The Second

Well, here's my second blog post. I'm really not sure of the proper format for doing these or what I should say in each proceeding blog, but I don't really care for convention, so I will just do it my way. Along those lines, I'm rather surprised that I'm actually posting a second one; I thought I would have realized how silly this practice of blogging is but here I am, posting again.

I considered posting about politics, but I thought against it. Instead, I've decided to post about a song I recently learned how to play: White Blank Page by English folk band Mumford & Sons. Mumford & Sons is composed of Marcus Mumford (Guitar, Drums), Ben Lovett (Keyboard), "Country" Marshall (Banjo), and Ted Dwayne (Bass). When I discovered Mumford & Sons a few months ago, I quickly fell in love. In a sea of dismal music about nothing but sex and partying, to see a band sing about love and life is quite refreshing along with the ability to write their own music and perform it (a rarity today).

White Blank Page is the fifth song off of their album Sigh No More. It's got quite a sparse arrangement relying mainly on guitar and vocals throughout, with a bit of banjo, bass, and piano thrown in near the middle. The song is in the key of A with the guitar capoed at the 2nd fret, for those of you interested. 

There are two ways to analyze this song: in context or out of context. That is either analyzed in the context of the entire album (after listening to the album over a hundred times, I'm fairly certain it is about one girl and her relationship with Marcus Mumford.) or taken by itself. For ease, I will analyze using the latter circumstances.

Here are the Lyrics and a Link to the Bookshop Sessions:
(Lyrics are property of Mumford & Sons)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I_Od0PJp6GI&feature=autoplay&list=ML4oVf-d_DwKBrTZ3n8rKv8pCa2cT8q6FC&index=3&playnext=2

Can you lie next to her
And give her your heart, your heart
As well as your body

And can you lie next to her
And confess your love, your love
As well as your folly

And can you kneel before the king
And say I'm clean, I'm clean

But tell me now, where was my fault
In loving you with my whole heart
But tell me now, where was my fault
In loving you with my whole heart

A white blank page and a swelling rage, rage
You did not think when you sent me to the brink, the brink
You desired my attention but denied my affections, my affections

But tell me now, where was my fault
In loving you with my whole heart
But tell me now, where was my fault
In loving you with my whole heart

Lead me to the truth and I will follow you with my whole life
Lead me to the truth and I will follow you with my whole life

Amazing right. But what does it mean?

You can take everything before the chorus in two ways. Either the speaker is talking to someone else (as in the man that has taken the woman he loves) or he is speaking to himself.

Verse I: Plainly states: Do you have what it takes to give your heart away to someone and then your body as well (meaning sex). So he is asking himself, can I really do that? Can I give myself away? Can I let go of my inhibitions and fears to love her? Or he is telling the other guy through questions that that man doesn't have what it takes to give her his heart. He isn't as good for her as the speaker is. The other man doesn't have what it takes to really care for her.

Verse II: Do you have the courage to admit to her that you love her? Do you have the strength to admit all of your flaws and mistakes that has to go along with a commitment of love? Again he could be questioning himself or the guy that has her.

Verse III: This is the verse that can throw a WHOLE new interpretation into the song, which I will get to later. But it basically asks if you have the faith and purity to kneel before God and tell him you have done no wrong (something I doubt any of us can do).

Chorus: This is the part where the desperation reaches a summit. He is speaking at this point to either the girl he loves or himself. He is asking "why am I wrong for wanting to give you all of my love?" "Why can't you see that I absolutely love you?" "Love shouldn't cause pain The question is: Is the speaker sitting alone asking himself this in misery or does he actually have the courage to ask her directly?

Bridge: This is where his longing and hurt turn to rage. I've seen some take this to mean a suicide note (i.e. White Blank Page and brink) but I don't get that from the rest of the song or the album. I think it applies to Marcus's profession, songwriting. It's a warning really. You've hurt me and pushed my emotions and my thoughts over the edge and I'm not even sure what to think. It causes a rage which causes him to lash out in song (i.e. the page which starts out white but turns black under his emotions). The last line is one of the most pertinent to me. The girl wants his attention when he's around and she needs him, but when he wants her or wants to show her his love, she is completely unavailable. This is what really helps to fuel his rage. She won't give him the time of the day most of the week but when she needs him for something she assumes he'll do it. What really makes him angry is that he knows he will do it for her anyway, even though everything in him tells him not to.

Outro: A statement that all of us should abide by. If you can find that person that will tell you the truth and help lead you to discover who you are, you should never leave them.

Now this song also has quite a bit of a religious undertone, as does a lot of their songs. This undertone comes about from the the line about kneeling before the king. It could mean that he, as a Christian, is struggling with the practice of no sex before marriage. The Bridge is the area where his lack of sex is causing him rage and he can no longer hold on to his beliefs. (White Blank Page-i.e. A pure woman/ Swelling rage-i.e. his impulses and the anger it causes him). He is yelling at God "Why? I love you God but I don't see why I have to hold out like this when you are the one that gave me these impulses in the first place?" He asks God where was his fault in loving him. He knows that if he didn't love God then he wouldn't feel the horrid guilt that lust causes him.

In conclusion, it is a song about a guy that loves a woman with all of his heart and is trying to win her but she either doesn't care at all or is with another. Also it contains a religious undertone.

So that was a little bit long winded, but that is what goes through my head when I listen to music (For those of you who know me, this is partly why I am so passionate about music). I try to interpret what the singer is saying as well as how I can apply it to my life. I know I've been in this situation before, as I'm sure a lot of us have. It would be so much better if we could just come out in the open with how we feel, but our culture doesn't support that notion at all. Anyway, I also listen to the music and the interplay between all the parts but I decided not to bore you with the music analysis this time.

I plan on posting analyses of many more songs focusing primarily on lyrical interpretations. Please note that these interpretations are open to change as I listen to these songs more and have more time to contemplate there meaning and extrapolate it to life.

In closing, I hope you have enjoyed this and if you have anything to say please feel free to leave a comment.