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.
The Garden
July Talk Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I was tripping on snakes
And I ain't asking for your loving
I'm just asking what your love is gonna take
Ignorance is bliss when you're young enough to kiss
Uh, uh, uh, oh
How much love you gonna make?
Keep your head above the water
And breathe before the ice of the lake
I ain't gonna let him twist my wrist
I ain't gonna let him kiss these lips
No, oh, oh, oh
You've been falling close to arson
Did ya leave your pills at home?
You got a problem with your head
And the doctor says you shouldn't be alone
Well, I got hips and you got lips
I plan to keep them
Oh, oh, oh, oh
This ain't Johnny Carson
I've got thoughts that ain't my own
I'm talking black souls dressed in red
And things that I shoulda never known
True love has its benefits
And I plan to reap 'em
Oh, oh, oh, oh
You got hips and I got lips
I plan to keep 'em
Oh, oh, oh, oh
Woo
"The Garden" by July Talk begins with the singer walking around in a garden and feeling uneasy or maybe paranoid, as they are "tripping on snakes." The singer is not seeking love from someone, rather they want to know what it takes to earn someone's love. In the chorus, the singer asserts that it is better to be ignorant when you are young enough to not know any better. The next verse focuses on a man who seems to have an addiction problem or mental illness, and the singer declares that they won't let this man control them. However, the singer also acknowledges their attraction to this man, and suggests that they plan to keep each other's physical assets, "hips and lips."
The third verse is the most cryptic of them all, discussing "black souls dressed in red" and "things that I shoulda never known." These lines may imply a darker, more mysterious side of the singer's character. Regardless, the chorus is repeated twice more, with slight variations in the final line, where the singer expresses their desire to hold onto their own and the other person's "hips and lips." Overall, "The Garden" seems to present a picture of a complex, unbalanced relationship in which various forms of attraction and repulsion play out.
Line by Line Meaning
I went walking in the garden
I took a leisurely stroll in the garden
I was tripping on snakes
I had a difficult time navigating through the garden
And I ain't asking for your loving
I'm not requesting your affection
I'm just asking what your love is gonna take
I'm curious as to what is needed to earn your love
Ignorance is bliss when you're young enough to kiss
Young people are often naive and easily swayed by romantic relationships
Young men don't need pardons
Young men do not require forgiveness
How much love you gonna make?
How much affection are you willing to give?
Keep your head above the water
Stay afloat and don't let yourself drown
And breathe before the ice of the lake
Take a moment to catch your breath before plunging into something dangerous
I ain't gonna let him twist my wrist
I won't allow him to manipulate me
I ain't gonna let him kiss these lips
I won't let him touch my lips in a romantic manner
You've been falling close to arson
You've been dangerously close to starting a fire
Did ya leave your pills at home?
Did you forget your medication?
You got a problem with your head
You have a mental health issue
And the doctor says you shouldn't be alone
And the medical professional advised that you shouldn't be left alone
Well, I got hips and you got lips
I have curves and you have an attractive mouth
I plan to keep them
I intend to preserve them for myself
This ain't Johnny Carson
This isn't a lighthearted talk show
I've got thoughts that ain't my own
I have opinions and ideas that don't stem from outside influences
I'm talking black souls dressed in red
I'm discussing people with dark, sinful behavior
And things that I shoulda never known
And knowledge I should never have acquired
True love has its benefits
Genuine affection has its rewards
And I plan to reap 'em
And I intend to receive those rewards
You got hips and I got lips
You have curves and I have an attractive mouth
I plan to keep 'em
I intend to preserve them for myself
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, Peermusic Publishing
Written by: Ian Docherty, Peter Goyette Dreimanis, Leah Fay Goldstein, Eamon Michael Mcgrath, Daniel P Miles, Josh Earl Warburton
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Saltylillad
July Talk has rocketed to my top ten favourite bands, his voice is all kinds of incredible!
@jamesporte55
Personally I think this band is excellent Canadian Rock. Living up to a very high standard.
@0hellzya0
+James Porte Can't agree more! they are now my 3rd fav. Canadian Band (1st two being Rush followed by Tragically Hip)
@AltaMirage
Yes brother. Canadian Rock: a very particular sound. They doing it well.
@Highlander10001
Hell no this is terrible. The guy sounds like he's barking lmao. Canadian music is hot garbage
@jamesporte55
@@0hellzya0 don't forget about the Edmond Fitzgerald
@0hellzya0
@@jamesporte55 4 cord gord will never let me forget about that wreck.
I actually went along lake superior to the edmund Fitzgerald's last known location a few years back. They have a lot of nice information and in honour of boards at a little pull over spot they put on the highway for it
@cinnamanstera6388
You can tell by those wide eyes and lolling tongue. That puppy wants to PLAY!
@jonkeating321
Their voices compliment each other perfectly, good stuff.
@swiggityswooty843
If Peters voice was a dog, it would be that rottweiler.