Review for the self-titled debut:
Hailing from Toronto, The Silk Demise offer up sensual, stripped-down trip-hop on their self-titled debut. Combining the talents of songwriter/multi-instrumentalist/producer Bill Litshauer and lyricist/vocalist Olivia Zielinski, the band's sound falls somewhere between Massive Attack and the moody trip-hop found on Akira Yamaoka's soundtracks to the later Silent Hill games.
Blending sultry female vocals, occasional half-whispered male vocals a la Tricky, and music that emphasizes atmospheric sound with sometimes sparser melodic work, the their first, self-titled album is an extremely competent and immaculately produced blend of dark, electronic-yet-organic trip-hop with a slightly experimental slant.
The Garden
The Silk Demise Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Cause it fades so fast
You left with
A bitter taste
I’m here with your shadows on the wall
And it still lingers
Stack a grain to a grain
Still the hunger lies inside
In your Garden a field so wide
Wash it all down the lake
Even the flowers wear disguise
Instincts governs you
It shuts all my five senses
Searching, running blind
Did you find what your looking for
Or was it in front of you
The Silk Demise's song "The Garden" is a melancholic and introspective piece that speaks of a failed relationship. The opening verse "Hey you, you never seen, cause it fades so fast" suggests that the singer's lover has left them for something or someone else, perhaps without even realizing the depth of their own feelings. The bitterness of this betrayal is compounded by the fact that the singer is still haunted by the memories of their lost love; "I'm here with your shadows on the wall, and it still lingers."
The chorus, "Stack a grain to a grain until it falls down again, still the hunger lies inside" speaks of the futility of trying to fill the emptiness left behind by a failed relationship, using the metaphor of a garden where even the flowers are disguised. The singer believes that they can keep stacking grains (or searching for new relationships) but the hunger (emptiness) inside remains. The verse "Instincts governs you, shut all my five senses, searching, running blind," illustrates the singer's struggle in trying to let go of the past and move on. They feel blind and numb, unable to trust their instincts or senses.
Overall, "The Garden" is a poignant and moving examination of heartbreak and the difficulties of moving on from a lost love. The imagery of the garden, with its hidden disguises and constant need for upkeep, serves as a powerful metaphor for the various stages of a relationship: from the initial bloom of love, to its eventual decay and eventual demise.
Line by Line Meaning
Hey you, you never seen
Addressing someone who has never witnessed what is about to be described
Cause it fades so fast
What is about to be described disappears quickly
You left with
After witnessing what is about to be described, the person left with
A bitter taste
A negative feeling towards what was witnessed was left by the person
I’m here with your shadows on the wall
The artist is present and observing the remnants of the person
And it still lingers
The remnants of the person remain despite time having passed
Stack a grain to a grain
Adding small amounts together
Until it falls down again
Continuously building until it inevitably fails
Still the hunger lies inside
Despite the failures, there is still a strong desire for something
In your Garden a field so wide
Metaphor for a vast internal landscape within the person
Wash it all down the lake
Trying to cleanse or forget the internal turmoil
Even the flowers wear disguise
Even positive aspects of the internal landscape are hidden or altered
Instincts governs you
The person is guided by their instincts rather than reason or logic
It shuts all my five senses
The singer is overwhelmed and unable to fully comprehend the person's actions
Searching, running blind
Desperately seeking something without fully understanding what it is
Did you find what your looking for
Questioning whether the person achieved their goal
Or was it in front of you
Implying that the person failed to recognize what they were truly searching for
Contributed by Julian J. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
whomanek
I love this track !! more tracks like this one ..
Leo
This song is marvellous. Too bad such a awesome song is so unknown.
Leandro Luiz
Finally "The Garden" in utube.. This music that give great pleasure make me remember traces of my life.. breath and tasting it..
Λ
Bark!
pdude1911
Welcome to the scene! Good old days.
John UP
came here from it
Laurent Bellemare
Does anyone has any trip-hop recommendations? That album is magnificent and most trip-hop I've been checking out isn't as melancholic or as dark as this!
VizL
this is some great shit!!! :P . feel so happy to have found it ^^
Time Line Archive Project
is trip hop that unpopular that this only has 9000 views since 2008?!
Mayra Montalvo
Is awsome.... =)