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.
Underground
Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
slow down i gotta hear you stay
.....while im still a little blue for you
these eyes are just a little greener
in the garden its so damn easy to lose her
.....
on the way we stop at grannys and she makes me chatter
she makes me chatter like a newborn baby?
i stole a car so we could run away
slow down i gotta hear you stay
.....
and im still a little blue for you
these eyes are just a little greener
in the garden its so damn easy to lose her
on the way we stop at grannys
and she makes me chatter like a newborn baby
underground underground
so glad i got to hear you stay
i bought a gun so we could run away
..... now im still a little blue for you
these eyes are just a little greener
in the garden its so damn easy to lose her
im finding out about little ....
...
on the way we stop at grannys
and she makes me chatter like a newborn baby
underground underground
The lyrics of "Underground" by Ariel Pink's Haunted Graffiti are open for interpretation, but they seem to allude to a sense of desperation and a desire for escape from a relationship. The singer has bought a gun and stolen a car to run away with his lover. Despite this, he implores his lover to slow down and stay, indicating that perhaps he has doubts about leaving. He also admits to feeling blue or sad over the idea of parting ways.
The mention of the garden throughout the song could represent the state of their relationship or a specific memory associated with it. However, it's easy to lose her in the garden, which could be interpreted as a metaphor for how easily things can become lost, overgrown or forgotten, in the same way that relationships can erode over time.
The mentioning of grannies who makes him chatter like a newborn baby is a bit cryptic in interpretation, it is uncertain if granny here refers to the grandmother of the singer or the lover or if it is a metaphor for a feeling of maternal comfort in a time of stress. Overall, the song portrays a complex mix of emotions of love, fear, and regret that makes it open to interpretation.
Line by Line Meaning
i bought a gun so we could run away
I made an impulsive decision to buy a gun in order for us to leave and start fresh.
slow down i gotta hear you stay
Please slow down and reassure me that you're not leaving me behind.
while i'm still a little blue for you
I'm not over you yet, but I'm trying to move on.
these eyes are just a little greener
I'm jealous and envious of what you have.
in the garden it's so damn easy to lose her
It's easy to become lost and disconnected in a peaceful and idyllic environment.
on the way we stop at granny's and she makes me chatter
During our journey, we visit my grandmother and she brings out my childlike and talkative behavior.
like a newborn baby?
My grandmother's presence brings out a sense of rebirth and innocence in me.
underground underground
We're heading towards a new, unknown direction, leaving behind everything we've known before.
i stole a car so we could run away
I made a reckless decision to steal a car in order to escape our current circumstances.
so glad i got to hear you stay
I'm relieved that you've decided to stay with me.
now i'm still a little blue for you
Even though you've stayed with me, I'm still a bit sad about our current situation.
im finding out about little ...
I'm discovering new things and experiences during our journey.
Contributed by Vivian S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Viewbob
Actually, the album is "Underground" Demonstration Bootleg isn't an album, it's the name of his old label. These AP tracks are from various Demoboot samplers from 1999-2004
az0r22
ua re the secret ariel pink
Viewbob
az0r22 :0 Who told you?!
az0r22
I 've seen you in thousands of ariel and john maus songs and interviews from the very bootleggy stuff to the more mainstream, dropping hardcore inside info. You must be ariel. I ve also seen the videos you uploaded talking about the doldrums and stuff. It is obvious iti s you.
Gamer-sama
az0r22 nah he’s just a big fan I’ve seen him on a John Maus forum
Viewbob
@Gamer-sama Hi from Mausspace!
makesoundsnotlove yess
I've been through the dessert with a horse with no name
iamdamosuzuki_
Good I'm not the only one who thought that.
insaneye
Anyone can post lyrics pleaseeeee :)
Paulo Avelino
can't understand shiit