Staff Pix: 11/04

The Milk Crate staff selects their favorite tracks with lyrics that don’t match their sound. Here are some of our favorite heartbreak anthems that sound like club bangers, with devastating lyrics we have no choice but to dance to. Tune in to the staff pix radio show on WECB on Fridays from 2-3pm EST.

Nathan Hilyard

Faceshopping by SOPHIE

SOPHIE’s 2018 single “Faceshopping” serves as the catalyst of meaning for her career defining album, OIL OF EVERY PEARL’S UN-INSIDES. “Faceshopping” opens with a bassline swaying in creepy progression, and she soon sings over: “My face is the front of shop / My face is the real shop front.” The song’s first verse calls up a capitalistic ideal of buying and selling the body as a means of personal realization. SOPHIE focuses the conversations presented in her album around the experiences of coming into oneself, and learning to realize identity through self expression. “Faceshopping” focuses very heavily on these themes lyrically, yet musically SOPHIE instills her reliably relentless club sensibilities in a creepy and infectious neo-pop sound. Sonically, “Faceshopping” then divulges into a grinding sludgy beat, with the vocalist singing “Artificial bloom / hydroponic skin.” SOPHIE’s lyrics represent the subject moving into their own beauty, and developing a sense of self beyond the original constraints presented and starkly contrasting the industrial, pulsating dance musicality SOPHIE is so well-adept at creating. 

Everly Orfanedes 

The Story of Us by Taylor Swift 

One of the best breakup albums of all time, Speak now (2010) by Taylor Swift, includes a mix of ballads and bangers from beginning to end. “The Story of Us” tells the story of the unbearable awkwardness of seeing your ex lover after a painful breakup. Swift describes with great detail the rush towards the breakup, and the fears of what will come after it. These raw lyrics are accompanied by a surprisingly upbeat chord progression and “cheeriness” of melody. The guitar solos, major chords, and energetic style on surface level portray a fun-loving pop-rock song, however, the lyrics tell a much more sorrowful story. In the pre-chorus, Swift sings, “So many things that you wish I knew/But the story of us might be ending soon!”

Lauren Larking

Break Up Together by Theo Katzman

Theo Katzman encapsulates the misery of reflecting on all the parts of your relationship that don’t exist anymore post break up on this track. The sound, however, creates a contrast to the lyrical sadness with upbeat guitar strums, chipper harmonies, and a gentle drum beat in the background. “Break Up Together” comes off Katzman’s 2017 album Heartbreak Hits, where he follows a formula of depressing break-up themed lyrics with a sound that comes off as exactly the opposite. Other songs off the album, such as “My Heart is Dead” and “Good to Be Alone,” have similar vibes as well. Katzman curated his own art of making you feel good while feeling horrible himself, which is a sacrifice I am grateful for every time I bump this song in the car. 

Stephanie Weber

I Wish by Skee Lo 

Released in 1995, “I Wish” by Skee-Lo is one of the great songs of the ‘90s. With strong hip-hop beats and rhyming lyrics, Skee-Lo, American rapper born as Antoine Roundtree, gives listeners a calm rap song. The song begins with a radio show voice over, with the DJ saying, “We're takin' calls on the wish line/Making all your wacky wishes come true.” The rest of the song is Skee-Lo answering this call to action and sharing all his life wishes and dreams, some of which are never going to happen, like wishing to be a “little bit taller.” The song is devastating if you listen to the words, evidenced by lyrics like “'Cause when it comes to playing basketball/I'm always last to be picked/And in some cases never picked at all.” The narrator is self-reflexive, though, saying “I confess it's a shame when you livin' in a city/That's the size of a box and nobody knows yo' name.” Although this song is upbeat, energetic, and danceable, its lyrics don’t match its format—as the narrator pours his heart out, we understand that he wants so much out of life that life cannot give him.

