A pastiche of post-rock, chamber-pop and contemporary classical composition, the self-titled debut album is strongly influenced by Ludwig-Leone's background in classical music, which includes a job assisting composer/arranger Nico Muhly.
After finishing his musical studies at Yale, Ludwig-Leone wrote the album in six weeks while holed up in a studio on the mountainous border between Alberta and British Columbia. He focused on lifeʼs top-shelf issues – youth, nostalgia, anxiety, unrequited love – and tied these vast themes to different characters through vocal contributions from longtime friend Allen Tate, as well as Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig of Lucius.
The first track released from the album, Sonsick, tackles many of these larger themes head-on. ”It’s like a panic attack disguised as a birthday party,” Ludwig-Leone says. ”I realized that the most intense moments are the ones in which conflicting emotional worlds exist inside you, equally, at once.”
San Fermin is not an album of singles but rather a sweeping, full-bodied listen with multiple distinct peaks and ambitious thematic connections. Ludwig-Leone composed all of the album’s arrangements and lyrics in full prior to collaborating and recording, noting that “writing for a large group of unknown musicians infused the writing process with a kind of operatic scope.
Since then, the band has coalesced into a core of eight members in addition to Ludwig-Leone: Allen Tate and Rae Cassidy, lead vocals; Eliza Bagg and Rebekah Durham, vocals/violin; John Brandon, trumpet; Stephen Chen, saxophone; Tyler McDiarmid, guitar; and Mike Hanf, drums.
August
San Fermin Lyrics
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I can′t speak
Oh I
I can't breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
I watch it die
Oh I
Oh I
I can't breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
I watch it die
Close your eyes, turn out the light
Hide beneath the bed at night
To be alone with you, to be the one you whisper to
I picture terrible things
Oh I
I can't speak
Oh I
I can′t breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
I watch it die
I can keep a secret
We can lie beneath it
Down past the broken trees, in the dark on hands and knees
There is a hammock in the moss
Eye to eye and so close
I′m dividing your skull
And in a little pool, scoop out love with garden tools
You never believe anything
Oh I
I can't speak
Oh I
I can′t breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
I watch it die
You killed another one
You killed another one, honey
You killed another one
You killed another one, Don
You killed another one
You killed another one, honey
You killed another one
Oh I
I can't speak
Oh I
I can′t breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
Oh I
I can't speak
Oh I
I can′t breathe
When the voices come alive
In an August throb of light
I watch it die
The lyrics of "August" by San Fermin present a hauntingly beautiful story of a person who struggles to express themselves and feel alive, except for one exceptional moment. The repeated declaration of "Oh I, I can't speak, Oh I, I can't breathe" creates a sense of suffocation and silent despair, which is suddenly interrupted "when the voices come alive in an August throb of light." The image of light and sound breaking through the oppressive darkness that surrounds the person is a powerful metaphor that is repeated throughout the song.
The verses that follow describe a desire to be close to someone else, to share a secret and hide from the world, to dream about terrible things but in the safety of the presence of another. The hammock in the moss and the little pool both speak of a desire for intimacy, but also an undercurrent of violence that is disturbingly ambiguous. The refrain that punctuates the song is a repetitive reminder of how everything dies, how the voices of hope and light dissipate, and how someone (perhaps "you," perhaps "I") kills another one.
Overall, the lyrics of "August" are a mix of beauty and darkness, of desire and fear. They feel deeply personal but also universal, as they express a sense of disconnectedness that many people can relate to. They paint a picture of a world where moments of brightness and connection are fleeting, and where the only constant is the knowledge that everything will eventually die.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh I
The singer is overcome with emotion
I can't speak
The singer is rendered voiceless
Oh I
The singer is still in the same heightened emotional state
I can't breathe
The artist feels physically suffocated by the intensity of their emotion
When the voices come alive
The artist is referring to imagined or internal voices that are part of their emotional experience
In an August throb of light
The vivid light of summer serves as a backdrop to the singer's intense emotional experience
I watch it die
The singer's emotional experience fades away, leaving them feeling drained and empty
Close your eyes, turn out the light
The artist is recalling a childhood technique for coping with fear
Hide beneath the bed at night
The artist is continuing to recall their childhood fears
To be alone with you, to be the one you whisper to
The artist longs for intimacy but also fears being vulnerable
I picture terrible things
The singer can't help but imagine worst-case scenarios
I can keep a secret
The artist feels the need to keep their thoughts and emotions hidden
We can lie beneath it
The singer is suggesting they can keep their secrets together
Down past the broken trees, in the dark on hands and knees
The singer is describing an isolated and unsettling setting
There is a hammock in the moss
The singer is trying to find beauty and comfort in an unsettling environment
Eye to eye and so close
The artist is describing a moment of intense intimacy with another person
I'm dividing your skull
The artist is having violent thoughts or fantasies
And in a little pool, scoop out love with garden tools
The singer's violent fantasy takes on a surreal quality
You never believe anything
The singer is aware that their thoughts and feelings are not reliable or trustworthy
You killed another one
The artist is lashing out at another person, putting blame on them for their emotional distress
You killed another one, honey
The use of a term of endearment suggests that the artist is reproaching someone they are close to
You killed another one, Don
The use of a name suggests a specific person the artist is addressing
Oh I
The singer's emotional state is still overwhelming
I can't speak
The artist is still unable to articulate their feelings
Oh I
The singer is still in the same heightened emotional state
I can't breathe
The singer feels as if their emotional state is suffocating them
When the voices come alive
This line is repeated to emphasize the importance of the imagined voices to the singer's experience
In an August throb of light
This line is repeated to emphasize the setting and mood of the artist's experience
I watch it die
This line is repeated to show that the emotional state the artist experienced has left them feeling empty and hopeless
Writer(s): Ellis Ludwig-leone
Contributed by Bella T. Suggest a correction in the comments below.