After years of recording in relative seclusion in the hills of Los Angeles, Ariel Pink (the first non-Animal Collective member on the Paw Tracks roster) made his official Paw Tracks debut with The Doldrums. Recording at home with a guitar, bass, keyboard, and 8-track (the drum sounds were created with his mouth).
Ariel Pink blends Lite FM and warped lo-fi pop into something by turns beautiful and confusing. Some may find his personal yet detached approach highly addictive, while others may be instantly turned off by the obvious lo-fi production and the vocal drumtracks.
In the summer of 2003, Pink passed a CD-R on to New York based band Animal Collective after being introduced by mutual friend Jimi Hey (of All Night Radio and Beachwood Sparks) at one of their shows. Unbeknownst to Pink, Animal Collective had recently started their own record label, Paw Tracks, and several weeks later they contacted him expressing an interest in releasing his music. Pink became the first musician on the label aside from the members of Animal Collective. The next year, the label reissued The Doldrums, an album which had been originally recorded in 1999. Since then, Paw Tracks (now co-owned by Carpark Records) has released two other reissues of Pink's previous recordings, Worn Copy and House Arrest.
Pink has gradually caught the attention of media sources around the United States as well as internationally. As most of his albums are self-made, many of them have never been heard by fans. Almost all of Pink's albums which have been commercially released come from his yet-unfinished "Haunted Graffiti" series and are thus the best known.
Pink's tours have generally been met with much negativity, primarily because his music was never intended to be performed live for commercial audiences. As he explained to LA Weekly:
“People boo me everywhere...They don't even hide their contempt. I'm used to it now...Hey, I'm giving audiences the real thing...For better or worse, I'm out there, and those are the circumstances. People don't like it when it seems like you don't know what's happening, or I'm getting bummed out with certain aspects and I can't hide it. I think people feel that pain and just think it's bad.”
Initially playing shows alone with pre-recorded music, Pink has since employed the efforts of keyboardist Kenny Gilmore, bassist Tim Koh (White Magic), drummer Jimi Hey, and guitarist Cole M. Greif-Neill (Ethnik Klensr) as Haunted Graffiti. However, even with a backing band unfamiliar audiences are generally hostile towards the unrehearsed nature of the live compositions.
In July, the band embarked on Pink's "Thanks Mom, I'm Dead" tour.
One genre that may interestingly define Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti is one known as Hauntology.
Flying Circles
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
you thought of a question that you couldn't remember, no
and if the time passed you by
then the answer appeared and you didn't know it and it felt so good
then your ... got suspicious of that meaning in the side
ooh, it's like (...)
by design
feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards
ever get that funny feeling that you're not making sense
uhh
you didn't cry but you laughed
and if the time passed you by
then you start to believe that you've never been born
and that you died
so you go wavin' at your mama with your rainbow in hell
ooh shes got your number there
I feel like I'm going somewhere sometime as a loop
by design
feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards
doop, doo doo doo (x8)
i love it when that sad smile creeps on over my face, yay
and tells me what I want to say, hey
and if the time passed me by
the smile ... disappear ...
(...)
you ever try to give your monkey's donkey a kiss
ooh, once you got down
feel like I'm going somewhere sometime as a loop
by design
feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards
feel like I'm going somewhere sometime as a loop
by design
feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards
swirling upwards and inside
The lyrics of "Flying Circles" by Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti are quite surreal and abstract. The song seems to explore themes of confusion, uncertainty, and the feeling of being stuck in a loop. The opening lines introduce the idea of forgetting something important, and then suddenly realizing the answer later on. The mention of a mother adds a sense of nostalgia and warmth to the otherwise bewildering lyrics.
As the song progresses, the lyrics become more and more surreal, with references to rainbows in hell and giving a kiss to a monkey's donkey. Despite the absurdity, the song remains grounded in a feeling of unfulfillment and searching for meaning. The repetition of the lines "feel like I'm going somewhere sometime as a loop by design feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards" perfectly captures this sense of being trapped in a cycle.
The final lines, "swirling upwards and inside," give a sense of hopefulness and potential for breaking free from the loop. Overall, "Flying Circles" is a meditation on the complexities of life and the struggles we all face in trying to find meaning and purpose.
Line by Line Meaning
now tell me momma does this ever happen to you
Have you ever had a question in your mind that you can't remember?
you thought of a question that you couldn't remember, no
You can't recall the question you thought about earlier.
and if the time passed you by
If time has passed
then the answer appeared and you didn't know it and it felt so good
The answer to the question you couldn't remember came to you unexpectedly and it felt satisfying but confusing at the same time.
then your ... got suspicious of that meaning in the side
You feel uneasy about the sudden appearance of the answer.
ooh, it's like (...)
It's like something strange is happening to you.
feel like I'm going somewhere sometime as a loop
You feel like you're trapped in an endless cycle of events.
by design
It was meant to happen this way.
feel like I'm running in circles and spirals swirling upwards
You feel like you're going in a never-ending circular motion that's ascending upwards towards something unknown.
ever get that funny feeling that you're not making sense
Have you ever felt like what you're saying is not coherent or logical?
uhh
An expression of confusion or uncertainty.
you didn't cry but you laughed
You're not sure how to react to the situation you're in.
then you start to believe that you've never been born
You feel like you were never born and that the world around you isn't real.
and that you died
You start to believe that you're already dead.
so you go wavin' at your mama with your rainbow in hell
Even though you're in a bad situation, you're trying to keep a positive attitude and show your mom that you're doing okay.
ooh shes got your number there
Your mom knows you better than you think.
i love it when that sad smile creeps on over my face, yay
You feel content even when you're feeling down.
and tells me what I want to say, hey
Your emotions are helping you say what you want to say.
the smile ... disappear ...
The smile disappears as time passes.
(...)
The meaning of this line is unclear.
you ever try to give your monkey's donkey a kiss
Have you ever tried to do something that's impossible?
ooh, once you got down
You realized that what you were doing wasn't possible.
swirling upwards and inside
The circular motion you feel trapped in is also happening internally.
Contributed by Alex B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.