ARTIST:
TEARS FOR FEARS


ALBUM:
TEARS ROLL DOWN 


KEY TRACKS:
SHOUT 
MAD WORLD
LAID SO LOW


"shout, shout, let it all out"


There's an old saying about history that says you cannot know where to go unless you know where you've been. This statement rings true in all facets of life. You must always know where you've been in order to grow, mature, and ultimately become a wiser individual. I personally believe that music also reflects this proverb. 


 All artists these days are aware of the greats that have gone before them: The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Smiths, etc. these artists broke boundaries, influenced global trends in music, and remain today an important tribute to the decades of the past. That being said, Tears for Fears was a bit of an unexpected surprise for me. Unexpected in the sense that I had no idea just how many covers this band has inspired. So honestly this was more of a revisit than an initial listen. Songs that I've always adored like Shout, Mad World, and Laid so Low were here all along. These were all songs that I always recognized, always liked, but never really took the time to decipher the artist behind the music. So, that being said, meet Tears for Fears:  the band behind most other bands.


Of course I was really (and I mean really) wary of this band because of my own preconceived notions based on the band name, cover art, and the decade of this band's hey day.  Well, I was wrong.  This is an album I truly grew to enjoy.  In fact, it really mirrored what was going on in my life while listening to it.  As someone who gives in to preconceived (perhaps even slightly judgmental) notions, there is nothing more jolting than that violent realization that you were wrong about something or someone.  In this case it was someone who I thought was good soul completely misunderstood, but then turned out to be a fuck-wad.  Yeah, I said it: FUCK-WAD.  Fortunately, listening to this album was more of a delightful realization.

Shout is my favorite track on the album.  I've heard some excellent covers of this song, in some ridiculous places.   While some I like even better than this original, hands down this is the song that started the intrigue.  Also there's something very therapeutic about it:  

shout, shout, let it all out

these are the things I can do without

come on

I'm talking to you

come on

I appreciate this kind of aggression.  It really does feel good letting out all your anxieties, emotions, etc. by shouting it out.  Anger is perhaps the most human emotion we possess and to have a song that embraces it?  Well that's a winner in my book.

The Mad World on this album isn't at all like the Gary Jules slow moving rendition for the Donnie Darko soundtrack.  Instead it's an upbeat track so very much unlike the lament Jules has turned it into.  However, although I respect the original here this is a prime example of the cover surpassing the original.  For me as the listener though, it's fascinating how Gary Jules rearranged this song from sounding so upbeat to the ultimate soundtrack for depression.  It's a lovely track.  A beautiful and quiet reinterpretation of a song that many people recognize today.  

Lastly Laid So Low was the one track on the album that I really took the most from.  Why?  Because this was the first song I liked off this album that I hadn't heard before.  Covers or no covers this song was a triumph.  A complex mesh of noises, musical sounds, and booming effects, it's easy to see why this track was the compilation album's title was derived:  

laid so low for so long, so low

into that void of silence

where we cry without sound

where tears roll down

where tears roll down

I really connected to the raw emotion in these lyrics.  When you're upset, it really does feel like being trapped in a void.  And in this day and age of keeping your personal feelings hidden (especially true for men) it's easy to see that we can sometimes cry without sound.  Potent lyrics backed by bombastic instrumentals.  

So what have I learned this week?  Even the most judgmental thoughts can't keep you from appreciating talent.  In fact, I'm glad I placed aside my views because I would have been missing out on something decent.  Now, I'm not going to say that I'm going to completely abandon making hasty judgements because that's virtually impossible.  However it will make me more aware of them.  And what about fuck-wad?  Well, I've got two words for you and they begin and end with "F".  Would you like to buy a vowel?

LISTEN:  SHOUT  |  MAD WORLD  |  LAID SO LOW

NEXT WEEK:  SUFJAN STEVENS  |  THE AGE OF ADZ