“I Need a Forest Fire” speaks to me at the core of my artistic soul due to its brilliant lyrics, mind-blowing production and chilling performance execution. The already phenomenal James Blake features arresting vocals from Bon Iver’s magnificent Justin Vernon, resulting in one of the most impressive releases of 2016. Immediately, the song begins with an ethereal, reverbed melody that is quickly layered with a small grunt by Justin Vernon and is then affirmed by a satisfactory hum from Blake. A compressed looped vocal then begins reciting the phrase “another shade, another shadow,” and continues throughout the chorus. A minimalistic beat drops in and dances around Vernon’s vocals. Blake enters the world of the song as his cold yet soulful voice breathes the first verse to life with a trembling and edged vibrato. After a few bars of the chorus, he brings his vocals down to a simmer as he whispers the looped words “we need a forest fire...we need a forest fire…” It is over this poetic base that Vernon reenters with the second chorus which is also accompanied by Vernon's original loop “another shade, another shadow.” As Vernon brings raw humanity to the song, while Bake brings frigid tones of R&B and together, the frequencies of the two voices seem to eerily twist around each other in the most pleasing possible manner. …show more content…
Lyrically speaking, the core of the song lies in the fact that forest fires, although deadly and powerful, are necessary for the health of a forest. This fatal fountain of youth restores soil and replenishes watersheds and by doing so, transforms dry, nutrient ridden earth to a state of fertility and possibility. Blake utilizes this intriguingly beautiful metaphor to describe the state of a relationship that is taking its natural, yet nonetheless painful
In the first stanza, first line; I saw two trees embracing, this means that there is a couple that is in love. In the second and third line we see that the male is weaker “one leaned on the other, as if to throw her down” and in the fourth, fifth, sixth and seventh line we notice that the female has the strength, willpower and is dominating. In the second stanza, line one, two and three we see that the female being dominant makes the male feel broken and intimidated. In line four “the most wind-warped, you could see”, hear we see that there is a major problem between the two.
The seventh stanza is when the family makes a fire; “We watched the first red blaze appear”. Surrounded by snow in all directions, they make a fire witch symbolizes hope.
The first stanza describes a morbid drawing that Jeremy is creating. This could be a setup for the listener to understand that Jeremy is depressed and is thinking of death. More accurately, the drawing is of Jeremy standing on top of a mountain with his arms outstretched toward the sun. At the base of the mountain is a pool of blood and dead people. The sun could symbolize the brightness and peace after death. Maybe Jeremy thought that d...
The poem opens with an introduction of the speaker: “When my mother died I was very young, / And my father sold me while yet my tongue / Could scarcely cry ’weep! ‘weep! ‘weep! ‘weep!” (ll. 1-3). The speaker’s pathetic circumstance is stressed here, and he quickly wins the sympathy of the reader; Blake makes this possible by quickly relating some but doubtfully all the previous sorrow that the speaker has endured. First, his mother died when he, and perhaps she, too, was quite young, a common occurrence in Industrial Age England, given the dismal shape of the inner city, which was host to such problems as over-crowding, poor hygienic practices and sub-par means of sanitation—all of which ultimately led to the deaths of thousands. Second, his father apparently sold him, or, more likely, forced him to work to supplement the family’s income. Child Labor laws had yet to be enacted in England in 1789, s...
It is in lines 10 – 24 that the poem becomes one of hope. For when Blake writes “As Tom was a-sleeping, he had such a sight! That thousands of sweepers, Dick, Joe, Ned, and Jack, Were all of them locked up in coffins of black. And by came an Angel who had a bright key, And he opened the coffins and set them all free;” Blake’s words ring true of hope for the sw...
The second stanza of the track is probably the most important. It begins once again by asking you to imagine. This time, Le...
In the beginning, before any lyrics are sung, the music starts off slow and very inviting. The purpose of this to relieve yourself and just be able to sit back and take in everything he is about to say, and take something away from this song to help the listener for the days to come.The first message the speaker tries to convey comes from the first two lines, “You know there’s a light
Blake also uses sound to deliver the meaning to the poem. The poem starts off with "My mother groaned! my father wept." You can hear the sounds that the parents make when their child has entered this world. Instead of joyful sounds like cheer or cries of joy, Blake chooses words that give a meaning that it is not such a good thing that this baby was brought into this world. The mother may groan because of the pain of delivery, but she also groans because she knows about horrible things in this world that the child will have to go through. The father also weeps for the same reason, he knows that the child is no longer in the safety of the womb, but now is in the world to face many trials and tribulations.
