Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Widowspeak and the beautifully circular and dark "Breadwinner" (Official Video)

American Robb 1:26:00 PM Breadwinner, Brooklyn, cover of a zine by Ian Vens, indie pop, indie rock, singer-songwriter Molly Hamilton and guitarist Robert Earl Thomas, Widowspeak

(Courtesy of Widowspeak)

I think when I turned 40 the thought of being stuck in a job that was not fulfilling, being part of a cog within a wheel of industry, started to really hit me. "a job that slowly kills you, bruises that won't heal" from Radiohead's 'No Surprises' started to feel like graffiti spray painted onto the back of my brain. Widowspeak too, on their beautifully circular Breadwinner talk about saving one's partner from such hellish, soul sucking responsibilities.

"baby, you gotta quit that job cuz your boss is a jerk... go on take the time off and I'll do the work... I'll be the breadwinner... I'll go instead"

Widowspeak is Brooklyn based singer-songwriter Molly Hamilton and guitarist Robert Earl Thomas. "Breadwinner" was inspired by the cover of a zine by Ian Vens, which sat on display in their home for years. It read, “OH PLEASE BABY JUST QUIT OK IF ANYTHING COMES ALONG PLEASE PROMISE ME YOULL QUIT THAT JOB.” Hamilton felt there was a lot of truth in it, in her own experiences with dead-end work that felt unfulfilling, the economic instability that goes hand-in-hand with choosing to “follow one’s dreams.” The lyrics were also inspired by a growing fascination with bread as allegory; the idea of proving oneself, and reaping the reward of labor.

Of the song, which might shape shift under the revelatory light of life under a pandemic, she offers:

“I have to recognize all that we took for granted when I wrote this song a few years ago, or even when we were recording it last winter. There was the option to imagine a new reality for yourself, the choice to quit and start over, the possibility to support your loved ones. Obviously, there are lyrics within this song that feel so strangely on-the-nose right now (even the part about bread), and perhaps their meaning has changed since everything is different. Now feels like the only time we could possibly let this song into the world, when everyone is trying to figure out life beyond the way we earn a living, and how we’ll earn anything going forward. So, without wanting to capitalize on the heavy realities we’re all facing, we hope it brings some comfort or at least entertainment to people at home.”

In the end, Breadwinner plays sort of like a psychedelic waltz full of truths and of the cold consequences of trading in your soul for the comfort and security of that job over true spiritual and / or artistic satisfaction. In the song, one takes the other's place (in a sense) and realizes that burden, of always taking your job home like a sharp weight around your neck. The song is about blessings and curses, of being full or empty, or costs versus the price paid.

-Robb Donker Curtius and Press Notes (highlighted)