07-02-2022, 02:14 AM
(This post was last modified: 07-02-2022, 02:27 AM by Michigan Swamp Buck.
Edit Reason: For Clarity
)
I've been delving into music for inspiration lately. I have for most of my life really, but I've had to actively include music in my life more recently for some reason. Old age perhaps or just caught up in the grind so much I had forgotten musical inspiration. It can be a powerful motivating force if you can find inspiring music and lyrics.
So I have been contemplating some music I find meaningful and inspiring. One is "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" by Traffic and another is "Head Like a Hole" by Nine Inch Nails. Just examining the lyrics of both songs sends me timeless messages, however, upon deeper research I've found that neither song is about what I interpreted them to be.
With Low Spark, I find a deep mystical meaning about the spiritual power of higher beings and our place as mere mortals when it is more likely about drug use and the music industry at that time. With Head Like a Hole, I thought it was about materialism, money and power over the masses. Once again it was more likely about crack addiction and growing up in a strict rural Bible belt family.
But what make these songs great in my mind? Art is hard to judge when beauty is in the eye of the beholder, everyone sees it differently. We all bring something to the table as an audience and maybe, regardless of the original story or message that was intended by the artists, it contains some universal meaning that appeals across a wide spectrum of people. A message, although misinterpreted, that has an unintended connection to the human condition.
I'd rather believe that these artists touched upon something outside of what inspired them. These particular life experiences created something well beyond a singular perspective. This creates classic and timeless music because it has an appeal beyond the scope of it's conception. It doesn't really matter what the song or musical score it is, it's about how it resonates with the listener and the world they find themselves in.
I believe this to be the influence of the Muses, they tease the creative and lead them to a higher calling.
So I have been contemplating some music I find meaningful and inspiring. One is "The Low Spark of High Heeled Boys" by Traffic and another is "Head Like a Hole" by Nine Inch Nails. Just examining the lyrics of both songs sends me timeless messages, however, upon deeper research I've found that neither song is about what I interpreted them to be.
With Low Spark, I find a deep mystical meaning about the spiritual power of higher beings and our place as mere mortals when it is more likely about drug use and the music industry at that time. With Head Like a Hole, I thought it was about materialism, money and power over the masses. Once again it was more likely about crack addiction and growing up in a strict rural Bible belt family.
But what make these songs great in my mind? Art is hard to judge when beauty is in the eye of the beholder, everyone sees it differently. We all bring something to the table as an audience and maybe, regardless of the original story or message that was intended by the artists, it contains some universal meaning that appeals across a wide spectrum of people. A message, although misinterpreted, that has an unintended connection to the human condition.
I'd rather believe that these artists touched upon something outside of what inspired them. These particular life experiences created something well beyond a singular perspective. This creates classic and timeless music because it has an appeal beyond the scope of it's conception. It doesn't really matter what the song or musical score it is, it's about how it resonates with the listener and the world they find themselves in.
I believe this to be the influence of the Muses, they tease the creative and lead them to a higher calling.