Stoker and the folk classic longing and heartbreak of "Your Arms" (Official Video)

 

"I'd like to find myself inside your arms again / just like it was if only we knew what we had..."

In certain circles I may be thought of as the guy who too often only gravitates toward odd, wonky, abstract songs (or thereabouts) and while I may resemble that description, I also like songs that are simple in the way they compel you to listen. As long as I feel something I am there for the experience. I am in awe of art that stirs up something inside me, that makes a cold world a warmer place to be. Art that speaks to me might be, in the large scheme of things, rare but always so appreciated. 

I gravitated towards "Your Arms" by St. Louis Missouri folk / alt rock band Stoker pretty much right away. At the songwriting core here is Joseph Belsher and his chord shapes here are simple, although the hint of droning dissonance blended in is brilliant in the way it tugs at you. I also love the droning bass sounds that help solidify the pull. As evocative, as hooky as the acoustic progression is, it is Belsher's vocal melodies and Stoker's harmonies, graced with a thick patina of melancholia, that bury themselves deeply, comfortably in your heart and soul that sells this song. It is the kind of song that feels like it could be decades old, sung in pubs and gatherings all over the world in all languages. It is 'that' kind of song, at once classic in it's expression of longing, of love gained and lost as well as the hope burning underneath it all for things to get better. 

"I'd like to find myself inside your arms again / just like it was if only we knew what we had..."

Within the refrain, "just like it used to be / just like it used to be...", the unbridled longing is cut in half with the second half of the refrain, "we can't go back / we can't go back".

And there lies the heartbreak. 

-Robb Donker Curtius   

THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM 

https://www.instagram.com/stoker.stl/

https://www.facebook.com/stokerstl

https://open.spotify.com/artist/0rfj1aIwJM1cwYdM1rb9gF


Folk/Alternative Rock band from St. Louis Missouri, brainchild of Joseph Belsher the river city crooner.



Stoker, indie rock, acoustic, folk, folk rock, singer songwriter, "Your Arms" (Official Video), St. Louis Missouri, Joseph Belsher, the river city crooner, indie rock, anthem, drinking song,