Mahavishnu Orchestra only featured vocals on like three albums, and only briefly. They are an instrumental band. As such, metaphors are found in the music, the literal structure of it. The first song on Birds of Fire, as well as Vision is a Naked Sword, has a diminished minor tone. The dissonant quality of the parts produces a “negative” feel to the music- it is suspenseful, dangerous, uncomfortable, suspicious. The alternative major tones create an opposite feeling- complete, ascending, balanced, etc.
A diatonic scale such as the Dorian is a mode full of minors. It is literally despairing, anxious, suspicious and at unease.
What I like about instrumental music that is compositionally “complex” is the variety of emotional metaphors I can associate with the body of the music- the music tells the story- not the lyrics in all cases.
Maybe I’m crazy, but I like “negativity” in music and in lyrics. I don’t think that either goodness or badness equate beauty, rather that both do. Something evocative, even if it’s depressing, angry, or even “immoral” is beautiful, as I see it.
I don’t like most Christian music, and especially most Christian music stations, just because there isn’t much variation within the selection. For example, “rock” is a repetitive enough category on its own. When you then devote a station to “Christian Rock” it’s not only the top 40 songs over and over, but all of those songs play the same three chords to the same thousand words. That’s why I pretty much never listen to Christian radio. But since I don’t, I might not know what’s up anymore.
The quality is horrible and the studio version is much cleaner and fuller sounding. Anyway this is an example of the kind of lyrical content that is usual for Mahavishnu Orchestra.
The song is very long, so try both the parts to hear how the song progresses.
I can’t find anything else off of the Apocalypse album. “Hymn for Him” is the only other video on that album present on the page.
I’ll try to come back to it when I have more time to let my computer load it. Thanks, though. It’s going to be bugging me until I have time… arg!
Visions of the Emerald Beyond had a few lyrics… not negative at all. The voice was as much an instrument as the rest of the instruments. That isn’t true of all music with lyrics (prob’ly don’t have to tell you that, obviously).
What?! lol jk. I still haven’t learned to read music. I learned to play Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata using this nifty keyboard learning tool – but that was perhaps a mistake, because it made me lazy about learning to actually read music… so I don’t have your vocabulary and have no idea what you are talking about. But – I agree it is possible to sense moods in music. If music is played differently it is felt differently.
I’m going to have to disagree that there is anything negative in Mahavishnu’s music, so far as I’ve heard from Visions of the Emerald Beyond. The first time I “heard” it, it scared me. I had never heard that style of music before (not to mention ‘in that way’). But, once I had the album, I played it until I had it memorized, and it grew on me.
– pxc
Well, I disagree that immoral is beautiful, but I also think it is impossible to create immoral music (when to play it, and how loud, now that’s different)… when you take the lyrics (concepts) out.
Moods like suspense, danger, unease, and what-not, are not immoral (negativity) in and of themselves.
What I’m talking about when I say negativity are concepts that are hateful or damaging to self or others. I don’t listen to music with lyrics you can’t understand because what if I listen to it a lot and finally decode the lyrics and by then it’s stuck in my head? I don’t think so.
I have found there is much more variation on XM 32 “The Message” than on any secular station I’ve ever heard. They have latino (mostly in English, though), eastern, big band, ska, classic rock, modern rock, soul, r&b, rap (but not gangsta, of course), country, piano with vocal, etcetera. There is another Christian station on XM that plays harder stuff, but you have to pay extra, and you can’t always understand the lyrics (or see their application to Christ). The ‘radio’ equivalent to XM 32 would be KLOVE, which I wake up to… a-smilin’!
A weird thing is that I never would’ve made the transition into Christian music if today’s secular rock hadn’t gotten the way it has gotten. And without that transition, I never would be able to stomach (some modern) country music like I can now.
So, Mahavishnu is still going to be a much-needed staple in my musical diet.
I just wish it were possible to combine the style of lyrics I’ve been posting in this thread… with Mahavishnu style music. I get most things I pray for, so… keep your ears open.
I see what you mean. I guess I care more about the depth of an emotion than the nature of it, at least in music. The expressions of hatred in thug rap, for example, aren’t very appealing to me, but a different song that expresses a similar emotion in a more complex or interesting way can be appealing.
I think we have KLUV around here, too… my mom would probably appreciate it if I turned that on every now and then.