Julia Norkus

R U 4 Me? by Middle Kids

The bright nature of this song makes me want to get up and start kicking my legs around like something out of the library dance scene in The Breakfast Club. Something about the recorded laughter, the quick-tempoed drum beat, and overall high energy of a song that is all about feeling so lost and broken in a sea of people—it just makes me wanna get up and dance because I’ve been there (my “Late Night Manic Dance Party” playlist proves it). While the rest of the world spins and continues, we have to maintain a façade sometimes, pretending that we’re just so much happier and just so excited to be alive even when things weigh heavily on us and crush our spirits. The song echoes this experience of how many of us have to face the world when we’re internally crippled by anxiety or stress, “I just wish that everything would be right / When I don't even know what's right / No, I don't know what that'd be like.” Despite its depressing lyrical nature, sometimes dancing is all we can do when we’re buried under the crushing weight of responsibility. So the beat continues to remind us that even though it’s hard to be human, putting it all into a silly song and flailing around like fish just might be the best way to make it through the terrifying reality of being alive and perceived in this world. 

Parker Bennett

Bye Bye Baby by Noname

Chicago rapper Noname’s mixtape Telefone (2016) was a seminal moment in not only the slam-poet turned MC’s career, but the new school of conscious hip-hop as a whole. In just thirty-three minutes, she delivered a project that showcased her gentle, stream-of-consciousness lyricism in tandem with twinkling R&B production, where every song is loosely framed as a telephone conversation about various topics in her life. “Bye Bye Baby”, the second to last track on the album, sonically feels like one of the most snuggly moments in the runtime, but a closer look at Noname’s lyrics reveal something utterly gut-wrenching. The beat itself is made from nursery-reminiscent sounds: gently humming synths, rustling shakers, and even the soft chirps of a child’s cries. It’s a stripped-back, beautiful soundscape to experience, and truly feels like a blanket being wrapped around the listener just before naptime. At first glance, Noname’s vocals seem to match this energy. You can almost hear the smile on her lips as she softly raps “My baby needs some milk and honey,” and it’s an infectiously sweet approach that might put a grin on your own face. As the song unfolds, however, it becomes clear what she’s actually rapping about: an abortion. At times addressed to her lover, at times to the unborn child themselves; the slow realization of the song’s messaging feels like a wave of emotion. Noname’s incredible ear for poeticism (“Bye bye blue, somebody let the yellow in”) make for a listening experience that gradually transforms a smile-inducing initial impression into a tear-jerking expression of pain, growth, and healing. It’s a song that’s incredibly human, and despite consisting of a beautiful backdrop, it’s hard not to feel somewhat devastated after giving a close listen.

Anya Perel-Arkin

Train in Vain (Stand by Me) by The Clash

I don’t usually worry about Mick Jones (except for when Damon Albarn kidnaps him for a Gorillaz concert and dresses him and Paul Simonon up in little sailor costumes), but this song really has me thinking about his mental health. As the last song off of The Clash’s third record, “Train in Vain” makes me want to dance at the end of a coming of age movie— until I realize that the lyrics directly state “I see all my dreams come tumbling down.” I think of The Clash as a band that doesn’t tend to sing about romantic endeavors or their personal thoughts on love; they’ve established their lyrics as predominantly political. To further drive this point, most of their songs are particularly upbeat— hearing Mick Jones cry and cry and cry on top of this summery track is very fitting for this week’s theme. According to Genius, the song is most likely inspired by Jones’ round trip train rides to meet his ex-girlfriend, in which he would come back from with disappointment, hence “Train in Vain.” My friends and I have a habit of blasting this in the car and screaming the lyrics because at some point, they become so brutally blatant that it’s almost funny. But seriously, if you want to see a bunch of 40-year-old men on Dramamine, go watch that Gorillaz video (joke credits to Alex Villeneuve).

Lily Suckow Ziemer

A Lonely Night by The Weeknd

When “A Lonely Night” by The Weeknd first comes on everybody’s quick to dance along. But when I took a minute to read through the lyrics, the subject matter was surprisingly dark. The Weeknd sings about a one night stand who he got pregnant. He explains to the girl how little it meant to him, saying “I loved you on a lonely night” but “It was the only time.” He iterates that they are not good together, insinuating that he wants her to get an abortion. Complaining, he sings, “Why would you wanna use a life to keep us.” However, it’s hard to pay attention to The Weeknd’s rude comments when the beat is so catchy. There’s so much repetition of “baby girl” and “oh” that the song comes off as much more endearing than it is. This song may be a prime example of what my friend calls The Weeknd’s “asshole phase” but the juxtaposition of the fun beat and the emotionally detached lyrics makes “A Lonely Night” all the more intriguing.

