• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Crushing Krisis

The Newest Oldest Blog In New Zealand

  • DC Guides
    • DC Events
    • DC New 52
    • DC Rebirth
    • Batman Guide
    • The Sandman Universe
  • Marvel Guides
    • Marvel Events
    • Captain America Guide
    • Iron Man Guide
    • Spider-Man Guide (1963-2018)
    • Spider-Man Guide (2018-Present)
    • Thor Guide
    • X-Men Reading Order
  • Indie & Licensed Comics
    • Spawn
    • Star Wars Guide
      • Expanded Universe Comics (2015 – present)
      • Legends Comics (1977 – 2014)
    • Valiant Guides
  • Drag
    • Canada’s Drag Race
    • Drag Race Belgique
    • Drag Race Down Under
    • Drag Race Sverige (Sweden)
    • Drag Race France
    • Drag Race Philippines
    • Dragula
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race
    • RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars
  • Archive
  • Contact!
You are here: Home / consume / Song of the Day / 35-for-35: 2013 – “Don’t Lie” by Vampire Weekend

35-for-35: 2013 – “Don’t Lie” by Vampire Weekend

November 29, 2016 by krisis

[Patreon-Nov16-Post-Bug][/Patreon-Nov16-Post-Bug]I’ll always associate our friends The Crutchleys with being pregnant with EV because of two reasons

vampire-weekend-modern-vampires-of-the-cityThe first reason, and the most obvious, is that they visited our house to play Catan (which we bought for the occasion!) just a few hours before E went into labor. I’ll never be able to think of EV’s birth without thinking at least a little bit about The Crutchleys, Catan, and eating an entire Domino’s pizza all by myself in installments between E’s contractions the next morning.

The other reason is Modern Vampires of the City.

Two months earlier, we were paying The Crutchleys a visit in May for an evening of chat and games in May just after the LP was released. When the discussion turned to music, P said, “Oh, have you heard the new Vampire Weekend?”

I might have shrugged my shoulders in response. I liked the band’s second effort Contra well enough, but I had never had a particular epiphany with them like many of my friends did. Yes, they had an awesome vocabulary and plenty of baroque flourishes, plus an obvious affinity for Paul Simon. It was just that none of their songs really stuck to me.

(Also, I do give a fuck about the Oxford Comma.)

There was something different about Modern Vampires of the City from the opening notes and typewriter percussion of “Obvious Bicycle.” Vampire Weekend transformed from crafting baroque confection with endless streams of melody rocketing in all directions like silly string to wringing emotion from subtle veins of countermelody marbled through each of their songs.

That night, “Don’t Lie” stuck to me. I couldn’t remember the last time I heard something so beautiful and tragic, from the initial sigh of organ like the slow exhalation of breath, to the clipped heartbeat of massive-sounding kick and snare, to the elegiac slow surf guitar out of the outro, but nothing more than the chorus:

I want to know, does it bother you?
The low click of a ticking clock
There’s a lifetime right in front of you
And everyone I know

I feel that chorus thrumming in my cells. I’ve always held a nearly visceral terror of the click of a ticking clock, time made tangible as sound as it slips away never to be grasped again. One of my primary concerns during our pregnancy was time. How was I going to get by with so much less time? 

Later in the song, that chorus transforms:

I want to know, does it bother you?
The low click of a ticking clock
There’s a headstone right in front of you
And everyone I know

Those are the dual truths of time, laid bare in a pair of chorus. Everyone you know has both a lifetime and tombstone in front of them, but the great Rorschach test of life is asking someone which one they see when they hear the ticking of a clock.

Related posts:

  1. 35-for-35: 1994 – “Closer” by Nine In Nails
  2. Song of the Day: “Head Underwater” by Jenny Lewis

Filed Under: Song of the Day Tagged With: 35-for-35, Catan, Vampire Weekend

Previous Post: « From The Beginning: WildStorm Universe – Gen13 (1995) #0-1
Next Post: 35-for-35: 2014 – “Unconditional Love” by Against Me! »

Reader Interactions

Trackbacks

  1. Crushing Krisis › Song of the Day: “Head Underwater” by Jenny Lewis says:
    December 6, 2016 at 10:49 pm

    […] my stomach every time I hear it. I swing from euphoria to nostalgia to grief and back again. I feel the low click of a ticking clock suffocating me like a lungful of […]

