The Heart Is You In Everything I Do

So another day means another song here at Between Rhyme and Reason. As I was browsing my library thinking of a song to feature for today I came across one I've been particularly enjoying lately yet I had second thoughts about using it as today's featured Song of the Day. The reason why you may ask? Simple, the reason why is because it's an emo song. Its hard to even say the word these days without someone thinking you're being negative or referring to what the genre has become in this modern day. So among my friends the running joke seems to be that I'm actually an "emo" given my tendency to sometimes slip into random depressive moods. I guess I was bound to appease their joke eventually by featuring an emo song, so hey, why not get it out of the way with a really good one?

There was a time before everyone knew what the word emo meant and a time before the word was only used in a primarily negative light, I mean today if someone uses the word emo around you to describe a song then usually your first reaction will be to think that the song is rather horrid. However, emo music was once considered an innovative underground genre and its those days of the genre that I want to flashback to today. So for today I present a song that exemplifies what emo once was and why it was okay to be "emo" once upon a time, that song is "Don't Hate Me" by The Get Up Kids.


Song Title: Don't Hate Me
Artist: The Get Up Kids
From the Album: 4 Minute Mile
Genre: Emo
Year of Release: 1997

The Get Up Kids(as always, if you want more information on a band or artist wikipedia is a good place to start)were an Indie Rock band formed in 1995 in Kansas City, Missouri. They are often cited as major players in the "second wave" of emo music as the genre began to surge in popularity during the mid-90s. They were active between 1995 and 2005 but then broke up, however they recently have been on a reunion tour to celebrate the 10th anniversary of Something To Write Home About, which has been said to be their most successful studio album. However, the band does not refer to their particular type of music as emo anymore because being seen as an "emo band" is a negative connotation often in today's musical society. Though back in 1997 when 4 Minute Mile was initially released, emo was just starting to truly emerge from a primarily underground genre into something more mainstream. Now that you have a bit of history on the band, time to move into the song itself.

"Don't Hate Me" is the second track off of The Get Up Kids' debut album, 4 Minute Mile. Lyrically the song is pretty simple, its a song about a guy who just can't get over a girl named Amy he loves and asks her not to hate him for running from certain things in his life he'd rather escape then face. Its really a very prototypical emo song at its basis, this song presents a good example of the framework that 90s emo set for the genre. You can tell these guys were still new to music due to the simple instrumentation and in my opinion, almost minimalistic effort to the actual musical part of their songs at the time. This is totally forgivable though once you remember that its the words of the song that even makes an emo song an emo song.

What I like so much about the song is that it has heart though, I at least can feel the emotion that the song is expressing. And since emo is short for emotional, I feel that actually feeling some kind of emotional connection in the listener with the delivery and presentation of a song is key to a well-made song in the genre. It was once said that if this song was rerecorded and became a single it would have had a monumental impact on the evolution of popular music at the time, I'm not sure how much of an impact it would have had but I definitely believe this song would have been quite popular(not that it isn't among those who know it, it is typically considered a fan favorite of fans of The Get Up Kids) on mainstream radio stations at the time. Hmmm, this song really makes me want a lover named Amy now...

Chemistry Like Apple and Cinnamon

And now, the first song of the day for Between Rhyme and Reason. If you've been around me at all within the last three days, there is a good chance you've heard the following song blasting from my headphones. Of course, you'd have no idea what the song is but like I said, if you've been around me with my headphones on at all in the last couple of days there is about a 95% chance that this song is what I was listening to at the time. Oh that's right, I still haven't actually introduced the song...well without further adieu, the first song of the day for Between Rhyme and Reason is "Apple and Cinnamon" by Utada.

Song Title: Apple and Cinnamon
Artist: Utada
From the Album: This Is The One
Genre: R&B
Year of Release: 2009

Since I realize Utada isn't exactly a household name as far as artists go I'll provide a bit of background on this lovely lady(You can also check her wiki place for more info @ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hikaru_Utada): Hikaru Utada is a Japanese-American bilingual singer who has been in the entertainment business since she was 13(she is now currently 26). Born in New York City and with both of her parents also in the music industry, she has essentially been raised on music like it was her food. Even though she got her start in the United States under the name Cubic U when she was 13, she is best known in the states for singing "Simple and Clean" and "Sanctuary", the English themes for the games Kingdom Hearts and Kingdom Hearts II respectively. Her success however truly began when she moved to Japan in the year 1998, she soon was scouted by Toshiba-EMI records and released her first album under her actual name, First Love. First Love soon went on to becoming the best selling record of all time in Japan. Just her successful is Hikaru Utada(in the states she simply goes by her last name, Utada)? Well she is currently rated as the best-selilng artist of all time in Japan, so yeah I would say this woman is pretty succesful. In 2004, she tried to re-enter the US market with the album, Exodus. A few singles from Exodus like "Devil Inside" went on to become successful on the dance charts but sales were not amazing for this highly anticipated album for the artist. Most critics(and I) generally agree that Exodus while not a horrible album and had a remarkable production was pretty weak as far as the emotion and feeling in comparison to her Japanese and earlier English work went. However, she recently released her second(third if you count her album as Cubic U) English album entitled This Is The One. And that now leads us up to our song of today, my personal favorite off of This Is The One.

Apple and Cinnamon is a moving R&B song about a break-up. Yes I realize that break-ups are quite possibly the most universally sung about topic but this song is a real standout in my opinion. I think its Utada's gentle yet strong voice that makes this track speak so much to me, I can just feel the emotion as she sings the words, "I can't believe that you and me are falling out of love and everyone used to be so envious of us. Chemistry like Apple and Cinnamon, what we had was just too good...too good to last." I can't really tell you why I love this song so much, I really can't but I do...something about it just absolutely possess me. The tragic beauty of a seemingly perfect love falling apart, though it may be cliche, we cannot deny that such emotions pull at our heart and can possibly envelop us. There's a subtle hint of Utada's eastern influences blending with western influences in the production of the song yet it blends into something that I can only describe as beautiful. I'm not sure if you'll like the song as much as I do but I hope you enjoy it at least a bit. Also, I should note that I'm a pretty big Utada fan so don't be surprised to see her work show up again here at Between Rhythm and Rhyme.

Let's Get It Started

Welcome to my new blog, Between Rhyme and Reason. This blog will allow me to share and discuss my feelings on music along with songs that I feel like sharing. Life can get truly hectic sometimes and its at those times when you need music, music can be a saviour against the stress that sometimes overwhelms us all. I truly believe that a world without music is a world not living in, at least its not a world that I would ever want to live in. Music has helped me in so many ways and I feel like this is my way to give back to music. I'm a rather open-minded individual when it comes to music, I prefer to look at a song from its lyrics and how I feel about them rather than its genre...while genre is useful for categorizing music, I feel it has created a sense of distortion between fellow music listeners from enjoying certain songs simply due to prejudgmental biases resulting from the song's particular genre. You will find an interesting and rather ecclectic selection of music from mainstream to alternative, to today's hits to the gems of yesterday, and every now and then maybe something from somewhere else in this vast and beautiful world of ours(after all, music is a universal language, why restrict myself and my readers simply to music from the United States).

Again, I'd like to welcome you to what I hope will become a marvelous experience for both you and I, I'd like to welcome you once more to the birth of Between Rhyme and Reason. Keep an eye out from now on for articles as well as the daily song.