Commute Listening.

I'm only on my first listen of Slaid Cleaves' new album—and only halfway through it at that!—but it's already safe to say that this won't be my only post about it. Because even just the FIRST HALF of Still Fighting the War made me cry (multiple times) and laugh out loud (also multiple times) and sometimes both at the same time (Texas Love Song, I'm looking at you). So far, he's told stories about veterans; love lost and love found and love lost again; growing up; unemployment; working for survival rather than passion; being down-and-out and finding happiness anyway; and love, love, love.

He continues to be one of my favorite singer-songwriters because of the warmth in his voice; the smarts and honesty in his lyrics; his ability to convey tragedy and pain without ever tipping into schmaltz, love and joy without getting sappy; how there's almost always a thread of humor even in his saddest songs, but rather than diminishing the sad, it accentuates it while also being comforting.

Oftentimes, you can hear him smiling as he sings.

He's good stuff, and I'm not just saying that because he's originally from Maine.

(If you want some double-awwws, read the About page at his website: it's not about him, it's about how awesome his wife is.)

ANYWAY. The song I'm highlighting today is one of the ones that made me laugh out loud—not just because it's genuinely funny and full of affection, which it is—but because it ties into the ongoing dialogue about the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ltXR66uz8iQ] 

The awesome thing about Whim of Iron, though, is that while the subject of the song could EASILY have been played up as a MPDG, and that a similar character in a movie would very probably come across as one, SHE ISN'T ONE IN THE SONG. She's a person, not an object: the narrator is talking about her, and while she's the subject and it's clear that he (<--the narrator) has very real affection for her, the song is about how she lives her life and changes the world around her, not about how she affects him personally.

That never comes up.

Anyway, I've gone on... and on... and on long enough.

So I'll let Slaid play this post out with another version of the song:

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7BdT-MaWieY]