The Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter waits until anything—an idea, an emotion, a memory—gnaws at her, tearing at her fingers and throat until she releases it in song. Scott escaped the confines of her churning mind in order to find herself by recording Sprinter in the market town of Bridport in Dorset, England; and then at the Bristol studio of Portishead's Adrian Utley. With his guitar riffs and synthesizers lingering in the background like a lowland mist and PJ Harvey's Robert Ellis and Ian Olliver on rhythm—the two fortuitously reuniting 23 years after the release of Dry, and in Scott's 23rd year of living—she crafted a "space cowboy" record. "That's as simply as I can say it," says Scott, who cites inspirations as diverse as Funkadelic and Nirvana, Ray Bradbury and Joan Didion.
"I wanted something that very clearly stemmed from my Southern conservative roots but that sounded futuristic and space-y at the same time." It seems like an odd thing to look for in the picturesque seaside green, rolling hills in the south of England, but Scott had never been there before, and as a stranger in a strange land she found what she was looking for: a lost childhood. Sprinter was recorded in a room that had formerly been used as a children's nursery, which combined with the alien landscape fuels the self-searching that roils TORRES' music.
Following her self-titled debut in 2013, TORRES pushes herself to even noisier extremes on Sprinter, a punishing self-examination of epic spiritual and musical proportions.
November Baby
Torres Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Keeping all my light at bay
That night I banged at winter's doorstep
For just a look at your face
Let me in, I said, I know someone inside
I just haven't met them yet
November, please don't make me beg
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Now everywhere I go, I see you
When I walk and when I sleep
I hear you on the tongues of strangers
I hang on every word they speak
I try to be just where you are
But summer takes you far from me
So just for now I place an angel
Atop an early Christmas tree
Your big sad eyes
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Oh, my November baby
Your big sad eyes
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Oh, my November baby
The lyrics of Torres's song November Baby depict a person who is yearning for someone they cannot have. The skin that hangs on them like a lampshade symbolizes how they are blocking out their own light and happiness. The singer is desperate to see the person they are in love with, so much so that they bang on winter's doorstep to try and catch a glimpse of them. They don't know the person they are looking for but they feel compelled to find them. The plea of "November, please don't make me beg" shows how much they want this person but they are at their mercy.
The second verse talks about how the person is so in love that they see the object of their affection everywhere they go, even when they sleep. They hang on every word that strangers speak, hoping to catch any information about this person. They try to be where the person they love is but find themselves separated from them in the summer. As a result, they place an angel on an early Christmas tree, hoping that they will be reunited soon.
The repetition of the lines "Your big sad eyes, your crooked smile, your capped teeth, your widow's peak" show that the singer is obsessed with every detail of the person they adore. They are fixated on this person and are consumed by their love for them. The song is melancholic and raw, reflecting the depth of emotion the singer is experiencing.
Line by Line Meaning
This skin hangs on me like a lampshade
I feel trapped in my own body, like a lampshade constricting the light within
Keeping all my light at bay
My true self is held back and obscured by this barrier
That night I banged at winter's doorstep
I yearned for connection, even in the dead of a cold, desolate season
For just a look at your face
All I wanted was a glimpse of you to soothe the ache in my heart
Let me in, I said, I know someone inside
I pleaded for entry, hoping to find the part of me that connects to you
I just haven't met them yet
I am searching for an unfulfilled part of myself that I hope to find with you
November, please don't make me beg
I am pleading for emotional intimacy and connection during this barren and isolating month
Your big sad eyes
I find beauty and depth in your sorrowful gaze
Your crooked smile
I am drawn to the uniqueness and imperfection of your smile
Your capped teeth
Even the most conventional aspects of you have my attention and admiration
Your widow's peak
I find fascination and allure in your distinctive physical features
Now everywhere I go, I see you
My mind is consumed with thoughts of you, you are present in every aspect of my life
When I walk and when I sleep
You invade my dreams and accompany me in my waking hours
I hear you on the tongues of strangers
Even strangers' conversations remind me of you and my heart longs for your presence
I hang on every word they speak
All I truly desire is to hear your beautiful voice speaking to me
I try to be just where you are
My physical proximity to you is paramount, I long to be near you
But summer takes you far from me
The distance between us is greater in certain seasons and it causes me unbearable pain
So just for now I place an angel
For comfort, I create a symbol of hope and protection
Atop an early Christmas tree
In anticipation of the next time we might be together, I place a figure of joy and light on a tree
Oh, my November baby
My passionate love and devotion is addressed directly to you, my beloved
Oh, my November baby
I repeat and reaffirm my intense connection to you with every utterance of your name
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA/AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Michelle Cristina
This skin hangs on me like a lampshade
Keeping all my light at bay
That night I banged at winter's doorstep
For just a look at your face
Let me in, I said, I know someone inside
I just haven't met them yet
November, please don't make me beg
Your big sad eyes
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Now everywhere I go, I see you
When I walk and when I sleep
I hear you on the tongues of strangers
I hang on every word they speak
I try to be just where you are
But summer takes you far from me
So just for now I place an angel
Atop an early Christmas tree
Your big sad eyes
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Oh, my November baby
Your big sad eyes
Your crooked smile
Your capped teeth
Your widow's peak
Oh, my November baby
Oh, my November baby
Lisbon
!!!
Lisbon
This song makes me cry without fail each one I hear it. It's so painfully beautiful UGH IT HURTS
Seaghán MacKinnon
Where the fuck do I get this album? Hard to find.
Michael Shaw
itunes? its on there
Pedro D'Costa
o.o