So this is a pretty impulsive post, given that I first heard this song two days ago, but whatever. It’s been a while, and we could use something new.
Well, new to me anyways. Selby Sifers released this track some time in 2008, as near as I can tell. A friend of mine saw her perform at a wedding, and sent the video to me just as a point of reference. It has been super stuck in my head over the last 48 hours, so I figured I’d share it.
The song itself is so stripped down that I was really surprised I liked it as much as I did. Normally, I’m a ‘more is more’ kindof guy, but the emotional gravitas is more than enough to carry this song.
While technically there’s not a lot of fancy footwork going on, it’s all executed very tightly, and serves as a wonderful vehicle for the vocals, both in terms of sound and content. To start with the latter, the story is typical enough- who’d think? Another song about falling in love!- but as is often the case, the way it’s told is what really sells it.
So be honest-
Are you a man?
Or are you Devo? Are you Devo? Are you Devo?
‘Cause I get that same strange feeling next to you,
as when I put my favorite record on.
Maybe it’s just because I’m so guilty of letting music shape my emotional state, but the metaphor here is so singularly perfect that I fell in love with the song.
The final part about being a wolf hears Sifers’s voice do something between a hoarse scream and a croon, yet it comes off as soft and not forced; it’s just a really unique thing to hear.