Tragic Chemistry

Background Info*

I like that if you just consider the chorus alone, the song is about resenting the need for other people and relationships. It makes me think about all the bad relationships i’ve been in (the kind that lead to songs like ‘Leda and a Swan’) and how degrading it is to know a situation isn’t good but not be able to leave it because it satisfies needs. In reality, this meaning was secondary; I wrote the song about my dealings with the record industry, and how no matter how much the execs “love what you’re about artistically”, it always seems to end up being about “the single” and what is going to make money. Yet you always end up feeling like you need them, and so a disgusting co-dependent mess results. I hope the song ends up reflecting some of this tension: that the vocal hook is strong—like a “single”, but that some of the arrangement will be less “commercial”—the weird rhythm thing in the chorus, the fact that the song is longer than a conventional single, etc.

Technical Notes

The main keyboard part was added in the 11th hour and improvised at jorgenson’s request by Manuel on a Nord Electro through an old Ampeg bass amp and Tiedeman’s Orange ‘Tiny Terror’.

Lyrics

when i was young
i'd often sing out of tune
with no concern
for who was staring in the room
my awkward voice
floating naked through the air
until i noticed you watching over there

the suits come calling
a stack of papers to sign
you can make a living playing guitar
if you're mine
we'd like to hear a single
by next thursday at nine
something catchy
something upbeat would be fine

i hate needing love
hate needing you
leering eyes up above
stare me what to do
i wish i could make myself
forget you're there
get high on melody
and become less aware

i sit here sweating
wrestling with rhyme
then i pace back and forth
wasting time
i imagine what you'll say
about the song you'll find
and realize that you can't care
what's on my mind