What is this power that Lungfish has over me?
Ever since I was fortunate enough to find the LP Feral Hymns by Lungfish in around 2005 at Vinyl Fever in Tampa simply by following the beacon of the Dischord records logo on the back, the mystery of the band's repetitive riffs and obtuse and mystical lyrics have confounded and attracted me. Throughout the last 20 years, I've been delving into the riddle of why these simple, often patient and always repetitive songs move me so deeply. I'm sure different ears that are only tuned to technical music or trained to need changes in songs could potentially get bored or not feel the power, but for some reason there is something akin to transcendence in these patterns for me.
If you've never heard Lungfish, I'd say their last two albums, the aforementioned Feral Hymns and the wonderful Love is Love, could be a great starter. According to singer Daniel Higgs in a 2019 career spanning interview on The Quietus, those two "...were the last two Lungfish records, and they’re the culmination of almost twenty years of collaboration. With those two records the quest was over. If you never heard any other Lungfish records those are the two to hear, in my opinion – if you’re not going to sit down and listen to them all."
Digging deeper on repetition in music in general, why does seeking a trancelike state feel so welcoming? If the instruments lock into an unchanging groove, what is the line between transcendence and boredom? Are our potential responses based on training, taste and familiarity, or the choices of the musicians?
As my evangelical quest to spread the word of Lungfish music continues, I was heartened by this incredible set of Lungfish covers by Bonnie Prince Billie, Nathan Salsburg and Tyler Trotter released last year. Hear the Children Sing The Evidence fully captures the power of Lungfish's version of repetition, with the 2 track album surpassing 40 minutes.
I'm very much a full album music enjoyer, but if you want to start comparing the originals to these great and drawn out covers, here's the source material: Hear the Children Sing and The Evidence.
A few live documents of Lungfish exist on the world wide web, for example:
Join me.
