He sits outside, on a bench he made, sipping the drink and gazing into the snow. A fire burns behind him, in the fireplace in the cabin, and he knows he should be tending to it but he also knows it will most likely go out on its own.
There are many things to do in the morning, hunt,of course, and walk to the well but for now he is content to drink.
This man is my father, not my real father who I barely knew, but a fictitious example, an idea of masculinity that I know is bullshit and that I know I can never obtain but an idea that I am fascinated with nonetheless.
I thought about this character often as I listened to Rebellion Hymns, the debut album from one-man, americana-come-alternative rock band, Man Gin. I thought about this character, and I thought about gin,but who could blame me? In the course of the albums 12 tracks, Man Gin's sole-member, Erik Wunder, conjures up images of booze-drenched Americana, of rugged men taming wilderness, of murder and humanity and inescapable sin.
It would be damn near- impossible to separate the real Wunder from his art. A veteran of tours in Iraq and South Korea, he undoubtedly experienced man at its worst. He drowns this all in drink, a big preoccupation of these songs, and I thought what that means in art and I thought about Gin
Gin makes me think of Manhattan clubs, bad comedies, and white men wearing suits. But Van Gogh is 94 proof, and it will get you drunk and if the problems you face are strong enough, you will drink it. I can't think of anything purer than that.
10/10.
http://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/smiling-dogs
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mans-Gin/163217557044788
No comments:
Post a Comment