Contemplating the Void
How the Singer-Songwriter Genre Is Opening up Deep Spiritual Reflections
The Romantics were said to be a generation of creators obsessed with the “characters of the Apocalypse.” Death, destruction, the void. That ever-swirling darkness that seems to permeate even the brightest of days. The ultimate end that is ever-present, ever-creeping. In a chapter of Secular Art and Sacred Theology, editor Tom Beaudoin pulls upon this obsession with the void and places it in a religious understanding. The void is the emptiness that is left by the ultimate deity, and it is only when we begin to enter into a religious experience that the void begins to be filled. We fill the void with an acknowledgement of the Sublime. Now it is an imperfect and oftentimes unfulfilling attempt to try and understand the void, and yet religion gives us some beginning place to sit and contemplate the apocalypse.
But in a culture that is becoming spiritual and not religious, where do we turn? I would venture to state that the rise in singer-songwriter genre, and the rise in the consumption of this type of music, is our answer to filling the void. The singer-songwriter acoustic genre, with its numerous artists, creates tunes that allow individuals to enter into spaces to reflect and grow in their knowledge of the void.
As I sit and write this, I am listening to a mixture of Keaton Henson and Robbie Cavanagh. Words like “authentic” and “genuine,” “true storytellers not impacted by commerciality” tend to be attributed to such artists. The reason behind this is not because of an overwhelming authenticity that is not present in other genres, in fact the more I interview other artists the more authenticity is noted in all creators. Rather it is the message that seeps through their songs that are proven to give an aura of realism. The singer-songwriter genre, through its music structure, opens up the listener so that they mull over deeply the things of the void. Like the Romantics there is an undertow of reflection on the characters of the apocalypse that close in on the listener, a deep soul searching, that fills the void of humanity in ways that religions do.
Unlike any other genre, the singer-songwriter camp is one that is characterized by typically acoustic slow jams. The mixture of tempered chords and poetic lyrics creates a mystical aura of tranquility and meditation. The simplicity in song structure and musical composition is appealing to the ear in that the parts are not overcomplicated; our ears recognize immediately what is playing and how it is played. Whereas some music is composed with multiple layers and nuances, making our ears dance and our brains concentrate, this type of song construction is so basic that it is not distracting. The slow tempo reduces our heart rates, and so it gives the music a meditative quality. We become relaxed so much so that time stops, and in that the void begins to open.
The simple structure is paired with lyrically enriching content. Unlike pop music, this music is usually constructed not with repeating singular lines but rather with multiple verses. The lyrical content tends to be metaphorically rich tapestries so that each time you hear the song you interpret it in different patterns and strokes. Like a good book or an intricate poem, the lyrics generate a reflective quality that makes your mind wander. You do not merely hear the song, but rather the lyrical content draws you into a labyrinth of possibilities that introspective prone listeners use as a catalyst for reflection.
It is this mixture, of tempo and lyrical content, that gives the singer-songwriter genre this platform of the void. Like religious practices such as meditation and prayer, the genre and the songs that are found within the genre promote an intense reflection on daily life tasks that alter the way in which one sees and denotes reality. They are not necessarily transcendent in the sense that they do not elevate one outside of reality; rather, the contemplative nature expands the rooted reality of the listener.
It is for this reason that the singer-songwriter, or as some would say acoustic genre, is once again prominent. It is no longer a task merely for the buskers or for the lowly openers; rather, the singer-songwriter genre is growing in tremendous rates because it allows individuals who are stuck in their own existence to expand their knowledge. As religious edifices and groups slowly fade, the power of peering into the existence that is offered by this music rises. Music shapes our abilities to understand the void, just as Romanticism proposed.