Primary Sidebar


Support Crushing Krisis on Patreon
Support CK
on Patreon


Follow me on Twitter Contact me Watch me on Youtube Subscribe to the CK RSS Feed

About CK

About Crushing Krisis
About My Music
About Your Author
Blog Archive
Comics Blogs Only
Contact Krisis
Terms & Conditions

Crushing Comics

Marvel Comics

Marvel Events Guide

Spider-Man Guide

DC Comics

  • New for Patrons: Guide to Drax the Destroyer
    Learn about the many eras of Drax the Destroyer in my new Guide to Drax, including how the MCU pulled one major detail from each incarnation. […]
  • Guide to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IDW ContinuityNew for Patrons: Guide to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles IDW Continuity
    Dig into over 200 issues of turtle power in perfect story order with my Guide to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles comics at IDW! […]
  • Drag Race Sverige Season 1, Episode 3 – “Drag-a’-mera!” design challenge Review & Power Ranking
    The queens of Drag Race Sverige stress over a Drag-a'-mera unconventional materials design challenge and a pair of intimidating judges in Christer Lindarw & Fredrik Robertsson. […]
  • New for Patrons: Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Guide to Mirage Studios Continuity
    Curious about the b&w indie comic origins of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles? my Guide to Mirage Studios Continuity covers every issue! […]
  • Drag Race Belgique Season 1, Episode 5 – Snatch Game & Night of 1001 Audrey Hepburns Runway
    The queens of Belgique compete in a oddly low-key Snatch Game and a Night of 1001 Audrey Hepburns runway that emphasized realness over glam. […]
  • RuPauls Drag Race Season 15 Episode 12 - Wigloose The Rusical Title CardRuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15, Episode 12 – “Wigloose The Rusical” Review & Power Ranking
    Wigloose is one of the best Rusicals ever, and it arrives at the perfect moment to address anti-drag, anti-LGBTQA* legislation across America. […]
  • Updated: Guide to X-Men Legacy
    I updated my Guide to X-Men Legacy, but it's more like an anti-update - since Marvel has yet to get around to recollecting Mike Carey's incredibly run. […]
  • Guide to GamoraNew for Patrons: Guide to Gamora
    Learn more about Thanos's adopted daughter and the most dangerous woman in the galaxy in this Guide to Gamora, of the Guardians of the Galaxy […]
  • New for Patrons: Guide to Shadowhawk by Jim Valentino
    If you've spent some portion of the past 30 years curious about Jim Valentino's Image Comics hero, my new Guide to ShadowHawk explains his history and how to find every issue in reading order. […]
  • Drag Race Sverige Season 1, Episode 2 – “MARATHON Talent Hunt” Review & Power Ranking
    It's the "MARATHON Talent Hunt" as Drag Race Sverige puts on a talent show with some shocking acts, followed by a Pippi Longstocking runway. […]
  • Shazam Guide, The Captain Marvel of DC Comics – now available to the public!
    Excited for Shazam! Fury of the Gods but unsure where to start reading his comics? My Shazam Guide covers EVERY appearance from 1940 to today! […]
  • Drag Race Belgique Season 1, Episode 4 – “L’émission qui vous déshabille” acting challenge & “Ceci n’est pas un look!” runway Review & Power Ranking
    Drag Race Belgique delivered a brainy episode filled with culture with a spoof of the documentary "Ni Juge, Ni Soumise" and a Magritte-inspired "Ceci N’est Pas un Look" surrealist runway. […]
  • RuPaul's Drag Race Season 15 Episode 11 - Two Queens One Joke - Comedy Luxx Noir London Loosey LaDucaRuPaul’s Drag Race Season 15, Episode 11 – “Two Queens, One Joke” Review & Power Ranking
    The Top 7 queens of RuPaul's Drag Race Season 15 take the stage for a Two Queens One Joke comedy challenge and a Rip Her To Shreds runway. […]
  • Updated: Guide to New X-Men by Grant Morrison
    My Guide to New X-Men is freshly updated with the newest reprinting of the New X-Men by Grant Morrison omnibus, the final Peter Milligan recollection, and more. […]

Layout copyright © 2017 · Foodie Pro Theme by Shay Bocks · Built on the Genesis Framework · Powered by WordPress

Links from Crushing Krisis to retailer websites may be in the form of affiliate links. If you purchase through an affiliate link I will receive a minor credit as your referrer. My credit does not affect your purchase price. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to: Amazon Services LLC Associates Program (in the US, UK, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain), eBay Partner Network, and iTunes Affiliate Program.