Welcome!
I'm Clifford Stumme, and I use literary analysis and research to explain the deeper meanings of pop songs. Feel free to leave a comment or to email me at clifford@popsongprofessor.com with questions or ideas!
I'm Clifford Stumme, and I use literary analysis and research to explain the deeper meanings of pop songs. Feel free to leave a comment or to email me at clifford@popsongprofessor.com with questions or ideas!
All tagged lyric explanation
"All I Can Think about Is You" by Coldplay is a slow, soft, sweet song with one main message: the same message that the title so clearly lays out. All that Chris Martin's narrator can think about is someone he's romantically interested in. Musically, the song is very impressive, it feels like it travels over several different soundscapes and backgrounds as Martin feels out the different ideas and sentiments that the lyrics are built on.
This song is one of the eeriest and saddest from Lorde's new Melodrama record. "Sober II" includes some interesting and eerie vocal gymnastics and a paired down but powerful sounding instrumental background. I think it gets most powerful when the drumbeat kicks in over Lorde saying things like "They’ll talk about us, all the lovers / How we kiss and kill each other." The intensity here is certainly a quiet, understated one, but it may be present on the album no more anywhere than here on "Sober II."
What's the most intense and scary song that I could find on the local top 40 station? Definitely "Take Me to Church" by Hozier. There's no question. This song is heavy and full of meaning. And it happens to be very culturally relevant. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MYSVMgRr6pw
Mumford and Sons just released the next installment from their soon-to-come album, Wilder Mind. The song is called "The Wolf," and it's a departure from their earlier music. Gone are the days of hipster alternative blends of folk instruments and crooning, soulful harmonies. "The Wolf" retains some of the familiar harmonizing, but everything is more intense. While his voice stays recognizable, the music surrounding Marcus Mumford's vocals is much grittier and much more rockin' & rollin'.
Twenty One Pilots just came out with their next single from Blurryface, “Tear in My Heart,” and it’s a departure for them. Few of their songs are quite this upbeat or positive musically, and the lyrics are interesting because, in them, Tyler uses fairly dark imagery to suggest a positive meaning. Overall, the song’s really something special, especially for Twenty One Pilots to be creating. I think you’re going to like it.
