By
Catherine Peace
As
the great Stevie Wonder sings, Music is a
world within itself, in a language we all understand. Music is one of my
biggest passions. It transcends language, culture, political parties,
everything, and it’s one of the things that’s gotten me through the toughest
points in my life.
For
a lot of people, myself included, a good music experience is like going to
church—it can create a deeply spiritual connection with the people around you,
it can bring you together like nothing else. If it’s 50, 100, or 100,000 people
singing along with you, you’re all sharing the same experience. That’s one of
the things that makes concerts awesome, and one of the things that makes
writing musicians awesome.
I
had a lot of fun writing Ty. Really, I did. But as I’ve been working on the
sequel to Complete Me, I’ve been
exploring the up-and-coming musician instead of the one-hit-wonder, and it’s
brought a whole other dimension to the experience. I don’t get to write
musicians nearly enough.
I
wanted to share a longer excerpt from Complete
Me’s sequel Valkyrie Rysing. Hope
you enjoy!
The
show couldn’t have gone more perfectly. The crowd ate them up, and watching
Blake sulk by the bar made the night all the better. Plus,
Pipsqueak got to show off her crazy drum prowess to a lot of
hootin’ and hollerin’. Glad they finally got to experience what she and Rachel
knew Pip was capable of. “All
right, guys, we got one more for y’all.” At the chorus of boos, she shook her
head. “I know, I know. I mean, I could
go all night, but it ain’t my call.”
Rach’s
haunting bass line floated through the air, mournful and lonesome. The crowd
stilled and a hush fell over the room.
“This
last song is a special one,” Joss said. “I wrote it a few years back, about a
boy, like most everything else is. But then I realized something.” She strummed
the opening chord. “It wasn’t about him. It was about me. This is ‘Broken
Folklore.’”
The
song started in a whisper, just her dueting with Rachel’s bass.
I
reminisce the things you’ve told me
Glimpsing
lies your life’s become
I
surmise what you’ve abandoned
Then
I mourn what’s come undone
Through
the second half of the verse, she built to a crescendo.
There
exists more than you’ve shown me
Living
life deaf, blind, and dumb
In
a world of swords and dragons
The
fairest fantasy is homespun
Then,
back to the softness for the chorus.
Lies
look so fair wrapped in metaphor
So
much to hide in certain vagueness
But
pretty words and broken folklore
Can’t
seduce a mind unshaken
Enchanting
words won’t hypnotize
A
string of lies can’t change the fact
If
you’d reopen just one blind eye
You’d
see that there is no.Way.Back.
She
screamed the last three words, and Pip’s cymbal-crash brought the crowd to
life. Heavy guitar riffs reminiscent of Metallica’s filled the room. Screams
and cheering almost drowned out her monitor. Exactly
the reaction she’d hoped for.
Gaze
at the sun too long, child brightness
Taint
your vision for all time
Hold
your breath and wade in deeper
To
your delusion of falsely fine
In
your realm of satisfaction
Guard
the ridges of your mind
Censor,
sort – make your world sweeter
Sate
your guilt, but leave the landmine
As
she went through the chorus again, she sought out August and her heart beat
double-time at the heat radiating from him. Time to seal the deal with an epic
guitar solo.
Her
fingers flew across the frets with minds of their own. Closing her eyes, she
let the music carry her, lift her up and guide her. Regardless of how the
competition turned out, she always had that feeling to depend on.
The
drums and bass dropped out, leaving her doing her best Kirk Hammett impression
with a nutjob solo that most guitarists wouldn’t even try, especially on a song
they’d never performed.
Of
course, she wasn’t most guitarists.
The
solo led into the bridge and the audience couldn’t get enough. Softening,
harkening back to the first verse, she sang the last barely above a whisper.
Calm
your conscience with poetic lies
Speak
what may appease my ears
Repress
your shame and say again
“You
mean so much” to dry my tears
Guide
me through the storyline
Let
me rehearse my part, my dear
Line
and scenes, approach the end
Where
the finale’s forever veered
In
her mind, she counted the beats.... One,
two, three, four.
Lies
look so fair wrapped in metaphor
So
much to hide in certain vagueness
But
pretty words and broken folklore
Can’t
seduce a mind unshaken
Enchanting
words won’t hypnotize
A
string of lies can’t change the fact
If
you’d reopen just one blind eye
You’d
see that there is No. Way. Back
The song ended
on her scream. A
few moments of silence passed, followed by the eruption of a frenzied crowd.
