So, I am not much of a fan of explicit music. I now have a quandary. In literary analysis, the technique of trying to analyze a work by interpreting the intentions of the author is considered bad form and bears the name "intentional fallacy." There is a song that I like, where it sounds like they are saying a curse word. Now, I've examined the lyrics and it is clear that there is no expletive there. But the question is, if that's what I hear, does it even matter what the singer was trying to put there? It is compounded now because, after listening to that part several times to see what the lyrics are, it is now very difficult to not hear the expletive. Have I now projected my own propensity to hear offensive lyrics onto what others interpret as a perfectly clean piece of music? What does this say about me? Worse, that's the only part of the song I can even remember.
So, if you hear me humming Float On by Modest Mouse, know that I am probably thinking a cuss word and wincing inside.
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2 comments:
what about the song "love you" by jack ingram? look it up if you haven't heard it.
I did take a listen. I thought it very interesting. Obviously, it could be argued that at least one cogent interpretation would not rely on the traditional definition of "love." If we were to ignore Mr. Ingram's intentions, I suppose the song is perfectly clean, but it is still clear from the context what the word love should mean. I do think it pretty clever, though.
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