Music To Write By: "Ever and Always" by Andrew Osenga

Why listen? For winning metaphors; striking word choices; the proper use of a speculative premise.



Initially, Andrew Osenga's "Ever and Always" sounds like pretty standard pop-folk, a tuneful melody gliding above jangly acoustic guitar riffs, a kick drum's steady pulse punctuating poignant lyrics about love. Familiar enough stuff. Yet Osenga's simple arrangement belies a creative complexity that deepens with repeated listening. Surprising metaphors meet crunchy alliteration and unexpected speculative musings:

I don't know a lot, but that never stopped my mouth,
A soapbox full of injured pride.
She had the confidence and grace to hear me out,
Then kindly countered with a smile.

See, I was trapped in black and white.
Her beauty spoke of colors I had never seen.

That speculative element deserves more attention, especially if you've already watched the video and noticed the spacesuit Osenga wears. More than mere trapping, the extraterrestrial elements of "Ever and Always" play into the overall conceit of the album upon which it appears, Leonard the Lonely Astronaut. Over the span of 14 songs, Osenga chronicles the hopes and heartbreaks of the titular character during his yearlong trip into space. And if you listen to them, you'll notice how little they deal with the niceties of interstellar travel. Rather the album focuses on love and death, beauty and yearning, all the things that make us human -- which is exactly what SF should do in the first place.

(Hat Tip: @vonLeheCreative)