Taste Test: Nathaniel Paul waxes existential with ‘songbird’
The indie musician kickstarts 2021 with a timely, poignant reflection.
Welcome to Taste Test, a song/video review series of SubmitHub-only gemstones
What makes David Lowery’s A Ghost Story so poignant is this notion that everything we have ever known is a small speck in the greater expanses of time and space. Our lives, and everything we have or ever will do, are a drop in a bucket. Indie musician Nathaniel Paul situates his new track “songbird” in such a thematic space, drawing upon an unforgettable conversation he had with an older gentleman. Paul met this man in the grocery story, and the conversation began in the throes of existentialism. “Life is hard when you outlive all the ones you love,” this man told him. Paul’s inspiration was instantly ignited, and he began mulling over his own existence. “I’ve been thinking quite sometime / I want to try again, fly again / Set my sights on the sky,” Paul’s voice flutters as gently as handfuls of dandelion petals. The mix warbles, almost an otherworldly texture, and it fully jolts the listener to confront their own lives.
Listen below:
