Rules of the Game #11: Toothpaste and Coffee
More Ashlee. I try to do right by the craftsmanship and the poetry. (Thanks to Nia for inspiration.) I also pose a question that I suppose is really "Why do we care about artistry?" Any thoughts?
The Rules of the Game No. 11: Toothpaste and Coffee
( Links to my other Rules Of The Game columns )
The Rules of the Game No. 11: Toothpaste and Coffee
( Links to my other Rules Of The Game columns )
It can be some key words that open me up to an otherwise non-descript song, though. Usually a
chorus, rising above the mix, or even an otherwise random phrase poking out of a verse. Like
"I've walked a thousand miles while everyone was asleep," for instance. That caught my attention, too. Made me think of Hendrix swiping away mountains standing in his way. Bold as love. It's the
language, wordplay, the images or ideas or feelings lyrics evoke for me.
But that's ab as far as it goes. I already have to be crushing on a song b/f I start paying any closer attention to the way the words add up to a narrative, playing off each other in twists and turns, shading the meaning of the song in a crafty way, the way Ashlee lyrics do. What I'm trying to say is I might listen to a song for weeks before my impression of the songwriting deepens beyond a few catchphrases. This is so much the case that it's not unusual for me to eventually grow ambivalent about the lyrics of my favorite songs-- i.e., the ones I play over and over, turn up, and sing or dance to everyday for awhile.
Little Wayne's "Shooter" is a great case in point. Love it when he barks through a filter w/ the thug doo-wop harmonizing in the background. The shivery way he sing-songs the title over and over. Played that song for weeks b/f I caught the gay hating in his boasts. So now my affection for
the song is tainted.
I suppose this just means my favorite, favorite songs are the ones that stand up to my fetishizing them; I love them still after twenty listens. Be that as it may, though, there are lots and lots of songs I get excited ab, play repeatedly for weeks, that lyrically, don't add up to great songwriting craft or even a cogent theme I can identify w/.
This is where I think maybe you're putting the cart b/f the horse in spreading the word ab Ashlee's music. B/f anybody is going to study the lyrics they have to get past the faceless, generic, redundant quality of her music and song titles.
The "hard" stuff-- "La La," "Autobiography," "I am Me"-- has a glammed out grunge feel-- mall punk, sounds ab right. This would be the standard indie-rockist put down, I expect, but for me can also be a virtue b/c the songs gel, melodically cohere, and the choruses lift you up the way under-produced bands seldom do. The anthemic melodic structure of "Pieces of Me" and "La La" are definitely strengths. I love the soaring, open-throated (which sounds like open-hearted) chorus to "Pieces of Me." Also like the frenetic, whipping, rhythmic bass frission driving the chorus forward in "La La." Great fun. I like it when she growls. But, still, after giving a handful of songs a half-dozen listens one problem here might be that there are not enough signature riffs or compelling beats to pull the listener in. You do answer your "so what?" question ab Ashlee's craftmanship by comparing the artistry she achieves to Dylan and Lennon but I don't hear that kind of signature quality to her sound yet.
I'm not sure she's got enough going on in her sound to in the long-run separate herself from her competition (Avril, Pink, Lindsay?) and influences (L7, Garbage, Melissa Etheridge, Sheryl Crow, even Pat Benetar). Take "I am Me," for instance. If Joan Jett did this on a new album it'd be hailed as classic traditionalism but for Ashlee, never having seen her on TV and knowing now only
a handful of her songs, this already seems redundant, no?
At this point, I'm still thinking that it's the context of opposition to Ashlee that has you identifying w/ her so strongly. Her "come alive" sexy, Tom-boy passion is appealing. The haters are idiots. Give the girl a chance. But, I dunno, she ought to listen to more Pretenders, Kimya Dawson, Little Wayne, Manu Chao, even your Teena Marie.
At any rate, I don't always identify with lyrics or project on songs to begin w/ but if they grow to mean anything to me I certainly do. Sometimes the lyrics are my life but a lot of times I'm just in there playing a mean tambourine.
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