Throughout the song the tone changes from a disappointed and unsatisfied feeling until it progresses into a hopeful and maturing tone. This transformation of tone follows the story almost perfectly and allows the reader to feel a connection to the transformation of the protagonist. This transformation from “expecting the world” (line 1) to realising that some things must happen for others to come into motion “the sun must set to rise” (line 24) is especially impactful and emotional when paired with the lines “ This could be para-para-paradise, para-para-paradise” that are repeated to show her newly established happiness and maturity. Ultimately, this progression from disappointed
In Songs of Innocence and of Experience, Blake differentiates between being experienced and being innocent. In the poem "Spring," the speaker focuses on the coming of spring and the excitement surrounding it which is emphasized by the trochaic meter of the poem. Everyone, including the animals and children, is joyful and getting ready for the new season, a season of rebirth and a new arrival of nature’s gifts.
The imagery of nature and humanity intermingling presents Blake's opinion on the inborn, innate harmony between nature and man. The persona of the poem goes on to express the `gentle streams beneath our feet' where `innocence and virtue meet'. This is where innocence dwells: synchronization with nature, not synchronization with industry where `babes are reduced to misery, fed with a cold usurous hand' as in the experienced version of `Holy Thursday'. The concept of the need for the individual's faithfulness to the laws of nature and what is natural is further reiterated in `the marriage of heaven and hell' in plate 10 where Blake states `where man is not, nature is barren'. The most elevated form of nature is human nature and when man resists and consciously negates nature, `nature' becomes `barren'. Blake goes on to say `sooner murder an infant in its cradle than nurse unacted desires'. This harks back to `the Songs of Innocence' `A Cradle Song' where the `infants smiles are his own smiles'. The infant is free to act out its desires as it pleases. It is unbound, untainted. Blake's concern is for the pallid and repressed, subjugated future that awaits the children who must `nurse unacted desires' and emotions in this new world of industrialisation. Despairingly, this is restated again in `the mind-forg'd manacles' of `London'. The imagery of the lambs of the `Songs of Innocence' `Introduction' is developed in `the Chimney Sweeper' into the image of `Little Tom Dacre, who cried when his head, that curl'd like a lamb's back, was shav'd'.
The Fire “C’mon, it’ll only take you a second,” he said. I can still remember the look on his face; he looked like a puppy begging for a treat. My red-haired neighbor was three years older than me; he had a sprinkle of freckles across his cheeks and a certain charm in his voice. “Ben, I don’t know about this. I don’t want to get into trouble,” I, being ever cautious, was always reluctant to participate in Ben’s adventures.
LaGuardia, Cheryl. "WILLIAM BLAKE: SONGS OF INNOCENCE AND OF EXPERIENCE." Library Journal 128.9 (2003): 140. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. Web. 13 July 2011.
In his work, Songs of Innocence and Experience: Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul, William Blake uses the aforementioned contrasting states of being to illustrate his unique view of the world around him. Through this work, Blake lays bare his soulful views of religion and ethics, daring the reader to continue on in their narcissistic attitudes and self-serving politics. While Blake's work had countless themes, some of the most prevalent were religious reform, social change, and morality. Philosophically, one would think that William Blake was a Deist; however Blake rejected the Deist view of life. He was a devout Christian, yet he also wanted nothing to do with the church or their teachings. These views give Blake a refreshingly sincere quality with regards to his art and writings. Blake frequently alluded to Biblical teachings in his work and, more often than not, used corresponding story lines to rail against the Church's views and accepted practices. One may say however, that Blake's universal appeal lies within his social commentary. Similar to a fable, Blake weaves a poetically mystical journey for the reader, usually culminating in a moral lesson. One such poem, "A Poison Tree," clearly illustrates some of William Blake's moral beliefs. With his use of imagery, as well as an instinctive knowledge of human nature, William Blake shows just how one goes from the light to the darkness (from innocence to experience) by the repression of emotions.
Thus the poem is a splendid pen picture of joys of child hood and their eventual fading away into eternity. Blake has further laid stress on the potent entity called ‘change’. The poet has through useful symbol of oak tree, old people, evening etc has discussed the mechanics, which act as a fulcrum in moving the paddles of life. The poet has showed superb mastery as he changes the mood of the poem along with the progression of the poem. The poem is in fact a very fine presentation of the philosophy of life resting on the hinges of the magnificent time.