Today I'm cheating a little and doing two songs that appear back to back on Akron/Family's self-titled debut. Though one leads into the other, both musically and lyrically, so well that they really could be considered two parts of the same song."I'll Be On the Water" musically is very simple, it's a simple lo-fi acoustic line with ambient bird and wave noises that build ups up into the twangy banjo and clattering, rattling percussion of "Running, Returning". Lyrically, the first song is about realizing you're in love with someone, though written in typically bizarre Akron/Family style ("thinking of you, there's lightning bolts in my chest") while "Running, Returning" is about realizing just how much you love them ("love is on it's way, and it's more than I can see"). That's what's so interesting about the songs, not just how beautiful the music is, but that the songs actually continue not a story, but an emotion. And the band doesn't even bring attention to it, it's simply there. This isn't some prog-rock opera about a robot that thinks it's a human and falls in love with a cat, it's a progression of emotion, of feeling.
Listen: "I'll Be On the Water"
Listen: "Running, Returning"
Bonus: Amazing video of a live version of "Running, Returning" set to a mirrored scenes from Bambi. I know it sounds weird, but it's awesome.
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