So give me a song in particular that expresses the complexity and depth of an emotion… one you really like. You’re lucky, pxs. My mom was into Elvis and country.
I’m trying to listen to part one. It’s taking forever to load, but here’s what I’ve been able to make out of the lyrics so far… (first three minutes)…
Hmmm. Is this not a love song? What do you make of it? I may just have to skip this one, if the studio version is equally hard to understand. I can’t really get a good ear full of the music from what I’m hearing. My connection is really slow.
I’m sure the rest of the album will be muy impressivo, though. Thanks a million. It may be a while before I get hold of it, but it will happen (Lord-willing).
Well, that was pretty good. I really like the violin and electric guitar together, but part 2 cut off the drummer. I also couldn’t hear the vocalist after her main part. I’m curious to hear the studio version to see if she can be understood in it.
I’d love to hear my three (so far) favorites live. I’ll try to look them up some time.
I’m sure some people disagree with me on this song, but I like it because it’s ugly. It’s not a song about doing the right thing, or grace, or joy. It’s not an incredibly obscure song (you may have heard it).
Yes, I agree… it is ugly. I used to like that song because it was angry, and to me, agry felt good. To me her song goes deep into the pain that is caused when love is defiled. But I think if we focus on the negative aspects of things, that’s what we will come to expect. Listening to such ugliness and anger feels like polluting Eden. This is why I focus on the positive aspects of love undefiled. Focus on that, and the garbage fades away, and you wonder why it ever attracted your attention in the first place. Thankyou for sharing with me.
I’ve never heard this song before, but I like it. Thanks pxc. I think the ugly can be beautiful when it resonates with how we feel. Sometimes I’m not so good and I want to hear a song that’s a little less than happy. In fact, most of what I listen to is morally ambiguous at best, which I’d say reflects my perception of reality.
Ichthus,
Maybe it would be best if we remained open to both the positive and negative aspects of life. I think it would neither be wise to ignore all that’s positive nor all that’s negative. And maybe we ought to wonder why the ugly and the negative attracts our attention.
pxc – Yes, it is bad to ignore them entirely, just as it would be bad for a doctor to neglect his patient. You are very right.
You are also right that love between flawed people cannot be perfect. Only God’s love is perfect. That’s why the best relationships are those that anchor their relationship in God’s love. These relationships are the least likely to defile an already imperfect love. It is helpful to remember what God was telling us on the cross… dying for us “while we were yet sinners”. We’re like bulls in a china cabinet, and He loves us anyway. We should love eachother likewise.
fuse – nice avatar (as I post this). There are a number of factors to why we are attracted to ugliness. Just because it resonates doesn’t mean it’s beautiful… it just means there’s part of us that’s ugly, too. We don’t have to know why we are attracted or ugly in order to focus only on the beautiful (God’s love). God will take care of the why. Just like we don’t need to know all the microscopic details of how we got sick in order to go to the doctor and get cured… the doctor knows the details… all we need to do is follow his directions for how to get well. The only reason we would want the sickness to “resonate as beautiful” is if we wanted to die. The only good reason to focus on the sickness is in order to prevent or treat it in ourselves or others who need our help getting to the doctor.
Fuse… to add to what I said earlier (been chewin’ on it) … I think not only will God take care of the why… but, if we are the sort of person who needs to know the why… if we ask, He will give us the why. Very few people ask. You take psychology courses, they all leave Him and His way of seeing… completely out of it. Such methods as secular therapists use can only be superficial.
Colinsign… thanks again for recommending Hillsong to me. I put them on my ipod, I put my ipod on shuffle… and it’s like you’ve provided the missing ingredient of my music-salad!!! Thanks!
Such methods would be considered superficial in that they do not relate to reality or the actual components of the mind, but perhaps that is not simply because they are secular–psychology is also largely unscientific. If one could and did take a completely scientific approach to psychology, wouldn’t their experiments reveal and their theories match what true “Godly psychology” or what have you asserts?
No matter how scientific it tries to be, secular psychology leaves God out of its studies, leaving one with an incomplete picture of reality. A complete picture of reality would include God and our relationship to Him. There are certain fears secular psychology cannot help us face and conquer, and a certain peace it cannot help us reach. It cannot get to the very root, the very heart of things, and it cannot offer the everlasting source of wellness (life, truth, love)… God. Without God in your heart, you aren’t ready to go there; you will never get there without Him. There is no other Way.
