His vocal - sounding very much like the legendary Janis Joplin - is unmatched; and he sings primarily in English. "A genius... A new Messiah" (Rolling Stone Mexico) and "The most interesting voice in the Israeli music scene" are some of the accolades he has received.
Born in Jerusalem, Israel, to diplomats for the Israeli Foreign Office, Avidan spent four years of his childhood in Jamaica and also grew up in New York. In 2006, after breaking up with his long-time girlfriend, he moved back to Jerusalem desiring to pursue a music career. From 2006–2011 he featured in Asaf Avidan & the Mojos.
In 2012, Avidan released the single "Different Pulses", followed by the premiere of his debut solo studio album of the same name. The singer's follow-up record Gold Shadow (2015) was similarly successful in Europe, reaching Gold status in France. The Study on Falling followed in 2017.
Brickman
Asaf Avidan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And that his papa built him brick by brick
And now the world breaks line waves on his skin
And all the words like broken birds are Traped within
They said his mama had cement for milk
And that his brother was ten foot thick
And now the world breaks like waves on his skin
At first glance, the lyrics of Asaf Avidan's song "Brickman" seem to paint a picture of a man made of bricks, with a mother who gave him cement for milk and a father who built him brick by brick. However, upon closer inspection, it becomes clear that the lyrics are a metaphor for a person who has been toughened and hardened by the world around them. This person is now a brick wall, impenetrable and unyielding, with words like broken birds trapped inside of them.
The line "they said his mama had cement for milk" suggests that the person's mother was cruel or unloving, giving him only the harshest of sustenance, while the phrase "his papa built him brick by brick" evokes the image of a person being constructed from the ground up, as though they were a building. The world breaking like waves on his skin refers to the constant barrage of hardship and pain that this person has endured, and the fact that the words are trapped within them suggests that they are unable to express themselves fully or let anyone else in.
Overall, "Brickman" is a powerful and evocative song about the ways in which life can shape us and harden us, making us into something tough and impenetrable on the outside but fragile and vulnerable on the inside.
Line by Line Meaning
They said his mama had cement for milk
His mother was so hardened and emotionless that she might as well have given him cement instead of milk.
And that his papa built him brick by brick
His father constructed him with care and attention to detail, building each part of him up like a brick wall.
And now the world breaks line waves on his skin
The harshness and unpredictability of the world have left their marks on him, like waves breaking against the shore.
And all the words like broken birds are Traped within
His innermost thoughts and emotions are trapped and unable to fly free, like broken-winged birds.
Writer(s): ran nir, Ori Winokur, Yoni Sheleg, Roi Peled, Hadas Kleinman, Asaf Avidan
Contributed by Brooklyn P. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Dedette Merle
Excellent