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| SUBJECT: | "From This Place" of pandemic and panic Back to Subjects |
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saxond Mar 21 2020 at 4:28 PM |
It strikes me what amazing timing the release of Pat Metheny’s new album has. It came out just as covid-19 began to explode, at least in Pat’s home country. The cover illustration becomes a metaphor for something else--panic spreading with contagion. The song titles now seem to have secondary meanings, speaking to us about "this place." As Pat’s music has always done: "We Live Here." "Speaking of Now." "The Way Up." "From This Place." Music is the healthiest of all our human tendencies. It heals. It comforts. It inspires. It provides emotional catharsis. I’m dipping into this wonderful album (Pat’s best in two decades, maybe more) from a deeper well of need. We owe the artist an extra measure of gratitude, if that’s even possible, for feeding our souls just when we needed it. I have no doubt that wonderful music fortifies the immune system, if slightly, along with the spirit. |
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agamez77 Apr 07 2020 at 8:02 PM |
Hey Naut, In a few months, Pat will be Sixty-Six.
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Aristide Apr 02 2020 at 4:42 PM |
When the world comes to an end
The music will continue.
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facing west Mar 24 2020 at 1:47 PM |
It’s astonishing how this album represents this moment in time--in all of its terrible beauty. I think there are always a
number of agendas at work on each PM album. But one constant is to attempt to capture what it’s like to be alive at
this moment, yet also speak to those (hopefully) following a hundred years from now. I believe ’From This Place’
succeeds spectacularly on this level. A major work of art, in every sense of the word.
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Gyuri Mar 22 2020 at 4:01 PM |
...of pandemic, panic and more. The first track reflects a primeval fear of what is behind current events: If Pat’s exuberant joie de vivre may has been shaken by recent and contemporary events to an extent where
his music has got coloured with menace, then the going has got real tough. That said, the rest of the tracks exude
positivity, playfulness and hope. Reason and love will ultimately prevail and in that our faith must remain strong.
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naut Mar 21 2020 at 6:58 PM |
saxond, it seems that you and I have been thinking along similar lines. Probably other folks have as well. I began a post titled "Prophetic or serendipitous?" but didn’t submit it yet. I’ll see if I can squeeze it in here to see what you think. You certainly provided a timely occasion, if a rather dark one, to air some more thoughts on present conditions. -- Prophetic or serendipitous?
"America Undefined" -- Although not confined to America, the entire planet is entirely undefined at this moment in history.
"Wide and Far" -- The distance to keep between other humans.
"You Are" -- Hope in the midst of uncertainty.
"Same River" -- Think of the pandemics that have plagued the planet since antiquity.
"Pathmaker" -- Gaia as trail blazer through the morass.
"The Past in Us" -- Indeed.
"Everything Explained" -- Whether this is possible or not, the impulse is noble.
"From This Place" -- Most people are hunkered down in their own places for now.
"Sixty-Six" -- I don’t know much numerology, but perhaps there’s significant symbolism there.
"Love May Take a While" -- No doubt about that.
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