Non Conformity
The Strokes released their album "First Impressions of Earth" on January 3rd , 2007. The album songs are mostly about Julian Casablanca questioning the world around him.
The song "Ize of the World" is about how people are always conforming to the world around them, and how its not bad to be non conforming and do what you think is right for yourself rather than conforming to the society. One of the lyrics in the song say "I think I know what you mean but watch what you say/Cause they'll be trying to knock you down in some way". This is saying that someone is thinking outside the norms but someone or the society will try to tell them they are wrong or will stop the person from trying to do something that is not the norm in society. Another lyric in the song is "Your mind would wander and search for its place in the night/Your body followed this feeling like following light/Once that your music was born it followed you 'round/And then it gave your activities meaning and let you be loud". This is saying that the person was trying to find a place in society but then they found their own path and found something that challenged society norms.
This song connects to the quote because the quote is saying not to waste life and be conforming to society. Instead of conforming to the norms of society the person in the song did something that challenge the norm and went against conformity. They chose to do something they liked instead of doing something that is conforming. This song shows Transcendentalism because it shows non conformity by saying that people are always going to judge you if you do something different than what they are used to but sometimes you have to think outside the box and not conform to society. Thoreau would like this song because it relates to the quote about not being non conforming.
Self reliance
The Growlers released their album Not.Psych! on October 28, 2013. Most of the songs in the album talk about having self reliance. I think the album is talking about how its okay to go your own way and not follow what other people tell you to do.
In the song "Tell it how it is" It talks about a man who is self reliant and does not care about what anyone says. One of the lyrics says "...he is faithful to himself / and it can hurt to hear the truth/ but he just aint concerned with you" I think the lyrics are trying to explain that he is not concerned about what other people have to say because hes going to do whatever he thinks is right for himself. He is only faithful to himself so it shows how self reliant he is that he can only trust himself and not care about anybody else's opinion. Another lyric in the song is " ..So he had to leave/ no time to grieve/ Had to set out and find /Something better than what he left behind/ Something he knew was worth/ All of his pain and hurt". This talks about him leaving in search of something that is worth it to him. He is only focused on himself and needs to find something that makes him happy.
This song connects to the quote on self reliance because the man in the song does what he thinks is best for himself. He is not concerned about what people will think about when he leaves to find something that he thinks is worth it to him. This song shows Transcendentalism because it shows how self reliant the person is that no matter what you tell him he is going to do whats best for him. Like the Emerson quote demonstrates, the man in the song knows what he has to do in order to find something that is best for himself. Even though people will say their opinion about what he should do with his life he is not going to listen to what anyone tells him. Emerson would like this song because it connects to his quote perfectly about being self reliant and doing what you think is the best for yourself.
Importance of Nature
Tyler the creator released his album "Cherry Bomb" April 13, 2015. The songs on the album are mix of different genres which make the album interesting and creative.
In the song "Yellow" Tyler uses a lot of metaphors one of the lyrics is "I needed somethin' that was like the Sun" he compares the girl he loves to the sun because the sun makes things grow and gives light. Hes comparing her to the sun because he is saying that she is his light and helps him grow as a person. Another metaphor he uses in his song is "Now all my flowers grow/right now my life it blooms." he is saying that because she is his sun that she helps him grow and makes him feel good about himself and that his life is better with her. One other lyric that uses a metaphor is It's like the endless summer/ endless summer/whenever I'm with you." He is comparing being with her like an endless summer because summers are long and feel endless also summer is when it is most sunny outside so that is why he compares her to the sun.
This song connects to the quote by Emerson because the sun is seen as a common thing that we see everyday but he makes it seem like the sun is something miraculous and wonderful. Also he makes a lot of references to nature in the song like comparing himself to flowers and comparing someone to the summer. This song shows transcendentalism because it is being compared to nature.
Favoring intuition over reason
The Growlers released their album "Guilded pleasures" on November 12, 2013. Most of the songs on the album are about following your intuition and doing what you think is best for yourself.
One of the songs on the album is "Change in your Veins" it talks about how sometimes you have to go with your gut feeling and do what you feel is right for your self. "Take a risk and feel some pain/Put some change inside your veins" This is saying that sometimes you have to go with your intuition and take a risk. Another lyric is "Cause they're so afraid to grow' this is saying that the person that does not go with their intuition will never grow because they are scared of what will happen if they do. This song is saying that if you follow your gut feeling you have to take a risk if its what you feel is the right thing to do even if it scares you.
This song connects to the quote because the quote says to follow your own path even if its different than everyone else's . The person in song the song needs to follow their intuition and follow their own path. This song shows Transcendentalism because it shows intuition over reason by saying that sometimes you need to take risks and do what you think is right for yourself or what makes you happy. I think Thoreau would like this song because it connects to transcendentalism.
Simplified Life
The Growlers released their album City Club on September 30, 2016. Most of the songs in the album talk about love and stuff except two songs that talk about the problems they faced because of the split up of one of their members leaving.
In one of the songs of the album called "Speed Living" it talks about how a fast paced life just is not for some people. "Speed living ain't for everyone/It ain't for me/Wouldn't have it any other way/Easy living at a cheap rate". The song is trying to explain how some how a simple life is better for some people by living not in luxury but just by living simply with things that are cheap but it makes them happy. Another lyric is "Nothing to scrutinize the rhythm of change/Just a whole lot of warm love flowing through the vein" I think this is trying to say that its better to live a simple life and not always changing because living simpler is a better way to live and that maybe it makes someone happy to live a simple life, instead of living a life that is moving way too fast.
This song connects to the quote by Thoreau because the quote talks about how someone can find pleasure in living a simple life. Like in the song the person would rather live a simple life than live a life that goes way too fast. Its saying that its better to take your time an enjoy the simpler things in life. Also in the song and in the quote they both talk about living at a cheap rate which connects to transcendentalism because its saying that the simpler things in life are things that are cheap. I think Thoreau would like this song because it talks about living a simple life is better than living a life that is too fast complicated.
Credits:
Created with images by GLady - "flowers plant nature" • bryce_edwards - "Saguaro Cactus" • giografiche - "sky clouds rays of sunshine" • metalslugzmaste-96200 - "flower sunflower sky" • skeeze - "milky way andromeda stars" • Bryan Pocius - "Sunset?"