Sometimes, a song is just a song. Other times, it can be so much more. This is one of those times.
Firstly, “Too Long” is about breaking that cycle of hesitation, procrastination, and self-doubt that is many artists’ stumbling block. Having high work standards is fine, but when these become prohibitive to your art, be it music, painting, poetry, or performance, making it into the real world, you have a problem.
But, even if you don’t get that straight away, musically, there is an equally excellent and more obvious process at work. When you listen to “Too Long,” you are not just listening to a song; you are listening to a song being built up from scratch, an exploded sonic diagram poured into the listener’s ears.
Starting with a simple beat and an unadorned guitar, Bardie gets a few things off his chest about his predicament. As he does, additional sonics build up around him, harmonies grow, and saxophone textures join the sonic throng.
And on it goes, adding layer and instrumentation, sonic weight and gravitas – harmonies go wide-screen, the saxophone becomes a dexterous and dominant force, spacious lulls create a breathing space that allows everything to kick back in even harder, and things head into the crescendo-infused territory.
It’s like the sonic equivalent of a TED talk or a PowerPoint presentation. And whilst it might show you at least one way to put a song together, there is no point in trying to copy what Bardie does here; you will never do it as well as they do. Sorry!
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