Song of the Day: Tom Waits “Back in Crowd”
I try to hard to not be part of any demographic by reading “interesting” books and have insightful things to say about films and step out of my comfort zone when it comes to art. But no matter how much I try, I am ripe for the picking when it comes to Tom Waits fans:
1. I’m in my Late 20’s
2. I have a college degree in Literature (Philosophy or History work as well… or any other degree considered useless)
3. I live in major metropolitan city
4. I grew up listening to a lot of underground music, and frankly I’m bored with the state of modern independent music (that’s a smarty-pants way to say I’m jaded).
But every 4 years or so Mr. Waits seems to pop his head in through the door that is the boring, Pitchfork dictated, soda-company sponsored music climate and give us a collection of songs that are more raw, rambunctious, theatrical and sad than anything else. He just seems to put something out that’s always far more interesting to me than whatever is dubbed “cool” for that month.
“Back in the Crowd” is a heartbreak lullaby played on a spanish guitar. It’s an amazingly vulnerable piece that’s not uncommon on Waits’ albums in between all the junkyard howling. A man coming to terms with a love that’s nearly gone, and not being angry, or even that sad, but just saying farewell in the most dulcet tone he can.
