… Read Full Bio ↴Will Wiesenfeld AKA Baths was born in 1989, in Los Angeles, California.
Wiesenfield is a classically trained musician, and began learning the piano at the age of four “to compete with his brother”. By twelve he had “completely abandoned it,” but continual musical experimenting lead him to record his first piece of music at age fourteen. Under a previous moniker, [Post-foetus], he wrote four albums and three EPs. He also ventured into a more ambient style with side-project Geotic, a project which Irish magazine State.ie called “gorgeous”.
After adopting the name Baths, he released debut album Cerulean on independent record label Anticon. He recorded the entire album in two months from his bedroom. The BBC’s Mike Diver claims Baths’ nearest musical sound-a-like is chillwave musician Toro Y Moi. Pitchfork noted Baths’ influences, acts such as Björk and Flying Lotus, were “obvious” in his work.
Drowned in Sound noted Baths’ use of “unorthodox” sounds layered in and around the electronics, in particular “clicking pens, vocal samples, rustling blankets and scissor snaps”. British newspaper The Guardian’s Paul Lester commented he was reminded of “J Dilla playing around with the Pavement and Prince catalogues” while listening to the album. While a lot of his music is instrumental, it can occasionally incorporate vocals, most of them falsetto.
Cerulean was listed by the AV Club as the 21st best album of 2010. It made Pitchfork’s Album of the Year: Honorable Mention list.
Phaedra
Baths Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Back of the newborn and
Phaedra let it fall to the earth
Like the billions
Phaedra, this apathy
Phaedra slipped into the
Phaedra let it all come to pass
Phaedra let it all come to pass
The thought of mortality dormant in me
Phaedra slipped into the
Gruel of the Avians
Thought of mortality
Dormant in me
Phaedra let it all come to pass
Phaedra let it all come to pass
I let it mean a lot less and I
I let my vision vignette and eye
Old handsome death
His quiet house, where's there's nothing left to see
No god
No dawn
No need
The thought of mortality dormant in me
Phaedra it is you that I owe all my lackluster
The thought of dying is
Dormant in me
Phaedra it is you that made me
Phaedra it is you that made
Me want to kill myself
Phaedra it is you that
Owe all my lackluster
Phaedra this apathy
Phaedra slipped it into the
Gruel of the avians
Phaedra let it fall to the
Earth like the billions
Phaedra let it all come to pass
The song "Phaedra" by Baths is a melancholic and introspective ballad that addresses the themes of mortality, apathy, and human insignificance. Phaedra, probably the name of the singer or the muse of the songwriter, is the thread that connects all the verses of the song. The lyrics start with Phaedra causing the death of a newborn, an act that symbolizes the primal and violent nature of existence. The line "Phaedra let it fall to the earth like the billions" reinforces the idea that humans are just a drop in the ocean of life and that death is an inevitable outcome.
The following lines hint at the singer's state of mind, where he confesses that the "thought of mortality" is dormant but still present. Phaedra is portrayed as the embodiment of apathy, an abstract concept that the singer associates with the entropy of the world. He imagines Phaedra slipping into the "gruel of the avians," which can be interpreted in different ways but suggests a sense of decay and decay. The chorus repeats the motif of Phaedra letting things "come to pass," giving an impression of resignation and fatalism.
The last part of the song is a reflection on the meaning of life and the absence of divine or supernatural entities. There's no god, no dawn, and no need - just old handsome death waiting for us. The singer admits that Phaedra is responsible for his current state of mind, a lackluster existence tainted by the shadow of death. He blames her for making him want to kill himself but doesn't elaborate on the reasons behind it. The song, therefore, can be seen as a meditation on the human condition, where life is transient and fragile, and death is the only certainty.
Line by Line Meaning
Phaedra shot it into the Back of the newborn and
Phaedra caused the harm and pain that the newborn was subjected to
Phaedra let it fall to the earth Like the billions
Phaedra let the pain and suffering be just a normal occurrence, like the billions of other sufferings that happen every day
Phaedra, this apathy
Phaedra embodies the emotion of apathy
Phaedra slipped into the Gruel of the avians Phaedra let it all come to pass Phaedra let it all come to pass
Phaedra embraced the harshness and challenges that the world offers
The thought of mortality dormant in me
The thought of death is present within me even though it is not actively in my mind
I let it mean a lot less and I I let my vision vignette and eye Old handsome death His quiet house, where's there's nothing left to see
I choose to ignore my fear of death and instead focus on the fading beauty of life, even if it is leading to an inevitable end
No god No dawn No need The thought of mortality dormant in me
I do not seek the solace of a higher power or a new beginning, but rather prefer to accept the reality of my mortality
Phaedra it is you that I owe all my lackluster The thought of dying is Dormant in me Phaedra it is you that made me
Phaedra is the reason for my lack of energy and enthusiasm in life, yet I still do not fear death thanks to Phaedra's influence
Phaedra it is you that made Me want to kill myself Phaedra it is you that Owe all my lackluster
Phaedra contributed to my overwhelming feelings of despair and uncertainty, leading to the desire to end my own life, and ultimately causing my exhaustion and lack of drive
Phaedra slipped it into the Gruel of the avians Phaedra let it fall to the Earth like the billions Phaedra let it all come to pass
Phaedra has integrated into the harsh reality of the world and allowed for the natural flow of events to take place
Contributed by Aaliyah K. Suggest a correction in the comments below.