Izzy Desmarais

Perfect Places - Lorde 

Melodrama will forever be one of my favorite albums of all time. In each track, Lorde eloquently captures some facet of the simultaneously painful and euphoric experience of being a young adult. Sonically, “Perfect Places” is that fun, upbeat song you would expect to hear in a movie where the main character’s parents are away for the weekend and they decide to throw an absolute rager in their basement. Now let’s look at some of the lyrics. “All of our heroes fading / Now I can’t stand to be alone / Let’s go to perfect places” — partying, drinking, and taking drugs is a way for people to escape the uncomfortable feelings they may experience when sober. While it definitely can be a great stress reliever, continuously seeking out this altered perception of reality may lead to disastrous results — Lorde is drawing our attention to this fact here. The song ends with quite possibly some of the most devastating lyrics I have ever heard: “All the nights spent off our faces / Trying to find these perfect places / What the fuck are perfect places anyway?” To me, it sounds like Lorde is reminding us that when we party hard, we’re in search of a feeling that isn’t real. Name a better song that you could either play at a party or cry alone in your bedroom to…I’ll wait. 

Sarah Fournell

Eastover Wives by Dent May

Inspired by the Eastover neighborhood of Dent May’s hometown, Jackson, Missouri, “Eastover Wives” is a cautionary tale for young women eager to get married in a small town. Despite the fact that it’s a dreamy, disco, dance party of a song, its lyrics scream ‘lonely housewife ennui.’ The groovy beat and funky synth throughline completely contradicts the devastation of the dead-end love lives of the women of Eastover. May sings “Eastover wives lead miserable lives/And they're boring” over a groovy, funky saxophone beat, as if what he’s singing about isn’t heartbreaking in the slightest. The bridge “High school sweethearts/They only talk about the weather/Never sleep together” is inherently tragic, but sonically, is irresistible to dance to.

Will Ingman

Possum Kingdom by the Toadies

Something about the Toadies has always struck me as off-kilter. Maybe it’s singer Vaden Danger Todd Lewis’ weepy-voiced serial-killer singing style, or the touches of muddy Southern fervor they inject into a timeless alternative rock sound. Maybe it’s the way their subject matter evokes home for me, but stops just short of reminding me of anything concrete, like losing a thought before it can fully form. With “Possum Kingdom”, there is an instantly recognizable alternative rockiness, blaring stereo guitars and transparent center-panned vocals, a formula plucked from dad-rock radio stations across the country — but there is also something strange. Lewis slinks through a warbling miasma of fuzz, his motions indecipherable (is he a vampire? A cult member? A necrophiliac?), footsteps scored by a rhythm section tight enough to choke the listener. Studio magic gives his vocals an inhuman quality, echoing from ear to ear like an intrusive thought. He sings of a “dark secret”, one open to interpretation, invokes themes of religion and the afterlife, scored by a hip-shaking Texas blues rendition of a Nirvana track. The craziest part is that it works. The way those touches of down-home Southern rock swirl effortlessly into grunge’s delightful coarseness create a swampy, sinister feeling, a thread for Lewis to pull through the track, dragging the listener by the neck along with him around the lake.

Farah Rincon

The Reeling by Passion Pit

The 2000s indie pop scene is one of my favorite subcultures to get endlessly lost in. As it happens, the Massachusetts native band, Passion Pit, was an indie pop staple of the time, with popular songs such as “Take a Walk” and “Sleepyhead” gaining millions of streams around the world. Mostly known for their upbeat, gut-punching drums and electric feel, they perfectly match the idea of having lyrics that don’t match its sound. More specifically, “The Reeling” was a particular favorite of mine because of this reason. The energetic layered vocals, catchy bass line, and fast-paced synths have no choice but to start a one-person dance party in my room. That being said, the lyrics of the song touch on the subject of feeling trapped, being bored with one’s life, and non-accepting of their current place in life. Phrases like “Look at me, oh look at me / Is this the way I've always been, oh no” and “I can feel the madness inch by inch /The more I run the more I am convinced” play into the sense of denial and spiral that the singer is clashing with as he sings to the danceable pop song. Nevertheless, I will probably disregard the lyrics and turn my headphone volume all the way up to bop to “The Reeling” by Passion Pit. 

