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.
She's My Girl
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
There goes my girlfriend walking down the dead man's path
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), I won't tell her with my eyes
'Cause she's my girl (hey), I won't feel it in disguise
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), I won't tell her with my eyes
'Cause she's my girl (hey), I won't feel it in disguise
Scarlet, pardon me, but it (?) another place
There goes my girlfriend strutting like an alley cat
There goes my girlfriend walking down the dead man's path
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), don't wanna feel it in disguise
'Cause she's my girl (hey), just wanna tell her with my eyes
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), I won't tell her with my eyes
'Cause she's my girl (hey), I won't feel it in disguise
Tie your shoes, little one, here
Let me help you in the maze, find your way back to the car
Please say (?), won't you come in this light
Can you please go underground and she's always getting lost
Hey-hey-hey! Hey-hey-hey! Hey-hey-hey! Hey-hey-hey!
There goes my girlfriend acting like a tiger
Yep, there's my girlfriend chasing (?) without (?)
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), don't wanna tell her with my eyes
'Cause she's my girl (hey), don't wanna feel it in disguise
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), don't wanna tell her with my eyes
'Cause she's my girl (hey), don't wanna feel it in disguise
She's my girl, she's my girl, she's my girl
She's my girlfriend
The lyrics of "She's My Girl" by Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti reflect the possessiveness and adoration of a man for his girlfriend. The song's repeated refrain "There goes my girlfriend strutting like an alley cat, there goes my girlfriend walking down the dead man's path" portrays her as full of confidence and mystery. He doesn't want to show his feelings for her plainly, only suggests them with his eyes.
The second verse starts with an apology to a woman named Scarlet, indicating that she might be an ex-girlfriend. He offers to take her for a walk, but she always gets lost. The chorus repeats, with the man helping his girlfriend through a maze and underground (possibly metaphorically) and not wanting to feel or show his emotions.
In the last verse, he sees his girlfriend acting like a tiger and chasing something without success. The repeated chorus affirms that she belongs to him, and he doesn't want to hide his affection for her.
Overall, the lyrics suggest a possessive, sometimes chauvinistic approach to love, with the man seeing his girlfriend as a prize to be won and kept. The use of mysterious and threatening imagery like the dead man's path and underground contribute to the sense of unease and danger surrounding the relationship.
Line by Line Meaning
There goes my girlfriend strutting like an alley cat
My girlfriend is confidently walking by like a cat walking down an alley.
There goes my girlfriend walking down the dead man's path
My girlfriend is walking down a pathway that is shrouded in mystery and possible danger.
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), I won't tell her with my eyes
I do not want to give away that she is my girlfriend by looking at her in a certain way.
'Cause she's my girl (hey), I won't feel it in disguise
I do not want to pretend like I am not with her, I just do not want to draw too much attention to us.
Scarlet, pardon me, but it (?) another place
I am apologizing to someone named Scarlet, but I cannot make out what they are saying because I am focused on my girlfriend.
Let me take you for a walk and she's always getting lost (uh-huh)
I want to take her for a walk, but she always seems to get lost or sidetracked.
Tie your shoes, little one, here
I am helping my girlfriend tie her shoes.
Let me help you in the maze, find your way back to the car
I am helping my girlfriend navigate her way through a complicated situation that she may not be able to do on her own.
Please say (?), won't you come in this light
I cannot make out what my girlfriend is saying because of the light or noise around us.
Can you please go underground and she's always getting lost
It seems like my girlfriend has a tendency to get lost or sidetracked, even when we are in a familiar place.
There goes my girlfriend acting like a tiger
My girlfriend is behaving like a fierce animal, possibly in a playful or flirtatious way.
Yep, there's my girlfriend chasing (?) without (?)
My girlfriend is actively pursuing something or someone, but it is unclear what she is after or why.
Yeah, she's my girl (hey), don't wanna tell her with my eyes
I am trying to keep the fact that she is my girlfriend a secret by not giving too much away with my eyes.
'Cause she's my girl (hey), don't wanna feel it in disguise
I do not want to pretend that I am not with her, but I also do not want to be too obvious about our relationship.
She's my girl, she's my girl, she's my girl
I am proud to call her my girlfriend and want to make it clear that she belongs to me.
Contributed by Harper V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
mosriteluv
I love this song. I have no idea why it wasn't a huge hit. To me the melody is just mind blowing. Ariel can go into any decade and create music that geuinely feels like it's from that time frame.
phrases3
You’re definitely right!! This melody sounds like the B-52s imo; which isn’t a knock on Ariel Pink. He would of been a mega star in the 80s with his eclectic sound and skill to write an infectious melody.
Julian Johnson
because it is too good to be popular.
faterock9876543
One of the only people ever to be both ahead and behind his time.
Maxime Bel
he was way ahead of his time. it took years for ppl to understand his genius
Ende Neu
I could listen to this song all day, every day. One of my all time favorites by Ariel for sure.
Bre Rogers
This is my daughter's ringtone if she calls me♡
Celium Pictures
What a jam
Gary190tube
lovely tune
Laura Diaz
I didn't know Shawn Dawson was such a lofi god.