It took only seconds of strumming and dreamy, dulcet singing for Dreimanis to realize he’d met his muse. He sat listening, dumfounded, dreaming up ideas for what could come to be between the two of them. Clear-headed the next day, he started his search for the stranger from the bar with whom he seemingly shared a soul. He found her; they founded July Talk.
The basic structural facts of rock band July Talk are this: two front people, Leah Fay Goldstein and Peter Dreimanis, surrounded by whiplashing guitarists Ian Docherty and [[bandmember from=2012]Josh Warburton, and double drummers Danny Miles and Dani Nash. For this compulsively DIY, rigorously self-realizing group, the essence of July Talk has always been the tension between precision and chaos.
Audiences need not ask what July Talk’s two writhing frontpeople’s relationship is to each other, but rather what their relationship is to their audience, and to the world. These bodies welcome our gaze, they revel and recoil in it while they furiously push back, asking of us what they ask of each other: please see me for who I am. If we see July Talk as a woman and a man, in opposition to one another, what we are seeing is our own projections upon these bodies.
What goes on between these bodies, all of them, that kinetic, staticky, sticky space, is where the truth of July Talk takes shape. On stage, July Talk unfurls and explodes. July Talk is known by their success at radio and their unmatched live show. Both of these things are true, but neither tells the complete story.
As video directors, their meticulous and masterful visual work has created an entirely unique aesthetic, and propelled them into collaborations with other artists, including Tanya Tagaq, Born Ruffians and Jasmyn. Their pandemic drive-in show presented an emphatic vision of creative direction, with balletic live projections opening new possibilities for coming performances. July Talk’s quieter triumphs, growing in their roles as advocates for industry change and defining their own parameters for safer, decolonized spaces at rock shows with their Love Lives Here posters, now translated into twelve languages, are as important to the band’s identity and humanity.
We can hear July Talk as the contrast of two voices that interject, operate and overlap around one another. We’re not wrong, but it’s not the full story. July Talk is a decade-long dialogue between two people; it is also a continuous conversation with older generations, previous selves, collaborators.
Even in the stark orderliness of black and white, July Talk has always been a work in progress. More accurately, it’s a work of progress, a communal pursuit of limitlessness as a mode of being. For a decade, July Talk has continued in its relentless project to know itself, through its whiskey-soaked blues rock roots on its self-titles debut EP, the 2016 dance-rock infused Touch and its contemplation of connection, or the quietly reflective eyes of their 2020 release Pray For It.
With their forthcoming 2023 album Remember Never Before, the most potently yet inventively “July Talk” album yet, the band returns – changed – to where they began.
Push Pull
July Talk Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Push and pull
Darkness comes, you've gotta pay your dues
Darkness falls once you look overused
You're born to live but now you live to lose
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
We're used to the night that leaves us unstable
We're used to the night, we take more than we're able
We're used to the night or whatever's on the table
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
(Push and pull)
(Push and pull)
(Push and pull)
I like the night (don't have to hear you when you speak)
And I like the night (somebody's got to find what you seek)
Oh, I like the night (all alone, where is it you've been?)
You don't wanna wait (Push and pull, push and pull)
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I'm used to the night
It's push and pull (girl on the side)
It's push and pull (and you make it through the night)
It's push and pull (I'm used to the night)
It's push and pull (but you make it through alive)
It's push and pull, push and pull
I woke up in the bloody wool
You hadn't slept, we went to the liquor store
And then we fought over dignity
Now see now, that was it for me, it's for me
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything (It's push and pull)
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything (It's push and pull)
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything (It's push and pull)
I don't wanna wait
The song "Push + Pull" by July Talk is a reflection of the tensions and unpredictability that come with night-time and nocturnal living. The lyrics convey the idea of push and pull, suggesting a tussle between two opposing forces. One possible interpretation is that the night is the force pulling the singer in while conflicting forces push him away. The chorus features a repetition of "Push and pull," which mirrors the idea of a struggle between two forces.
The opening lyrics of the song suggest that darkness represents the challenges or obstacles that people face. The singer acknowledges that struggling through obstacles may be painful, but they also suggest that it is a necessary part of their lives. The chorus then serves as a cathartic release for the singer by depicting how they prefer to live in the night rather than in the light. The repetitive lyrics "Push and pull" convey a sense of being caught in a cycle or rhythm, which symbolizes the singer's life in the city. The song's overall message is that we can become accustomed to the tensions of nocturnal living and the constant cycle of push and pull.
