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.
This is the Way
Devendra Banhart Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
That i believe in
This is the smoke
I'm always breathin'
This is the way
I share my breakfast
This is the way
I serve my sentence
I know i know
I should lay low
I should stand tall
This is the beard
I'm always growin'
I know they're here
I see them floating
Her empress beards
They float so holy
Their beards are here
They gently hold me
Well who knows who knows
Yeah i may come home
Yeah i may return
This is the way
I'm always leaving
This is the soft
Voice of the evening
This is the way
I hear my father
These are the flames
That drown the water
Well i knew i knew
I could stand tall
I could lay low
This is the sound
That swims inside me
That circle sound
Is what surrounds me
This is the land
That grows around me
And these are the hands
That come in handy
Well we've known we've known
We've had a choice
We chose rejoice
Devendra Banhart's song "This is the Way" is a beautifully introspective piece that is open to a range of personal interpretation. The song oscillates between different themes but seems to explore the artist’s inner thoughts in a calm and reflective way. In the first and second stanzas, the artist creates a world that he believes in by setting the scene through the soup and the smoke that he shares and breathes in respectively. The third stanza breaks away from this image and focuses on the artist's beard, which he is always growing, and he sees holy empress beards that gently hold him. The fourth stanza concludes this section by suggesting that the artist feels free to come and go as he pleases. The second half of the song describes the sound that swims within him and the land surrounding him, growing around him, and the hands that come in handy. The song ends on a hopeful note, saying that we always have a choice, and we choose to rejoice.
Line by Line Meaning
This the soup
This is the thing that I believe in.
That i believe in
This is what I have faith in.
This is the smoke
This is the thing that I inhale.
I'm always breathin'
It's what I do all the time.
This is the way
This is the method that I use.
I share my breakfast
I offer my morning meal.
This is the way
This is my approach.
I serve my sentence
I am fulfilling my punishment.
I know i know
I am aware that I should.
I should lay low
I should avoid being seen.
I should stand tall
I should be confident.
This is the beard
This is the facial hair that I grow.
I'm always growin'
It continues to get longer.
I know they're here
I am certain they exist here.
I see them floating
I observe them moving without any support.
Her empress beards
These long beards belong to a female monarch.
They float so holy
They move with great significance.
Their beards are here
Their facial hair is present.
They gently hold me
They give me a feeling of comfort.
Well who knows who knows
I am uncertain of how to proceed.
Yeah i may come home
There is a possibility that I will return.
Yeah i may return
It is possible that I will come back.
This is the way
This is the manner in which I leave.
I'm always leaving
It is something that I consistently do.
This is the soft
This represents the gentle part.
Voice of the evening
It is the noise associated with sunset.
This is the way
This is how I operate.
I hear my father
I am listening to my dad.
These are the flames
These are the fires.
That drown the water
They consume the liquid.
Well i knew i knew
I became aware of what I needed to do.
I could stand tall
I can feel confident.
I could lay low
I can choose to remain hidden.
This is the sound
This is the audio inside of me.
That swims inside me
It moves like water within me.
That circle sound
The sound is circular.
Is what surrounds me
It envelopes me.
This is the land
This is the terrain I am on.
That grows around me
It expands and thrives near me.
And these are the hands
These are the palms.
That come in handy
They provide useful assistance.
Well we've known we've known
We have been aware of this for some time.
We've had a choice
We had a decision to make.
We chose rejoice
We selected joyfulness as our response.
Contributed by Bella O. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@Ci-DTK9
Thank you
@KidSupersonic
masterpiece
@vicky8867
🎶We've had a choice, we chose rejoice😊.
@rafael2105
This the soup
That i believe in
This is the smoke
I'm always breathin'
This is the way
I share my breakfast
This is the way
I serve my sentence
I know i know
I should lay low
I should stand tall
This is the beard
I'm always growin'
I know they're here
I see them floating
Her empress beards
They float so holy
Their beards are here
They gently hold me
Well who knows who knows
Yeah i may come home
Yeah i may return
This is the way
I'm always leaving
This is the soft
Voice of the evening
This is the way
I hear my father
These are the flames
That drown the water
Well i knew i knew
I could stand tall
I could lay low
This is the sound
That swims inside me
That circle sound
Is what surrounds me
This is the land
That grows around me
And these are the hands
That come in handy
Well we've known we've known
We've had a choice
We chose rejoice
@scotttbeee2912
Black crowes used to cover this with Rich on vocals. Fuckin killer.