Episode 10: Introspekt (Looking Through the Blind Eye)
Written around one of Tone Deaf's poems, Introspekt is about getting old and the eventual understanding that there's no point getting upset about it. It's also an oblique reference to the Buddhist idea that everything is transitory, never fixed. Existence is perceived as a series of phase changes, like liquid water turning into ice or gas and back again. There's no reason to struggle against these changes - they are and will be, and all the crying in the world won't stop them. And if reality and our place in it are temporary illusions created by our preconceptions, then as Aya sings in the melody/mantra, "Looking through the blind eye / We are not here / We are nowhere at all." Therefore, following the idea through to its logical conclusion, Introspekt is really about nothing!
So..... MU!
The Music
As many of you know, Kicksville is a collective with almost 60 contributing members, presided over by myself and Mayor Mike Stehr. Because of that, it means much of our writing/recording happens in bits and pieces, with contributions from whoever is available and wants to play along. However, Introspekt marks one of the first times the City Council, the seven Kicksvillians that make up our live show and who are the heart of our creative process, had time during rehearsals to write as a unit instead of flying in one by one or a few at a time.
Anyhoo, here's the deal: We were taking a break during production rehearsals last fall, and Beaker started noodling around with this cool, filter-y guitar sound...we started playing along, and this song basically popped out almost fully formed! Afterwards, we did go back to smooth-ify the arrangement and re-track things to get the proper sounds, but we used the initial recording made on the spot as the framework for what you hear in the final version.
lyrics
Looking through the blind eye
You know, the middle one?
Empty space where a heart once struck
Ears that no longer hear
A tongue so forked it doesn't ever agree
Loins and groins past due for the wetlands
Knees and feet barely able to keep up
Flesh expanded by the fat that consumes it
Taste buds that left home a long time ago
Leaving a thirst, unquenched
And a mind....
Mind?
I don't mind....
Looking through the blind eye
We are not here
Looking through the blind eye
We are nowhere at all
credits
from The Singles - Season 2,
track released July 13, 2009
Citizens
cover art: "The Uncertainty Principle" by Tone Deaf
Conrad St. Clair: percussion, keys, programming
Mike Stehr: bass
Lou Caldarola: drum kit, percussion
Tone Deaf: spoken word
Chris Huntington: guitar
Beaker: guitar
Aya Peard: vocals
There's really no explaining Kicksville, but fear not! All the music is FREE, so have at it. Then, go visit www.kicksville.com and see what we're all about. Or, visit www.youtube.com/kicksvillevideo and give your eyeballs a treat. Enjoy!
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