Laura Veirs (born Laura Pauline Veirs on 24 October 1973 in Colorado Spring… Read Full Bio ↴Laura Veirs (born Laura Pauline Veirs on 24 October 1973 in Colorado Springs, Colorado) is an American singer-songwriter.

Veirs was raised in Colorado, studied geology and Mandarin Chinese at Carleton College, worked as a translator for a geological expedition in China, and now lives in Portland, Oregon. Veirs has said that she didn't seriously listen to music until she was in her 20s; instead, she just heard what was in her environment. She listened to folk / country / classical / pop, around the house & on the radio, during her youth.

Attending Carleton College in rural Minnesota, Veirs latched onto feminist punk rock from the Pacific Northwest, eventually starting an all-female punk band called "Rair Kx!". Veirs studied geology and Mandarin Chinese. After college, she embraced older country and folk music. Her first foray into songwriting started with a geological expedition in China, where she served as translator. She was miserable and immersed herself into writing lyrics as a way of coping.

She put out her own self-titled album Laura Veirs, recorded live and featuring just her and guitar, in 1999. She has since made five highly acclaimed records with producer Tucker Martine. 2003 saw the release of Troubled by the Fire, a full-band effort that found the artist sharing the studio with such luminaries as Bill Frisell and violist Eyvind Kang. She signed to Nonesuch Records the following year with the atmospheric follow-up Carbon Glacier. Year of Meteors followed in August of 2005. She collaborated with The Decemberists on "Yankee Bayonet (I Will Be Home Then)", from their 2006 album The Crane Wife. Her sixth record, Saltbreakers, was released worldwide on Nonesuch Records in April 2007. Her seventh album July Flame was released in January 2010.

In November 2011, Veirs released the album Tumble Bee: Laura Veirs Sings Folk Songs For Children. The album presents mostly traditional songs, and features an array of guest musicians, including Colin Meloy, Jim James, and Bela Fleck. The album won a Parents' Choice Award in 2012.

In September 2012 her first feature film soundtrack was released: Hello I Must Be Going.

Veirs tours frequently in Europe, the US and Australia both solo and with her backing band Saltbreakers, consisting of Karl Blau on bass, guitar, and backing vocals, keyboardist Steve Moore, and Tucker Martine on drums.

Rapture
Laura Veirs Lyrics

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With photographs
And magnetic tape
We capture
Pretty animals in cages
Pretty flowers in vases
Enraptured

And doesn't the tree

Write great poetry?
Doing itself so well

Do you blame Monet?
His gardens in giverny
He captured
And lovely Basho
His plunking ponds and toads
Enraptured

The fate of Kurt Cobain
Junk coursing through his veins
And young Virginia Woolf
Death came and hung her coat

Love of color, sound and words

Is it a blessing or a curse?
Enraptured

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of Laura Veirs's song "Rapture" present a reflection on the dichotomy between the beauty of creation and the human desire to capture and possess it through photographs and recordings. The first verse portrays this idea by mentioning the capturing of animals in cages and flowers in vases through photographs and magnetic tape. The use of the word "enraptured" suggests a sense of awe and admiration for these images, but also a hint of sadness and nostalgia for a beauty that is no longer present in the real world.

The second verse introduces the metaphor of the tree as a poet, implying that nature itself can express its own beauty without the need for human intervention. The mention of Monet's gardens and Basho's poems reinforces the theme of capturing beauty through art, but this time with a more positive connotation. The use of the verb "captured" suggests that art can preserve and immortalize beauty, and that this is a worthwhile endeavor.

The final verse brings a darker tone to the song, as it mentions the tragic fate of Kurt Cobain and Virginia Woolf. The contrast between their artistic sensibilities and their untimely deaths highlights the question of whether the love of color, sound, and words is a blessing or a curse. The word "enraptured" takes on a different meaning here, as it suggests a sense of obsession and addiction to creativity that can lead to self-destructive behavior.

Overall, "Rapture" is a poignant and introspective song that invites the listener to reflect on the complex relationship between human beings, nature, and art.

Line by Line Meaning

With photographs
Using photography as a medium, people capture all kinds of things, including scenes and objects that are considered aesthetically pleasing or interesting.

And magnetic tape
Technology has allowed people to store and preserve memories, including images and sounds, using materials like magnetic tapes.

We capture
The act of taking images, sounds and other things from the world and preserves them for future reference.

Pretty animals in cages
It's not uncommon for humans to capture animals from their natural habitats and keep them in captivity for entertainment purposes or other reasons.

Pretty flowers in vases
Flowers are often admired for their beauty and people regularly capture this beauty by placing them in a vase.

Enraptured
The feeling of being fascinated, captivated and emotionally moved by something.

And doesn't the tree
Plants and trees continue to grow and produce organic matter, which is a phenomenon that can also be discussed as a metaphor for how people interact with the world.

Write great poetry?
Nature can be an inspiration in the creative process, and it's possible to see it as a metaphorical poet who is capable of producing great works.

Doing itself so well
Nature has a way of being self-sufficient and self-generating, which is something that people often admire and attempt to replicate.

Do you blame Monet?
The famous French painter Monet was known for capturing images of the natural world in his paintings, and this line may be a reference to his work.

His gardens in Giverny
Monet's series of paintings that depicted the gardens of his house in Giverny are an example of how he attempted to capture the beauty of nature on canvas.

He captured
Monet was able to create art that conveyed his admiration for the natural world, and people continue to appreciate his work to this day.

And lovely Basho
Basho was a poet from Japan known for his haikus that often described scenes from nature.

His plunking ponds and toads
Basho was known for using nature in his poetry, and this line suggests that he found inspiration in ponds and toads as subjects for his work.

Enraptured
The feeling of being emotionally affected by something, in this case, the beauty and majesty of nature and its elements.

The fate of Kurt Cobain
Kurt Cobain was a musician who struggled with drug addiction and eventually died by suicide.

Junk coursing through his veins
This is a reference to the drug use that eventually led to Cobain's death.

And young Virginia Woolf
Virginia Woolf was a writer known for her essays, novels, and short stories.

Death came and hung her coat
Woolf struggled with depression and eventually died by suicide, which is what is meant by the metaphor of death hanging its coat.

Love of color, sound, and words
People have an appreciation for things that stimulate their senses, including color, sound, and language.

Is it a blessing or a curse?
This line poses the question of whether this love of sensory experiences is beneficial or detrimental to people, a question that can be debated in the context of individual experiences.

Enraptured
People can be emotionally affected by the things that stimulate their senses, which is what is meant by the term 'enraptured.'

Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: LAURA VEIRS

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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