Stars Week Prolonged -- On Peak Hill

Well Stars Week continues a little bit longer here, with a favourite song of mine. I have spent the past five days talking about ex-lovers, apologies, on-line dating, child rearing, and those three special words, but all I've wanted to talk about is a magical place called Peak Hill. To help with our enjoyment of this truly enchanting song, is this great fan-made video...




The rain fell hard on the roofs that day
You telephone from far away
I see the ocean from my room
All I could say was "are you coming home soon?"
The static whisper in my ear
But in a moment your voice was clear
"I need some time," you said to me
That's when I knew you were gonna make me lonely

You're gonna make me wish for the time right before I was born
When every living breath was another new dawn
Like the time I was 5 at the top of Peak Hill
And the wind almost took me away

You're gonna make me wish for the time right before I was born
When every living breath was another new dawn
Like the time I was 5 at the top of Peak Hill
And the wind almost took me away

I walk awhile before I sleep, count the secrets that I keep
I hope for more, I know for sure I fall apart before I weep
I disconnect the telephone, cause I can choose to be alone
I'll get more done, I'll have some fun, pretend you're not the only one

And I'm never gonna wish for the time right before I was born
When every living breath was another new dawn
Like the time I was 5 at the top of Peak Hill
And the wind almost took me away

You're gonna make me wish for the time right before I was born
When every living breath was another new dawn
Like the time I was 5 at the top of Peak Hill
And the wind almost took me away

-- Lyrics courtesy of Lyricsmania.com

Having your heart broken is a horrible, horrible experience. It leaves you weak, bitter and alone. Many, many songs have been written on the subject, but few capture it so well with such a light rhythm and innocent lyrics as this one.

With the light synth notes and the powerful, yet simple line of "you were gonna make me lonely" this song just feels childish. The harmonizing that Amy and Torq perform during this chorus makes the song sound like it belongs in a fairy tale.

The words they use in this song are so simple and to the point, "you're going to make me wish for the time right before I was born", is almost infantile in its approach to heartbreak. It is so natural to wish that a relationship never happened. However, these feelings tend to be cast aside as immature. This song does something that few others dare to do, it dares to be immature.

Near the end of the song, there is a hint of overcoming the adversity when they say "I'll get more done, I'll have some fun, pretend you're not the only one" and then they change the chorus up by saying "And I'm never gonna wish for the time right before I was born". However, a stanza later they go right back to the depressing chorus, showing us that maybe they weren't empowered after all. This is an admission of failure in the healing process, and certainly not the actions of a mature, healthy individual.

While this is far from the first song written about break-ups, and probably far from the best. However, it certainly ranks among the most daring, as it is able to make the victim appear as a smaller person, which is certainly a rarity.

Whenever I get around to making a second round of Music to Wallow to, I know that I will include this song, which I am ashamed to say I had not heard when I made the first list. While this, and any songs of its kind, are meant to be downers, they are an important part of any healing process. It is important to be honest with yourself and your emotions, and few songs are as honest as this one.

Until next time,

G