Talk Is Cheap by Chet Faker

Valentine's Day is approaching. I'm in the camp that doesn't mind the holiday, despite how many single ones I've had. Two years ago, I was newly broken up with that dude who I moved across the country for, and spent the time hanging out in the (surprisingly packed) gym. Last year, I had major butterflies and magic feelings for a guy who I had started quasi-seeing only a few days before. We weren't even dating yet and he loathed the holiday. I was still giddy over the prospect. This year, I am seeing an amazing guy who is actually making the effort. This is new territory and a new relationship for me and I'm pretty excited to see what comes to fruition. 

When thinking about budding romances this holiday, if I were to make a mix, it would open with this sexy, but wise, new track from Chet Faker, Talk Is Cheap. Between the saxophone so smooth that I'd let it take me home from the bar and the sultry lyrics, my brain lights up when I hear this song start to play.

However, there are some important lessons to learn here, especially as I build upon new relationships."Talk is cheap my darling, when you feel right at home". How true is this? Whenever I am comfortable with my feelings, it's always easier to make promises than it is to deliver on them. Since there's trust or history built in already, a slipped promise doesn't seem as big of a deal. 

"I want to make you move with confidence. I want to be with you alone", is another sentiment worth drawing attention to. More so than anything, I believe one of the biggest foundations for success is the ability to inspire confidence in a partner and in yourself. Creating a comfortable and safe emotional environment (a home), while possibly encouraging those slipped promises above, allows room for inevitable mistakes and human flaws. 

Honestly, I wasn't expecting this latest release to make me pause and think these things over. That's the beauty of music.

Listen to Talk Is Cheap below. Join me in anticipating the debut LP, Built On Glass, available April 11th. Hopefully, Faker's wisdom will be present throughout the album. 

Salt by ear to the ground/ Salt by Wyatt Overman

Between being raised in a non-religious family and my tendency to be oblivious to idioms, I didn't know what the phrase the "salt of the earth" meant until a few months ago. The "salt of the earth" are those humble, unpretentious, just good people who are appreciated, loved and respected by all. This makes sense, as salt has been used metaphorically to represent loyalty, value and purification in the Bible and was a coveted mineral in ancient times.

The genre of folk is no stranger to religious undertones and harsh self-awareness. When the two are combined, dramatic symbols, such as salt, convey the woes of judgement, regret and disappointment.

Representing yet another idiom, ear to the ground is a project by Frank Hurkmans, based out of Utrecht in the Netherlands. While the music is a little rough around the edges, there's a lot of emotion and genre-blending wrapped up in the six-track self-titled EP. Salt, makes direct use of the "salt of the earth" idiom: "the salt of the earth I never was". This is in response to a judgement day, a once-promised future and the inevitable new start that comes with disappointing the ones cherished, "when August ends, I'll start all over again".

On the other hand, there's Wyatt Overman, who released this album, Two Winters, that I can't get enough of. This is an album so delicate, so fragile, so brilliant that I keep trying to write words to describe my feelings and constantly feel like I'm falling short. His Salt is much more indirect but conveys the theme of judgement and "salt of the earth" just as well as ear to the ground did. Here, there is a different take. Overman challenges his cherished one, "darling please, please listen to yourself. Who they hell have you become?" He mocks when he doesn't quite believe the words she has spread that they "are the salt, in/and the undertow", when in reality, their unit is falling to pieces.

You can listen to ear to the ground and Wyatt Overman over on their respective bandcamp pages. Listen to both takes on this classic idiom and think about those you consider to be the "salt of the earth". Or, live up to the expectations set forth and survive the judgement that will follow.