Lily Hartenstein

Magnet by Yo La Tengo 

On first listen, “Magnet” is a warm love song: the classic country bassline and smooth steel guitar feel like a lazy Sunday laying in the sunshine with a lover, or being brought a mug of herbal tea by the fire. It became one of my favorite songs in early Spring, as I pulled myself out of the woe of winter by driving around, thawing my emotions alongside the melting snow. The comfort of its sound is apparent, as Georgia Hubley calmly sings lyrics which, in clips, seem romantic: “I ask for breakfast/You bring a piece of pie.” On closer listen, however, it’s a relationship of dysfunction and disconnect being depicted: “You're like a magnet/I'm like a piece of steel/The way you break my will,” Hubley hums serenely. Although the amiable tone of the song’s sound may seem to contradict its description of a relationship in decay, I’ve come to realize the lyrics add to the lullaby effect the song has over me, as it draws listeners towards an organic sense of acceptance.

Karenna Umscheid

Kyoto by Phoebe Bridgers 

In the car with my friends a few summers ago, I requested a Phoebe Bridgers song, specifically my favorite track off of Punisher, “Chinese Satellite.” My friend said no, we had to play a happy one instead. He chose “Kyoto.” Despite the upbeat, cheerful melody of the track, the lyrics are anything but joyful. Filled with imposter syndrome and daddy issues, “Kyoto” is an upbeat yet painful lamentation of Bridgers’ in her growing success. Her lyricism, always detailed in its melancholy, never fails to make my stomach sink. Her angelic vocals carry her painful words into a cascading and devastating fruition. “Kyoto” feels light and upbeat, so long as you don’t listen to her words. 

Harry Bates

C’mon Loretta by Trixie Mattel

Mattel covers the lyrics in “C’mon Loretta” with an early ‘00s cool sonic wrapping, making for a listening experience that further develops the life of Loretta with each repeated use of the play button. “C’mon Loretta” comes from Mattel’s recently released The Blond and Pink Albums on their private record label.

Maura Cowan

It’s Not Living If It’s Not With You by The 1975

If I had a nickel for every time I had to reveal to someone that this light, up-tempo “love song” was actually about heroin use, I would have two nickels– which isn’t a lot, but it’s unfortunate that it happened at all. Frontman Matty Healy’s eternally wry and just-this-side-of-bitter lyricism is at its finest here, weaving a story about addiction in the verses that explodes into a lively chorus over jangly guitars. If you’re not paying attention, you could mistake it for just another heartache anthem from a band that has plenty. But the phrase “All I do is sit and think about you” takes on a different tone when you realize that Healy’s lover is ‘collapsing his veins’ and ruining the lives of all of the figures in the song. Still, I have to apologize to my father and friends for ruining their good time– perhaps, some things are better left unsaid.

Patrick McGill

Bros by Panda Bear

To make great music in a group and be just as influential in your solo work seems to be something a lot of musicians strive for but never fully achieve. However, of those in the boundary pushing indie rock of New York’s late 2000s scene, Noah Lennox of Animal collective seems to fit that description. Known individually as Panda Bear, Lennox’s most popular moment in mainstream music came with 07’s Person Pitch which, in all intents and purposes, invented the chillwave movement. What is that sound? A hodgepodge of loops and hypnotic soundscapes that seamlessly melds the best of psychedelic and electronic music. Clocking in at 12 minutes 30 seconds, “Bros”, the second longest track on the album is that to T. Though split into sections, the instrumental is lo-fi and sparse, Lennox’s lyrics repeating the same thing over and over. It sends you into a trance-like state. It’s only then do you know what those repetitive musings are. Simply, it’s a guy just asking for some personal time away from friends. A simple idea stretched in a complex way. Maybe that’s the best way to describe Lennox’s career or, simply, how the meaning of the song and what it sounds like are so far apart.