Number 129: Remain in Light

Album: Remain in Light

Artist: Talking Heads

Year: 1980

Information: After finishing touring for Fear of Music, the band settled down and people pursued their personal interests. Jerry Harrison produced an album, Byrne made another album with Brian Eno, and Chris Frantz and Tina Weymouth went on vacation to the Caribbean, where they discovered native percussion, to think about the state of their marriage and the future of their band. After coming to a conclusion of continuing both fronts, they bought an aparment above the studio where they recorded More Songs About Buildings and Food. Byrne and Harrison joined both of them at the studio and they began to record. Looking to dispel the rumor of David Byrne leading a backing band (instead of them being one, cohesive unit,) they began to perform long instrumental jams, using "I Zimbra" as a jumping-off point. After they had laid down basic tracks, Byrne would write the lyrics, a process that was new for him. Brian Eno arrived, reluctant to work with the band, but changed his mind when he heard their new songs and said "I absolutely love the direction you're going in." They then decided to start using African polyrhythms to mesh multiple instruments into one sound. 

High Points: Although it is a bit of a tough choice, I will have to go with the expected. "Once in a Lifetime" is a fantastic song. From the opening synthesizer that attempts to recreate the sound of water (and it does a great job of it, as well) and onto the complex, intricate rhythms that are the staple of this album, the song is impeccable. The structure of the lyrics is also different than the average song, it has spoken verses about midlife crises and large, sung choruses about not having a care in the world and the days just passing right along without a second thought. Until, the person "wakes up" and realizes that they let the life fly by without ever stopping to realize what's happening around him.

Low Points: In all honesty, there is no bad songs on this record, which may be attributed to the fact that there is only eight songs on this album.

Is it Great? Indeed.

From the start of the album, you realize that you're listening to something different. It's very odd upon first listen, it seems to be a very dark album, filled with impenetrable instrumentation and lyrics. The back beat is filled with what sound to be large arrangements, heavily inspired by African music.

In fact, every track is filled with a wall of tight music. When you listen closely, it's hard to discern how many instruments are happening at the same time. If you try to focus on one instrument, it's a very difficult task to isolate one sound from the rest of the music that is pulsating and breathing behind the disjointed, paranoid lyrical delivery of Byrne.

As the album progresses, it seems to slowly get deeper and darker. The more you listen, the further you go down into the rabbit hole, down far into the brooding and stirring tones and sounds that emanate from this record.

---

"Born Under Punches" is great and wonderfully weird. The song starts immediately with very strong, repeating instrumentation. The band seems to play the same bar for a while until Byrne decides to finally jump into the mix with his request of "Look at these hands." From then on, Byrne repeatedly asks you to inspect his hands, watching them pass between you. Then, a haunting chorus pleading "Won't you breathe with me?" kicks in adds another element to this song, one that seems to be of sadness. I do have one tiny complaint about this song, though. Every once in a while, the bass sounds decidedly 80's. Other than that, I love this song.

I also really enjoy the point in "Crosseyed and Painless" where it devolves down to Byrne reciting his interpretation of what rap music is, which is still gleefully anxious and paranoid. He begins to recite his "rap" on facts and does manage to provide an excellent point during its reading.

---

The last four songs is where the album really breaks down into moody darkness. To me, these last four songs almost seem to create a suite, where each song runs into the next. One moment I do remember distinctly from this 18-minute run is when Byrne recites his eerie poetry on "Seen and Not Seen."

---

This album truly sounds like it had been made by a band of art nerds and it has also become one of my favorites. Also, the Talking Heads have given me a new band to delve into and discover their music. So, one of my goals of finding new, enjoyable music has been reached, but I have no intention of stopping here.