Banhart is considered to have an eclectic style, with many of his songs seemingly following a stream-of-consciousness vein, being hard to decipher and non-literal. His music tends to consist of fairly simple guitar melodies with minimal other instrumentation, and his lyrical themes are often surreal and naturalistic. His involvement in the Los Angeles artist community is reflected in Smokey Rolls Down Thunder Canyon, released in September 2007. He gained some underground notoriety in New York for performing several of his early shows with underwear on his head for the duration of the performance.
Banhart's most recent tour of the United States saw him perform with his full band, which is currently known as Power Mineral. Power Mineral included Andy Cabic (Vetiver), Greg Rogove (Priestbird), Noah Georgeson, Luckey Remington, Pete Newsom, Otto Hauser (Vetiver, Currituck Co., Espers, Nick Castro), Kevin Barker (Currituck Co.), and others. The band claims to rechristen itself when a name comes to them, and has previously been known as Fried Hummingbird, Vagina Burglars, Hairy Fairy Band, Las Putas Locas, Stoner Boner, Spiritual Boner, Bummer Hummer, Brain Taint, Love Fart, Bathhouse Of The Winds, and First Woman Millionaire among other names.
Banhart was discovered by Michael Gira of Swans, who released his Oh Me Oh My... The Way the Day Goes by the Sun Is Setting Dogs Are Dreaming… album on his own Young God Records label in 2002. In 2005, Banhart (along with Andy Cabic and Revolver USA) created the Gnomonsong record label. In 2006 he helped to curate an edition of the British All Tomorrow's Parties festival.
Banhart also was one of the younger musicians responsible for "rediscovering" the music of folksinger Vashti Bunyan. Bunyan is a guest vocalist on his album Rejoicing in the Hands.
Rosa
Devendra Banhart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
E tanto gris
Que é raro, raro, raro, raro
Que seja tanto assim
Sonâmbulo esquilo
Te faço gargalhar, ah
Será que penso que me vou ainda fico aqui.
Rubro Rubro Ouro Rimo,
Desnuda o mineral
E qualquer nome lhe foi dado
Assim tá sem pensar
Pensam que não sabem nada
Que tu não pode amar
Dizem que é ver pra crer
E eu vou te explicar, ah
Te tiram da tua cama e
Tua mãe a te buscar
Sem mi lábios
Sem parar
Não pode te encontrar
A vera rosa
Estranha rosa
Finjo Limpo, Limpo Lindo
Sangue é algodão
Montanha, viva, sacra, ferida, doce e celestial
Começa assim com tal tristeza
Termina tudo igual
Tudo igual
Termina tudo igual
Igual
Din-gom-durum
Din-gom-durum (Estranha rosa)
Din-gom-durum
Estranha Rosa
The lyrics to Devendra Banhart's song Rosa are abstract and open to interpretation. The chorus repeats a phrase that contrasts clarity with grayness, suggesting that something is both clear and unclear at the same time. The first verse references a sleepwalking squirrel that makes the listener laugh, which could suggest that the song is about finding humor in strange or surreal situations. The second verse features a string of seemingly unrelated phrases, including "Rubro Rubro Ouro Rimo," which could be interpreted as a nonsense language or a reference to something specific that only the songwriter knows.
The bridge shifts the focus to the listener's experiences, asking questions about whether they are truly seeing everything around them, or if they are missing something important. The final two verses return to abstraction, with lines about pretending to be clean but having blood on one's hands, and then describing something mysterious and celestial as both wounded and sweet.
Overall, the song's lyrics are dreamlike and elusive, leaving plenty of room for interpretation and personal reflection.
Line by Line Meaning
Tanto, tanto, tanto claro
There is so much clarity
E tanto gris
Yet there is still so much grayness
Que é raro, raro, raro, raro
It's rare to have so much of both
Que seja tanto assim
To have such an abundance of clarity and grayness
Sonâmbulo esquilo
A sleepwalking squirrel
Te faço gargalhar, ah
I make you laugh
Será que assim eu vou sem ver o que não vi.
Will I go without seeing what I haven't seen?
Será que penso que me vou ainda fico aqui.
Do I think I'm leaving yet still remain here?
