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Song of the Week - Heartbreak Even by Ani DiFranco

Although I planned this post out a few weeks ago, having 'Heartbreak Even' as the song of the week is most fitting as my wife is out of town this weekend.  This was a song that we adopted early on in our relationship as one of our favorites.  She was out of the country that semester of college so this was always a sort of a "miss you" kind of a song. 

'Heartbreak Even' was the lead single off of the 2001 double disc Revelling: Reckoning The song is a hit from its opening riff. The simplicity of the song is charming, while the vocals, guitar, bass, flute, clarinets, trumpet, and drums give it a wonderful complexity. The lyrics are fantastic, describing love as an all encompassing, all enveloping reality, rather than a layer or feeling.

Excerpt from 'Heartbreak Even' by Ani DiFranco from Revelling: Reckoning by Ani DiFranco.

"there is pressure from within this
and pressure from above
there is pressure on our tenuous, strenuous love
and there's wet wool blankets one, two, three
laid onto my chest
'til i just can't breathe

and i try not to let my emotions show
but it ain't a balloon i can just let go
it's an ice cream cone dripping in the sun
sticky hands
sticky arms
sticky situation" 


'Heartbreak Even' by Ani DiFranco


The song stands out so much in relation to the rest of the double disc. At the height of the "pilfer era" with Napster, Kazaa, and other music Sharing/Stealing software, I had more of an ear for singles than anything else, so I never really gave much of a listen to this album. The first disc is also a fuller sound than previous works, so it was harder to digest at the time. Coming back to it years later, I appreciate the double disc more with solid entries such as 'O.K.', "Ain't That the Way', and 'Your Next Bold Move'. Some of the songs took until hearing them done again on the live So Much Shouting, So Much Laughter from 2002.

For more info on Ani DiFranco or her Discography check out her band/label site @Righteous Babe

For a taste of her best work, try out Little Plastic Castles or Knuckledown.

Top 10 Ani DiFranco songs (album name)

1. Untouchable Face (Dilate)
2. Little Plastic Castle (Little Plastic Castle)
3. Heartbreak Even
4. Knuckledown (Knuckledown)
5.Manhole (Knuckledown)
6. Jukebox (Up, Up, Up, Up, Up)
7. As Is (Little Plastic Castle)
8. Napoleon (Living In Clip)
9. I'm No Heroine (Living In Clip)
10.Gravel (Little Plastic Castle)


Enjoy!

Comments

  1. aww, you and jules missing each other and being together without being together through music. *cue other sappy tune*

    ReplyDelete
  2. this chick is too artsy and complicated. She needs a dude to show her how to rock out.

    ReplyDelete

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