When I come to love a piece of music with the intensity that I’m capable of loving a piece of music, I like to try to be a part of it. That is to say, I like to sing/caterwaul along with every part, even the parts that aren’t played by human voices. It’s an exercise that bonds me to the piece, but in a vaguely superficial way. That is to say, sometimes the intensity of the love and my propensity for singing sometimes take precedence over a truly close listen.
Thus, I might miss some of the more subtler parts of certain pieces. But on the off-chance that I shut up, these nuances rise to the surface of my perception. So it was this evening when I was listening to In the Aeroplane Over the Sea and heard the hint of a shout at the end of “Oh Comely”(mp3). I hit the rewind button, cranked the volume, and to my surprise, heard the following:
“HOLY SHIT!!!”
This is no trite vulgarity. This might be the most meaningful holy shit I’ve ever heard. It literally ascends. It’s not a holy shit. It’s a
ho
LEE
SHIT!!!
(Well, I suppose it doesn’t ascend diagrammatically, but you get the idea)
I was not a fan of “Oh Comely” upon first listen. I thought it was too long, too loopy, and too much of a betrayal of the manic energy of the album’s first act. Hearing the holy shit was the final indication that I was so so so wrong. It also manages to confirm claims that the “In the Aeroplane” supporting cast watched on as Jeff Mangum layed down his guitar and vocals in one take. If you’d witness a man run the emotional gamut of his recorded masterpiece in one sprawling 8-minute, 18-second take, you might lay claim to the divinity of fecal matter as well.
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