Jason Vitelli
“Labyrinthine”
Head Above Tide
Wow, Jason Vitelli makes the most beautiful songs. He calls his music “cinematic rock music with a vision”. He crafts these beautiful narratives into gorgeous songs with pomp and circumstance, just beautiful melodies. On Head Above Tide, he is supported by Dave Ramsay: guitar, piano; Michael O’Brien: bass; Yorgos Maniatis: drums; Cherette Lewis: backup vocals; and Lisa Trenary: backup vocal. Together, they make ethereal masterpieces. I believe what Vitelli does is paint pictures with his music and lyrics. Just read his lyrics on “Labyrinthine”:
The heroine’s done for the night
Labored in her breathing
Icy wooden floors
Resonate and splinter
Into a labyrinthine construct
Her boots muddy from the high tide
Turning the lights out, turning the lights out Turning them out she makes it clear
It’s not gonna be a new day
For her to sense the depth of the seas
No auspices, just fitful sleep
Enough to make her disappear
Her head still filled with the noise
From the fiery tempest
Red surrounds the haze
From the moment she was cast down
Alas, she crawls through the blackest fields Crumbling walls of the gravest courtyard Brought with her a scattergun
Will blow their brains to kingdom come There will be no surrender
The bloodiest crypt of a thousand leads to the underground
Signs, they just meet her
Or else she just knows to take a turn
Too wise to let the seconds be owned
Sells herself as more and more ticks break Ticks break, taking her away from escape This cloister held in the depths of hell Beneath the dirt it lurks
Forever in the terror
Her mind’s a curdled maze
Envisage a head case
Blowing apart the pirouettes
Their endless streams of swirling hatred Turning the lights out, turning the lights out Turning them out, she makes it clear
It’s not gonna be a new day