Fat Ninja

People look for different things in their music. For me, the first thing I process and absorb is lyrical content. It makes me a tough critic, simply because I look for depth in the poetry of a song. I know it sounds really snobby, but I want to be moved and touched by the song-writer’s ability. I want something that has a meaningful impact on me in the spiritual and emotional sense.

Unfortunately, talented song-writers are a rarity. Even moreso in today’s mass-produced music scene. These days it seems that a catchy chorus is enough to get you by. Just toss in one or two fluffy verses that take up a total of 45 seconds of a three-minute track, then fill the rest with a looping melody and a repeating beat, and reiterate the chorus line: Voila! You now have a Top 40 hit!

As a writer I’ve been both inspired and influenced by many a lyricist. Their ability to use diction to create something that is so flexible and adaptable as to be wrapped around another individual’s unique human experience is exemplary of poetry’s truest potential.

It’s because of this that you’ll find song lyrics scribbled between the pages of my poetry books. For instance, I’ve got the lyrics to Tool’s song H in one of my books. While writer Maynard James Keenan was most definitely writing about something far removed from my own personal experience, it nonetheless marks a very specific moment in my life, capturing the emotional tenor of that instance.

At Fernando’s behest, I gave Depeche Mode’s Precious a thorough listening. He had mentioned how beautiful the lyrics were. I have to say that I agree completely, though I’m not surprised. David Gahan’s interpretation of Martin Gore’s lyrics have always had a knack for tapping into that melancholy part of me, making me find joy in sadness.

On that note, here they are:

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