CocoRosie began as a duo, with Sierra singing, playing the guitar, piano and harp, and Bianca singing and manipulating various children's toys, electronic and percussion instruments, as well as other exotic noisemakers. They subsequently added various backing musicians, usually a bassist, keyboardist, and beatboxer. They have been a very active touring group, playing across Europe, the United States, and elsewhere.
They have released seven full-length albums: La maison de mon rêve (2004), Noah's Ark (2005), The Adventures of Ghosthorse and Stillborn (2007), Grey Oceans (2010), Tales of a GrassWidow (2013), Heartache City (2015) and Put the Shine On (2020).
In 2003, Bianca was growing restless and decided it was time for a change. Leaving her apartment in Brooklyn to travel the world, she ended up at Sierra's apartment in Paris. Over the course of the next two months, the women spent nearly every waking hour in Sierra's bathroom, chosen as the most acoustic and isolated room in the apartment. Soon, they had completed both a hip-hop recording (never released) called "word to the crow" and their proper debut album La Maison de Mon Rêve.
Originally, La Maison de Mon Rêve was only intended to be distributed within a close circle of friends. However, by 2004 the lo-fi album had been released on independent label Touch and Go Records, who had obtained a copy of the CD and had uncharacteristically pursued signing the artists. Since the creation of their first album, the Casady sisters have been virtually inseparable.
Stylistically they may be assigned to the indie rock, psychedelic folk, folktronica genres, and are sometimes associated with the New Weird America movement. Sierra, who studied operatic vocal techniques, takes the lead vocals and also plays guitar, harp and flute. Bianca is a percussionist and also beatboxes. The group also uses various objects such as toys to construct their unique sound. Popular indie bands such as The xx name them as a major influence.
They were actively touring during most of 2004, playing across the U.S. and throughout Europe with artists such as TV on the Radio, Bright Eyes, Battles, Devendra Banhart, and Busdriver among others.
Official website: http://www.cocorosiemusic.com
cocorosie-the sea is calm
CocoRosie Lyrics
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Like a dead light bulb
In a bucket of water
Yes in a bucket of water
The sea is calm through hand made lenses
Like animals in soundless dream
Like animals in bottles of butter
The waves are big and there's a warm wind
He's in the spotlight of a broken sun
He dropped his body like an anchor
Like a lump of sugar
And he dissolved
On the anniversary of his death
She drew a beautiful picture of a whale
She drew a picture of a whale
She drew a beautiful picture of a whale
The lyrics of CocoRosie’s song The Sea is Calm feature the imagery of the sea as seen through different lenses – through a video camera and hand-made lenses. The sea is described as calm, almost lifeless, comparable to a dead light bulb in a bucket of water. The second stanza contrasts this with the image of animals in soundless dreams and in bottles of butter. It then introduces the image of a miniature sailboat made of tin foil and paper, navigating big waves and warm wind.
The stanza shifts to a second person perspective, possibly addressing the deceased individual. The individual is described as being in the spotlight of a broken sun and dropping his body like an anchor. The image of a lump of sugar dissolving suggests a quick and peaceful passing. The final stanza mentions the anniversary of the individual’s death and the singer drawing a beautiful picture of a whale. The image of the whale could represent a symbol of strength or majesty in the face of loss with the whale's immense size and appearance.
One interpretation of the song’s lyrics could be that the focus is on the fragility of life and the ever-constant passing of time. The song suggests that death is not an event to fear, as it is inevitable and natural. Life is beautiful, and even in the presence of loss and grief, there is still beauty and strength to be found.
Line by Line Meaning
The sea is calm through the video camera
The singer is observing the sea as seen through the objective lens of a camera, which stabilizes and tranquilizes the natural movement and chaos of the water.
Like a dead light bulb
The calm sea, viewed through the camera lens, appears lifeless, static, and unchanging.
In a bucket of water
The singer compares the video image to a light bulb immersed in a small and confined space, losing its luminosity, lightening power, and prominence.
Yes in a bucket of water
The repetition of the previous line accentuates the sense of compression, emptiness, and stagnation suggested by the camera's perspective.
The sea is calm through hand made lenses
The artist is now observing the sea through a more organic and filtered medium, such as homemade and imperfect lenses, which add their own softness, sharpness or blurs to the image.
Like animals in soundless dream
The sea, seen from this subjective angle, is perceived as ethereal, seamless, and mysterious, evocative of a world of animals in a dream-like state, moving or resting without noise or disturbance.
Like animals in bottles of butter
The comparison to animals confined in jars of butter extends the feeling of otherworldliness and transcendence, as well as adding a sense of fragility, sweetness, and isolation.
A miniature sailboat tin foil and paper
The image of a tiny sailboat built from simple materials, such as tin foil and paper, reinforces the sense of smallness, delicacy, and ingenuity that the homemade lenses create in the viewer's mind.
The waves are big and there's a warm wind
Despite the lens and camera being different, physical objects, the sea still resembles the sea beneath the lens: the waves are big and there is a warm wind as if in the natural world, but the camera captures this moment without the sensory experience.
He's in the spotlight of a broken sun
The spotlight is not producing light as it should have, so its appearance has a faulty appearance. It is presenting an unsteady and inconsistent frequency of light, which evokes the image of a broken sun. The ‘He’ in this line could be a reference to an object in the sea that's illuminated by this faulty object.
He dropped his body like an anchor
The presence 'He' drops from above the water like an anchor sinks into the water, - it's abrupt and sudden.
Like a lump of sugar
The image of 'He' dissolve into the sea like a lump of sugar in water slowly vanishing without any sign or trace but sweetness, which is erasing itself into something bigger than it, e.g. the sea.
And he dissolved
The singer reiterates and expands on the image of 'He' dissolving in the sea, fading away into nothingness or some broader composition (the sea, as a whole).
On the anniversary of his death
The singer introduces the subject of a deceased person's anniversary, which hints that there's a backstory or memory being recalled in these lyrics.
She drew a beautiful picture of a whale
The singer changes the subject to a woman's act of drawing a beautiful whale as a tribute or homage to 'him' on the anniversary of their death.
She drew a picture of a whale
The artist emphasizes the woman's choice to portray a whale in her drawing, which could symbolize many things - the vastness of the sea or the lost love, among others.
She drew a beautiful picture of a whale
The repetition of the word 'beautiful’ highlights the sentimental and loving nature of the artistic tribute, while reinforcing the importance of the drawing and its impact on the artist.
Lyrics © Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Bianca Leilani Casady, Sierra Rose Casady
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind