Zaba How To Be A Human Being Interpretation
Following the release of their wildly popular but equally peculiar freshman album Zaba, the UK foursome Glass Animals took two-years to tour. Over this time their experiences and creativity resulted in the creation of their sophomore album How To Be A Human Being. True to form their second album is filled with soft vocals paired with a wide range of electric beats and background noises. Front man of the group Dave Bayley is quick to stress the importance of individual interpretation of each song. “I don't feel like that should ever be the case – each person's interpretation is 100% important. It's much more interesting for everyone that way.” (Bayley). The group took an interesting approach when constructing their second album. Each of the
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11 tracks on the album is inspired by a member of a cast of largely fictional characters created by Bayley stitched together by the experiences he and the band had while touring the globe. These characters are a reflection on the albums title and offer a glimpse in to what it means to be a human being from the perspective of the band. Each character and song represents a unique experience all of which contribute to the overall human experience. Zaba was rather dark and mysterious the band left it largely up to the listener to interpret the sound. The unique style and organization was easily observed but the album gave little away. With the release of How To Be A Human Being the band steps out from behind the mysterious Zaba veil and comes alive almost as if the feedback the band received from their first album gave them a new found confidence to tamper with the boundaries of popular indie/alternative music. Listeners can expect more of the same electronic sounds overlapped with organic instrumental guitar and drum rifts; however, How To Be A Human Being uses far more accessible lyrics to tell the stories of the good, the bad, and the ugly within the human experience. The lead track on the album “Life Itself” is easily decoded using lines such as “I can't get a job so I live with my mom, I take her money but not quite enough, I make my own fun in grandmama's basement…” to tell the tale of a strange man who has never fully assimilated to society and is content remaining isolated. The format of the album requires that the meaning behind the lyrics be easily comprehensible, after all they’re supposed to relay the story of each character. With so much attention being paid to the new found lyrical genius of the band the precise production behind the album has been largely overlooked.
The appeal of Glass Animals has a whole lot to do with the simple fact that their sound is like nothing that has ever been produced before. The use of intricate samples and intense attention to detail results in a sound that is like nothing else in the alternative genre or in music as a whole. “Mama’s Gun” most closely mirrors the sounds of Zaba. Calmly and smoothly the song accelerates and decelerates from one chorus to the next. The most up beat songs on the album - “Pork Soda”, “Take A Slice”, and “The Otherside of Paradise” - find their roots in hip-hop like beats, opting for more uneven beats that offer a higher tempo. Vocal dynamics on the record follow a similar pattern and are appropriately paired to the tempo of the song. The diverse collection of brand new intriguing sounds contrasted with familiar contemporary hip-hop beats prove that the band has plenty to keep the audience guessing. How To Be A Human achieves a tone unique to itself using predictable features rooted in unpredictable arrangements. Each song varies from the last. Synthesized vocals and the surgical insertion of samples are reminiscent of the technological expertise of a dance DJ; while organic flute melodies in “Mama’s Gun” and a Red Hot Chili Peppers-esque intro to “Poplar St.” pay homage to other influential musical compositions. The production behind How To Be A Human Being acts as the backbone for the album. It adds a meaning and emotional response that extends beyond what the lyrics are able to achieve. In a similar but drastically contrasting style to Zaba, How To Be A Human Being takes the listener on a biographical journey through the human
experience. The album reaches its crescendo in the final song, “Agnes”. It takes the listener on a wild emotional rollercoaster that juxtaposes eternal sadness with utter euphoria. “Agnes” is the type of song that deserves to be played as the final song at a festival as the crowd sings along with lighters waving in the air. “It's my favourite song on the record. It was very hard to write and I have no idea how we're going to do it live.” Bayley writes. The song acts similar to a cliff hanger ending to a season finale episode of Grey’s Anatomy or Friday Night Lights. The final offering of the band leaves listeners emotionally perplexed craving more. Listeners are forced to revisit the album if just for this song alone. The song is unbelievably complex, “I put in a lot of references from my favourite novels and to biblical passages.” Bayley says. With each listen the song offers more and the listener gains more.
11 tracks on the album is inspired by a member of a cast of largely fictional characters created by Bayley stitched together by the experiences he and the band had while touring the globe. These characters are a reflection on the albums title and offer a glimpse in to what it means to be a human being from the perspective of the band. Each character and song represents a unique experience all of which contribute to the overall human experience. Zaba was rather dark and mysterious the band left it largely up to the listener to interpret the sound. The unique style and organization was easily observed but the album gave little away. With the release of How To Be A Human Being the band steps out from behind the mysterious Zaba veil and comes alive almost as if the feedback the band received from their first album gave them a new found confidence to tamper with the boundaries of popular indie/alternative music. Listeners can expect more of the same electronic sounds overlapped with organic instrumental guitar and drum rifts; however, How To Be A Human Being uses far more accessible lyrics to tell the stories of the good, the bad, and the ugly within the human experience. The lead track on the album “Life Itself” is easily decoded using lines such as “I can't get a job so I live with my mom, I take her money but not quite enough, I make my own fun in grandmama's basement…” to tell the tale of a strange man who has never fully assimilated to society and is content remaining isolated. The format of the album requires that the meaning behind the lyrics be easily comprehensible, after all they’re supposed to relay the story of each character. With so much attention being paid to the new found lyrical genius of the band the precise production behind the album has been largely overlooked.
The appeal of Glass Animals has a whole lot to do with the simple fact that their sound is like nothing that has ever been produced before. The use of intricate samples and intense attention to detail results in a sound that is like nothing else in the alternative genre or in music as a whole. “Mama’s Gun” most closely mirrors the sounds of Zaba. Calmly and smoothly the song accelerates and decelerates from one chorus to the next. The most up beat songs on the album - “Pork Soda”, “Take A Slice”, and “The Otherside of Paradise” - find their roots in hip-hop like beats, opting for more uneven beats that offer a higher tempo. Vocal dynamics on the record follow a similar pattern and are appropriately paired to the tempo of the song. The diverse collection of brand new intriguing sounds contrasted with familiar contemporary hip-hop beats prove that the band has plenty to keep the audience guessing. How To Be A Human achieves a tone unique to itself using predictable features rooted in unpredictable arrangements. Each song varies from the last. Synthesized vocals and the surgical insertion of samples are reminiscent of the technological expertise of a dance DJ; while organic flute melodies in “Mama’s Gun” and a Red Hot Chili Peppers-esque intro to “Poplar St.” pay homage to other influential musical compositions. The production behind How To Be A Human Being acts as the backbone for the album. It adds a meaning and emotional response that extends beyond what the lyrics are able to achieve. In a similar but drastically contrasting style to Zaba, How To Be A Human Being takes the listener on a biographical journey through the human
experience. The album reaches its crescendo in the final song, “Agnes”. It takes the listener on a wild emotional rollercoaster that juxtaposes eternal sadness with utter euphoria. “Agnes” is the type of song that deserves to be played as the final song at a festival as the crowd sings along with lighters waving in the air. “It's my favourite song on the record. It was very hard to write and I have no idea how we're going to do it live.” Bayley writes. The song acts similar to a cliff hanger ending to a season finale episode of Grey’s Anatomy or Friday Night Lights. The final offering of the band leaves listeners emotionally perplexed craving more. Listeners are forced to revisit the album if just for this song alone. The song is unbelievably complex, “I put in a lot of references from my favourite novels and to biblical passages.” Bayley says. With each listen the song offers more and the listener gains more.