Wand "Melted Rope"

I went back and forth on this one. I was set on the fact that it would be a Wand song. But so many choices. Wand knows how to get weird. And psychedelic...very psychedelic. Which is something I dig very much. Lead singer Cory Hanson is no stranger to the world of psyche rock. He's played with plenty of other weirdo rockers such as Ty Segall, Mikal Cronin, Meatbodies, and more. 

Wand's music feels like you are in the middle of either a medieval dungeons-and-dragons escapade or a some sort of space fantasy trip. It's other worldly. It's an escape. And it's often fun.

My first choice was their second track "Self Hypnosis in 3 Days" from their second full-length album "Golem". I was listening to it and thinking about what all I would write about; the loud fuzzy guitars, the strange space-station noises that interrupt each set of versus, and maybe the killer slowed tempo section that paces  along to this gnarly doom metal mountain of an ending. The song played through and I was still reading up and gathering notes...when "Melted Rope" popped on, also from the same album.

"Melted Rope" is a bit of a relief in the monstrous landscape of "Golem". Much of the album's first half is a bombardment of very loud guitars, spastic drums, and some of the strangest space noises you'll hear outside of a Star Wars movie. But then we get this heavy, low synth dominating the intro of the song, gradually complimented by subtle acoustic guitar. Hanson comes in with soothing prominent vocals, "Time pulling like a feather, from your eyes, try, try to live it better, bide your time". Eventually a soaring lead guitar comes in mimicking and adding to the synth melody you've got used to and boy does come in strong.

Hanson eventually sings, what I believe to be, the focus of the whole song; what "Melted Rope" is all about...

"And life, life is what you wanted, It's what you are".

Ever seen a melted rope? Or a rope melting?Drips of residue kind of fall off the rope and harden into nasty clumps of what used to be a strong and competent instrument, capable of so many uses. I can't help but think this is what Hanson is relating our lives to. "Life is what we are", we can direct it however we want and make it worth something. Or we can just... let it melt away...

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