Sturgill Simpson - Mercury in Retrograde

Sometimes a set of lyrics start feeling like they apply to yourself in some humorous ways.

“I got a haircut in Norway,
When all the weight started pulling me down.
Smelling like a waterlogged wet dog,
Ain't no way to travel.”

This is the opening lyrics to Sturgill Simpson song “Mercury in Retrograde.” The second last song on his album “Sound and Fury.” I listen to this song a lot, it has a groove to it that actual makes me want to move, not dance, never dance, but sway to the sound, and only a handful of songs have ever had that sort of affect on me.

As I write this paragraph, I have been in Norway eleven days. I have not gotten a hair cut, I got one of those before I left Canada, so that first line does not apply to my situation but the rest a little more so. In my time, many wonderful things have been seen, experienced, and done. The people are great, the sights are great, and everything is great. In addition to everything being great, I also experienced the storm they named “Hans.” Apparently, they name their storms here when they get bad enough. Hans prevented me from visiting Trondhiem, but it also soaked me bad a couple of times. Now on day eleven, I have not been able to do laundry, because I cannot get registered with the app on my phone because they are not sending me the text message to my Canadian phone to get setup. The lack of clean clothes is a problem that is sure to only escalate if I cannot resolve it soon.

Last night, walking around town looking for a karaoke bar to sing at, as I like to do, “Mercury in Retrograde” played on random on my phone. “Smelling like a waterlogged wet dog, ain’t no way to travel.” I laughed at myself, yeah, I am getting to that point.

I hope you enjoyed this largely unimportant anecdote.

Since “Sound and Fury” was probably my favorite album of 2019, and I talked about it at length before. An album as great as “Sound and Fury” lasts in a playlist. Like an evolving organism, the songs of “Sound and Fury” have shifted in mind and ears, changing which songs I appreciate uppermost. I stand by the subject feeling that “Make Art Not Friends” is my favorite song from the album. That song however was the perfect song for COVID, because we could not go out and live. Now, in 2023, in Europe, I have reembraced my surprising talent for making friends. I am definitely all about making friends. So, the upbeat rhythm and lyrics of enduring the dark sides of musical success, just makes me feel like a million bucks. Also, apparently, I am top tier at making friends. A talent my shy, socially incompetent, dumbass, in theory should not have been able to posses, but evidently, I do. Making friends constantly everywhere I go, also makes me feel like a million bucks.

So in that moment in Oslo, Norway, walking the streets at night, slightly drunk, with “Mercury in Retrograde” in my ears, feeling like a million bucks twice over, maybe even three times over, I am a happy drunk, and feeling like a waterlogged wet dog from surviving “The Hans” and my clothes rapidly becoming too unclean to wear, well it felt like a perfectly good moment to blather about to the Internet, and by extension the entire world.

And here we are.

In truth “Mercury In Retrograde” is not a happy song, at least not in lyrical content, but it is one of those songs, that takes very sad subject matter and makes it happy with fun tempo and sound. A lot of “Sound and Fury” is about Simpson’s disenfranchisement with the corporate side of his music career, and questioning those who are there to leech off of, or manipulate, or ruin what he is trying to do creatively. Remember, “Make Art Not Friends.” But to me, there is something so empowering and uplighting about joyfully singing something like;

“Oh the road to Hell is paved with cruel intention,
If it's not nuclear war,
It's gonna be a divine intervention.”

Somehow, I resisted the urge in Norway to sing that out loud in the streets at night. Good thing too, that is considered crazy in Canada, the reserved Norwegians would be very unimpressed, I am sure. That does not mean, I was not tempted.

Anyway, thanks for listening. It is time for the King of Braves to return to form.

- King of Braves

Sturgill Simpson - Make Art Not Friends

One of the greatest musical projects of last year most assuredly is Sturgill Simpson’s “Sound & Fury.”

Prior to “Sound & Fury” my knowledge of Sturgill Simpson was very limited. This is easy to explain, he is a country musician and I do not give that genre my fullest attention. I knew the name, his genre, that he was popular, and at some point, or another, I knew I had heard a song or two of his.

Things are different now.

One of the twists Simpson has introduced into this most recent artistic endeavour, was to hire a Japanese animation studio to animate the entire album.

The only other time I can think of a band doing something like this is way back in 2003 when Daft Punk with the help of Toei Animation and the artistic direction by Leiji Matsumoto, created a fully animated movie to the music of their 2000 album “Discovery.” To the best of my knowledge no one since has attempted something similar, so respect to Sturgill Simpson for making it happen.