Line by Line Meaning
Push and pull
The repetition of 'push and pull' represents the conflicting feelings and actions of the singer, which is central to the song.
Darkness comes, you've gotta pay your dues
The singer is facing the emotional burden of their past actions, and they must endure the consequences.
Darkness falls once you look overused
When you're exhausted and feeling defeated, things become more difficult to handle and hardships seem to pile on top of each other.
You're born to live but now you live to lose
The artist feels they were meant for better things but now struggle from fear and let their anxiety defeat them.
You don't wanna wait
The artist is eager to change their situation and improve their life.
We're used to the night that leaves us unstable
The night is a metaphor for the singer's toxic lifestyle, which takes its toll.
We're used to the night, we take more than we're able
The singer continually takes on more than they can handle and suffer the consequences.
We're used to the night or whatever's on the table
The artist has become accustomed to living a spontaneous lifestyle and taking risks.
Take, take anything
The artist will do whatever it takes to escape their current life, but they aren't necessarily seeking anything specific.
You know that I'd take
The artist is desperate to change and improve their situation, but they don't necessarily know how to do so.
I'm used to the night
The singer has become accustomed to their toxic lifestyle and the bad decisions that come with it.
It's push and pull (girl on the side)
The artist is torn between the temptation of a potential romantic affair and their desire to change their situation.
It's push and pull (and you make it through the night)
The singer's lifestyle is a balancing act between risk and reward, with the stakes becoming higher as they continue their path.
It's push and pull (but you make it through alive)
The singer must keep fighting and taking risks in order to survive, but they can feel their desire to move forward becoming stronger.
I woke up in the bloody wool
The singer's past actions and mistakes continue to haunt them.
You hadn't slept, we went to the liquor store
The artist's lifestyle includes unhealthy habits, such as excessive drinking.
And then we fought over dignity
The artist is struggling with the knowledge that their current lifestyle is unhealthy and may conflict with their moral values.
Lyrics © ARTS & CRAFTS MUSIC INC DBA GALLERYAC MUSIC, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Peter Dreimanis, Danny Miles, Ian Docherty, Josh Warburton, Leah Fay
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Nathalia Galdino
Push and pull
Darkness comes, you've gotta pay your dues
Darkness falls, wants you to over-use
You're born to live but now you live to lose
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
We're used to the night that leaves us unstable
We're used to the night we take more than we're able
We're used to the night and whatever's on the table
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
I like the night (don't have to hear you when you speak)
And I like the night (somebody's got to find what you seek)
Oh, I like the night (all alone, where is it you've been?)
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I'm used to the night
It's push and pull (girl on the side)
It's push and pull (and you make it through the night)
It's push and pull (I'm used to the night)
It's push and pull (but you make it through alive)
It's push and pull, push and pull
I woke up in the bloody war
You hadn't slept we went to the liquor store
And then we fought over dignity
Now see now, that was it for me. it's for me
You don't wanna wait
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Take, take anything
You know that I'd take
Take, take anything
I don't wanna wait
Dyl
How is this song not popular? One of my top favorite songs certainly.
Deez Nutz
Cuz it's dumb to the ear of the corn hole. But to us it's the anthem of all greatness
Magdalena Zaniewska
I love it! Have discovered it only recently…
Jordan
5 years later it has 3.3M views lol
Dizzy Wolf
I like a lot of their songs...but I guess I just don't hear whatever makes this song so good. And, I might not be the only one who feels this way.
Rhonda Doerfler
In 2016, "Texas hold em" in Canadian border jails, it played constantly until they pulled it not to win the "award". (Not in good conditions and as warfare lite.)
Stephen Novik
I just love the aggression in this song. There's such a hard edge to the arrangement-- drums, bass, the guitar, the lead male vocal, beautifully juxtaposed with the lead female vocal and the ambient sound backing her..... y'know?
Stefan Schwarze
Dumme Effekthascherei
Kul3girl
Two very opposite sounding voices that go very well together
Lou
Totally