Rubro Rubro Ouro Rimo,
Crimson crimson golden rhyme
Desnuda o mineral
The mineral is stripped bare
E qualquer nome lhe foi dado
And it has been given any name
Assim tá sem pensar
Thus it exists without thought
Pensam que não sabem nada
They think they know nothing
Que tu não pode amar
That you cannot love
Dizem que é ver pra crer
They say you have to see it to believe it
E eu vou te explicar, ah
And I will explain to you
Te tiram da tua cama e
They take you from your bed and
Tua mãe a te buscar
Your mother comes to get you
Sem mi lábios
Without my lips
Sem parar
Without stopping
Não pode te encontrar
Cannot find you
A vera rosa
The true rose
Estranha rosa
Strange rose
Finjo Limpo, Limpo Lindo
Pretend to be clean, clean and beautiful
Sangue é algodão
Blood is cotton
Montanha, viva, sacra, ferida, doce e celestial
Mountain, alive, sacred, wounded, sweet and celestial
Começa assim com tal tristeza
It starts off with such sadness
Termina tudo igual
It all ends the same
Tudo igual
All the same
Termina tudo igual
It all ends the same
Igual
The same
Din-gom-durum
Din-gom-durum
Din-gom-durum (Estranha rosa)
Din-gom-durum (Strange rose)
Din-gom-durum
Din-gom-durum
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: DEVENDRA BANHART
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Marcelo Duarte
Tanto, tanto, tanto claro
E tanto gris.
Que raro, raro, raro
Que seja tanto assim.
Sonâmbulo, um Om, esquilo;
Te faço gargalhar.
Será que só assim me vou sem ver o que não vi,
Será que penso que me vou ainda fico aqui.
Rubro, rubro, ouro, rimam,
Desnuda o mineral.
E qualquer nome lhe foi dado
Assim tão sem pensar.
Pensam que não sabe nada,
Que tu não pode amar.
Dizem que é ver pra crer
Que é inútil explicar.
Te tiram da tua cama e tua mãe a te buscar;
Semi-lábios sem parar não pode te encontrar.
A vera rosa...
Estranha rosa...
Vim de Olimpo,limpo,lindo,
Sangue-algodão;
Montanha viva, sacra, ferida
Doce, celestial
Começa assim com tal tristeza
Termina tudo igual, tudo igual
Termina tudo igual, igual
Estranha rosa...
Juan Ignacio Flores Salgado
A conjunção de Devendra Banhart com Rodrigo Amarante é simplesmente perfeita…
Ronaldo Amaral
Brother, I don't know why, but Amarante's voice is so much... BRILIANT. Desculpem-me se errei alguma palavra. Música brasileira é o que há, e essa aí é uma das melhores. Parabéns vocês que são demais!
Google made me do it
This combination (Devendra + Neil) got me into photography, I love Devendra's real yet imaginary lyrics talkin bout hardship and tripping in a weird profound way and Krug's portraying symbolizes that sentiment in a modern world where almost everything has turned into machines (even human contact).
This trace of escapism, of bending reality, a new kind of surrealism is what inspired me to become an artist myself. Thanks guys, you're wonderful human beings <3
Michael Hand
How's it going
Google made me do it
Michael Hand I switched schools and am currently in my final year of getting a bachelor's degree in photography. I was distracted for a while but lately things are coming full circle. It's amazing to feel the wind blowing against my back again rather than facing it :)
Izabela Ramos
Música para ser ouvida eternamente.
Ícaro Henrique Pereira
É uma música que lhe causa uma paz interior tão grande...
Ícaro Henrique Pereira
Não paro de ouvir essa música há 2 anos.
Liege Cypriano
Um salve a Rodrigo Amarante, músico fudidamente completo!
Marcelo Duarte
Tanto, tanto, tanto claro
E tanto gris.
Que raro, raro, raro
Que seja tanto assim.
Sonâmbulo, um Om, esquilo;
Te faço gargalhar.
Será que só assim me vou sem ver o que não vi,
Será que penso que me vou ainda fico aqui.
Rubro, rubro, ouro, rimam,
Desnuda o mineral.
E qualquer nome lhe foi dado
Assim tão sem pensar.
Pensam que não sabe nada,
Que tu não pode amar.
Dizem que é ver pra crer
Que é inútil explicar.
Te tiram da tua cama e tua mãe a te buscar;
Semi-lábios sem parar não pode te encontrar.
A vera rosa...
Estranha rosa...
Vim de Olimpo,limpo,lindo,
Sangue-algodão;
Montanha viva, sacra, ferida
Doce, celestial
Começa assim com tal tristeza
Termina tudo igual, tudo igual
Termina tudo igual, igual
Estranha rosa...