I would like to believe that I would have eventually discovered “Sound & Fury” and appreciated the music first and foremost, but that is not my experience when introduced to “Sound & Fury.” Those of you who are already familiar with this album surely already know, that the best way to experience “Sound & Fury” is on Netflix. I was hanging out with my best friend of the past thirty years, smoking a bowl, or several, and he put on “Sound & Fury.” It was a good time, and yeah, I really enjoyed “Sound & Fury.”

“Sound & Fury” is not a country album. There is a lot of country influence throughout, and maybe that was unavoidable given it’s creator, but with that electric guitar “Sound & Fury” is a lot more rock and roll then anything else, and that is what appealed to me and my rock and roll ways. There is more to “Sound & Fury” then rock and roll and country, there is some funk thrown in there and a sprinkling of other things. I think I would have enjoyed the album almost as much even without the animation.

Time goes by and naturally I watch “Sound & Fury” again, but as these things develop my interest grows and I want to learn more, and after listening to Sturgill Simpson’s songs on youtube enough times, his interview with Joe Rogan comes up, and that is how I learned the story behind “Sound and Fury.”

Obviously a primary objective of “Sound & Fury” was trying something new, Simpson’s radical departure from his usual musical stylings when we dissect the lyrics, as I am want to do, we have many verses, and entire songs, where Simpson expresses his desire to try a new sound, and criticisms of the music industry interfering and frustrating his artistic endeavours. “Sound & Fury” in a rebellious album by Simpson, rebelling against what he expected of him. I respect that.

Thankfully, Simpson was not content with being different with just his music, he wanted to do something extra, so he recruited a Japanese animator, informed him of the various Japanese media he enjoyed, and that animator knew the creators of many of the movies and shows Simpson liked, so sweet deal, they all worked on the project together.

When the lyrics of “Sound & Fury” were translated to Japanese so the animators could have a better understanding what they were creating animation for, they learned that they had a lot in common with Simpson. Simpson was seizing control of his art by having this unique project, and the reasons for his wanting and his feelings about the expectations and barricades towards his independence for creativity really resonated with the animators. If we pause to consider the artistic work of animators, they do not exactly get a lot of say in what they animate. The movie, or anime, that needs animation generally already have a story, characters and character designs already planned before hand by another creator. Animators help other artists create their vision, and that could be stifling, stirring very identical feelings which Simpson expressed in his lyrics.

It is a great story.

What I like about it, is that it is a happy story where everyone wins. Simpson made this great album with an amazing accompanying animated movie, and I should hope that he feels vindicated that his boldest ideas are being accepted as potentially his best. Along the way, he surreptitiously empowered other artists with an opportunity to embrace creative ideas they never had previously be able to attempt. Artist helping other artists make art on new frontiers that neither had the joy to experience before.

As is the loose format of this blog, I should probably talk about a singular song. There is a lot to like about every song on “Sound & Fury” and many of them are as different from each other as they are from Simpson’s earlier country albums. After careful consideration, my favorite song from the “Sound & Fury” is “Make Art Not Friends.”

“Make Art Not Friends,” is the third song of what I consider to be the best part of the entire album; these three songs:

• Sing Along
• A Good Look
• Make Art Not Friends

The first two songs have the best accompanying animations, and Simpson has been gracious enough to make those two videos available on youtube:

Sing Along

A Good Look

“A Good Look” is probably the climax of the album, but I guess I am fond of third acts, because the somber “Make Art Not Friends” that follows it had the strongest affect on me. The opening verses detail a burning world of ruin, before a reflective chorus:

“Face in the mirror's all skin and bone,
Bloodshot eyes and a heart of stone.
Never again, I'd rather be alone,
Think I'm gonna just stay home,
And make art, not friends.”

I suspect a lot of people are staying in these days, but I have been doing it for years, and often times, it was because I was trying my hand at being a writer. This whole blog largely started out as an exercise to that end. So this is a deeply personal note for me, this notion of making art instead of friends, because in my life, I suppose I did favor the former over the latter.

I just as strongly relate to this passage in the final verse:

“Nobody writes, nobody calls.
Nobody bother 'cause I'm over it all.”

Presumably, everyone feels forgotten at times, but I sometimes suspect I have gained powers of invisibility, because I feel that way a lot. Naturally, it is disappointing being taken for granted, but it is something everyone has to learn to live with, because it is going to happen now and then. Obviously, Simpson is dealing with fake friends at a different level then most of us given his celebrity, but this is still something we can all relate too.

As a lot of people may be learning these days, it is not exactly a sad thing being alone. Spending some time alone can be very therapeutic, especially if you spend that time flexing your creative side. Sometimes it makes sense to just stay in and make art.

Last note, if you have not already done so, go watch “Sound & Fury” on Netflix, but be sure to watch after the credits. Probably the best animated action occurs there, and it would be a shame if you missed it.

Until next month, keep on rocking in the free world.

- King of Braves