Moody Monday
I am in a ‘block out the world’ mood. Today, I relish the lovely idea of being a turtle and find comfort in hiding within a strong hard shell. Life hurts sometimes, words hurt sometimes, and lack of communication can also be painful. So thus…..I want to sort it all out in my head and be alone for awhile.
When I feel this way, music gets me through and this has recently become my song on repeat.
sir Was-A Minor Life
“Stayed behind these walls
too long
Kept my life on hold
too long
Dreaming of
all I was not
Slowly waking up
I guess
Sunshine or rain
happy in pain
It’s good enough”
My soothing find, sir Was, is a source of genuine intrigue. I am amazed at the intricate production of the combined sounds and instrumentation. “A Minor Life” is a swirling surround sound that begins with looping bagpipes, a lovely Tame Impala-esque vocal, and then progresses to driving beats and recorder whistles. It is a hazy, mysterious, and enveloping creation of a song.
The artist sir Was is also known as Joel Wästberg. He began as a jazz saxophonist and this led him to study in Gothenburg, Sweden while also providing him the opportunity to travel to South Africa. Studying in South Africa and traveling throughout the area, he began to focus on drums and the unique beats of the region. An unusual musical background is bound to produce an uncommon sound.
I found a lovely, accurate description of sir Was from his label City Slang Records,
“Demonstrating a seemingly effortless marriage of organic instrumentation, synthetic sounds and head-bobbing beats, he shows himself as a master of balance. Perfectly weighted songs merge graceful melody and deep beats with his unique production style. The end result is beautifully emotive, atmospheric tracks eschewing genre classification.
Simply put, whilst some artists strive to push boundaries, sir Was seems blissfully unaware of them in the first place.”
His debut EP, Says Hi, has been out since June. I highly recommend you give it a listen if you are interested in the unique and creative. Each song has surprises and delves into a sort of unknown musical territory.
All I know is with my headphones on, and the music cranked up, I am in a happy cocoon of a space. Maybe it’s only for a little while, but for now….
Music turned on, world tuned out.
