen and I knew I had to check out their entire album. So that’s what I want to talk about here. I’m going to help expose them to new people by talking about some of my favorite songs from their newest album. Again, I don’t know a ton about them, other than that they are a band from New Zealand, and I don’t have a long history with them. I’m just a recent fan who wants to talk about some great music. I also want to say that I have my own interpretations of these songs. I’m not 100% correct that this is correct or even close to the actual meaning of songs. So just take my interpretations with the biggest grains of salt.
Ok so first the Album is titled “Expert In A Dying Field” and their first song on the album shares the album’s name. Expert In A Dying Field is definitely the album’s most popular song and it’s actually the song that was recommended to me on YouTube. The first time I listened to the song I took the song’s lyrics very literally. I thought it was about being an expert in a dying field. But the more I listened to it, the more I realized that the song is about a break up. This person has gotten out of a relationship and now has a bunch of useless knowledge about that other person. They gradually became an expert about this other person and now that the relationship is over, all the person has left is regrets.
“The city is painted with memory
The water will never run clear”
Expert In A Dying Field by The Beths
The next song I want to talk about is “Knees Deep.” This is the second song on the album and the second song of theirs that I listened to after I listened to Expert In A Dying Field a dozen times. This song is really cool because it’s a song all about being brave and wishing that they could enter the water. They are literally knees deep, but too afraid to dive in. If you watch the Official Music Video, you will see that over the course of the song, each of the band members bungee jump off a bridge. It looks terrifying. I just love the idea of the band members deciding they were going to do this crazy thing, filming it, and then incorporating it into the music video. Just a super cool thing all around.
“I wish I was brave enough to dive in
But I never had been and never will be
I’m coming in hot then freezing completely”
Knees Deep By The Beths
The third song I want to talk about is “Change In The Weather.” This song is in the middle of the album and it’s not as high tempo as much as the first two songs I mentioned. Both of those you could imagine playing on the radio or playing at a party. This song is a little bit slower and a bit more sentimental, at least for me. To me this song is either about being in a rut or dealing with depression. I mean I guess it could be both. The lyrics speak to someone who seems to be stuck in the place where they are. They are having a hard time imagining that things will get better. But the song kind of leads the listener on a journey where by the end you can imagine that change in the weather is coming. Winter is coming to an end and the singer is going to get out ok on the other side. Things will get better no matter how miserable the weather or life seems to get. And I find that super inspiring.
“It seemed like every road was buried under snow
So I thought
Better to forget the heat of the sunlight on my skin
I feel it coming but I’m scared to let it in
This change in the weather”
Change In The Weather By The Beths
Before I talk about the last song on this album, there’s some honorable mentions I have to bring up. I could honestly talk about this entire album, song by song, but that’s a lot and I don’t have the time. I just want to give you some samples so you will go listen to the whole album yourselves. I’m a big fan of basically every song on the album. The only song that doesn’t resonate with me is “Silence is Golden.” It’s a song that starts out strong but the chorus is basically “The Sound” repeated over and over again. It can be a bit annoying. And if this song is supposed to be annoying as some sort of meta-narrative on the repeating nature of pop song lyrics or something, then I take everything back and tip my hat to The Beths. Anyway, let me talk about more songs that I liked. “A Passing Rain” is really good but touches on similar themes to “Change In The Weather.” And “I Told You I Was Afraid” is another great song that I can listen to over and over again. Then there’s “Future Me Hates Me” which was actually the title track from their 2018 Album. I won’t get into too much detail since this song isn’t on the album I’m talking about, but I really like it. It would just be a waste not to mention this song when talking about how good this music is.
Lastly I want to talk about the final track on the album which is “2 AM” I don’t know what is about songs like this but I’m a sucker for songs that are full of regret and nostalgia and just those thoughts you have when you are lying in bed in the early hours of the morning. This song is all of that. It’s a song that makes me regret relationships I’ve never even had. Just the idea of laying there in bed wishing things could have ended up differently. I just can’t get enough. It’s just a great song to end the album too. When it ends, it just leaves me feeling a little bit empty. It’s just so good! Seriously go check out this music because it’s so good and The Beths are not as popular as I think they should be. Again I’m a very new fan so I don’t even know if it’s fair to have that sentiment compared to people who are long time fans of the band, but I don’t want people to miss out on music that I consider super good. Like I’m so grateful that I stumbled upon this band and since then, I’ve been listening to their music almost every day. I haven’t gotten bored of it so I think that’s a pretty good sign that it’s at least worth a single listen.
“2 a.m., we were pounding the pavement
And I wonder could we be that way again?
Still awake, talking late in the kitchen”
2 AM By The Beths
Thank you so much for reading that Weekly Blog about the Album “Expert In A Dying Field’ By The Beths. I really hope you enjoyed that blog. I don’t usually review albums or music and I don’t have a lot to say from a technical perspective. I just know that if I listen to a song and it inspires me, I want to talk about it. Plus I’m sure many of the people who read my stuff have never heard of this band before. So I want to share their music for all of you. I’m curious for the few readers from New Zealand if you have heard of The Beths and if you enjoy their music. If you liked this Weekly Blog and are interested in me reviewing more music in the future, make sure you Like this Weekly Blog. You can also leave a comment down below talking about the album, the band, and the music. Did this blog inspire you to check out the music or have you heard The Beths before? Did you like the music? Love it? Hate it? What’s your favorite song or your favorite lyrics? Since this band isn’t super popular in the US, I don’t have anybody to talk about the music with. So if you really like the music, I’d love for you to comment so I can talk with you. Finally if you really like the stuff I write and want to see more, please consider Following me here on WordPress. I’m nearing 900 Followers and I’d love to hit that milestone soon so I can focus on hitting 1,000 Followers. It might just be a number but it’s a number I want to get to and I can only do that if people like you show your support. I really do appreciate all the love and support I get from readers new and old. So please, if you want to be a part of this creative and positive community, consider Following. It would mean a ton to me.
Thank you again and I hope you have a wonderful week!
-Allen_The_Writer
Header Photo Credit to The Beth’s Bandcamp
https://thebethsnz.bandcamp.com/album/expert-in-a-dying-field
Allen The Writer 