Originally Posted By: Mark Hayes
This is strong stuff! That is one powerful opening, and it opens wide into an awesome interrogative litany.

The contrast between the first big social questions and the later close personal ones is interesting, it has me thinking how someone might actually make that jump in what they're wondering about. I do find the change a bit disorienting, though, it seems to kind of discard the first set, rather than follow it somewhere.

PS – There's a small sound at the very beginning that possibly wasn't meant to be there, before the slide enters.

PPS – I'm curious about those background vocals as well. I have to say, I loved it when they entered in back of the question about the imams (though I did pause with a thought about infantilization, but anyway.)

Thanks for this, strong and good stuff.


Hi Mark, at first, thanks for your nice, sharp comment. I will start with the PS and PPS:
The ps: I corrected it. Normally I hear those things, now I didn't. So thanks for that.
The pps: The bg appeared to become my greatest challenge in this song. My thoughts: The bg had to be very different from the leadsinger.
I tried an African choir, a children choir, yelling people, a lot vocals on my keyboard and even singing it myself. But then I found the kind of tune I liked most. and where you say infantilization began, it was with that tyrant. But I needed some kind of warning from the bg, like oh oh, oh oh. So the bg had to respond on the lyrics (a bit).

Then the rest: my idea back in 2016 was to muze or raise questions about political or social issues and soon after that the personall ones. I had noticed people often start with mentioning these big issues and finally come to what really matters for them. That's what I copied in the song. And not pretend I have answers. In that sense you weren't right on discarding questions, but only wondering why.

I hope you read this, but thanks again for what you wrote,
Hans

Last edited by Birchwood; 03/08/22 03:37 AM.
Hans Berkhout
(Birchwood)
https://soundcloud.com/user-296497130