UMBRELLAS’ ILLUMINARE
(Latin; meaning to light the way or illustrate.)
When Scott Windsor and the timeless yet refreshing band Umbrellas released their debut self-titled record in 2005, they may not have guessed that one year later, they’d find themselves livening-up a drab, abandoned comedy club—recording songs on giant stages and in refrigerators for their follow-up, Illuminare. Umbrellas’ sophomore Militia Group release was recorded in two solid weeks of near fifteen-hour recording sessions, where Scott and his band’s musings were tested and brought to life.
When Umbrellas’ debut hit the shelves, it was recognized as a dynamic, eager offering. The band toured heavily and new ideas began swimming inside Windsor’s head. Those ideas formed icebergs—and the only option was to dismantle and re-conduct the near-avalanche of visions, abstractions, melodies and structures. The debut, birthed in decidedly artistic, collaborative ways, proved to be an even more cautious outing compared to Illuminare.
Hanging blankets across the empty, dusty and evocative shell of an old comedy club, Scott and his Umbrellas started tracking their new record Illuminare. They went forth in unsafe, less-than secure scenarios with nearby ‘06 tornados in Oklahoma. Scott recalls: “The old comedy club had an odd feel to it. Grossly low-lit, strange hallways, off-color backrooms good for nothing—right there in the middle of downtown Tulsa—dodging tornados in the midst of recording. We constantly heard sirens going off, went outside to piss-green skies, sideways rain and I thought to myself ‘maybe they’ll find these recordings someday after we were all carried off.’ One of the band members’ car was stolen during the recording process by homeless people who stole it just to impress their friends. The van got broken into- we had a stolen hard drive. But bad luck could not stop this record.”
James McAlister (Ester Drang, Sufjan Stevens) played the drums, percussion, programming, and added lively, innovative ideas like sampling Scott’s voice as the keyboard parts for the song “Again and Again.” On the song, Scott sings: “Where’s the piano? The big, big bass drum?” Well, in that song, the piano’s right there in his vocal chords—which were adamantly, angelically bared just as they are on Illuminare. “Most of these songs only had one take on vocals—80% of the record. Every record nowadays, it seems you can find some pretty blonde, put auto-tune on it and just go with it.” Scott modestly adds: “I’m not the best singer but at least when you see us live, what you see is what you get and I’m not lying to fans.” And it seems that’s what the general mood and stance of this record: reality, and a sense for the organic, raw, forgotten sentiments. In the song “Tests on My Heart, Windsor sings of ‘getting over the self,’ recording in the aforementioned refrigerator with cold vocal-shadows and a Vaudevillian piano interlude. Illuminare grapples with notions of solitude, life, death, and the plain old blues. Scott sings of realistic love, infatuation, satisfaction, disappointment, life-balance, the letting-go, appeasement, idealism, and grace—all with a backdrop of blustery fall-out tunes with strange swirls of sound, smatterings of echoes and pulsings, huge bass hammerings and bells to chime the gladness in being right there where one’s supposed to be. Weathering the storms, and taking on the shadows and memories of calmer times and warmer rooms.
The players: Chad Copelin (producer, keys, guitar, bass), Nathan Price (drums, percussion), Eric Arndt (bass), Scott Windsor (vocals, guitars, percussion) James McAlister (drums, percussion, programming), Ryan Lindsey (piano, background vocals)
Scott 09 Sep 2006
Taken from their Website:
www.umbrellasmusic.com
Thinking Of You
Umbrellas Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
And when you're away, I'm so blue
I'm thinking of you
I'll laugh my eyes out, I'll feel the rhythm
I'll pretend you're the reason
To make anything and everything that is scented blossom
I'll run my fingers through your hair until your eyes blink out
All night long I laid in the grass
And listened with headphones to the saddest songs
It was a spiral of a night
You were spread out across the sky
The way you skinned your knees chasing cars
They're taking you away
I'll laugh my eyes out, I'll feel the rhythm
I'll pretend you're the reason
To make anything and everything that is scented blossom
I'll run my fingers through your hair
Until your eyes blink out
The lyrics to Umbrellas' song "Thinking of You" express the intensity of missing someone deeply. The singer cannot sleep because their thoughts are consumed by the person they miss. The absence of the person leaves the singer feeling blue, and the only way to find solace is to think of them. The lyrics also suggest that the singer is willing to do anything to feel close to the person they miss. Even when they are away, the singer finds comfort in their scent and the memory of their touch. The imagery evoked by the line "I'll run my fingers through your hair until your eyes blink out," underscores the deep desire for physical closeness with the person.
Additionally, the lyrics paint a vivid picture of a melancholic night where the singer is listening to sad songs under the starry sky. The mention of the person "chasing cars" and being taken away could imply a sense of loss or distance, further emphasizing the singer's longing.
Overall, "Thinking of You" is a melancholic yet beautiful song that effectively captures the sense of longing for someone who is not present.
Line by Line Meaning
I can't sleep at night, I'm thinking of you
I am unable to sleep because I am constantly preoccupied with thoughts of you, and how much I miss you.
And when you're away, I'm so blue
My mood becomes extremely melancholy when you are not with me, and I feel an intense longing for your presence.
I'm thinking of you
You are constantly on my mind, and I cannot help but think about you at all times of the day.
I'll laugh my eyes out, I'll feel the rhythm
When I think of you, I experience such joy and elation that I cannot help but laugh uncontrollably and tap my feet to the beat of my heart.
I'll pretend you're the reason
In my mind, I imagine that everything good in my life is a result of your influence and presence, and so I attribute all happiness to you.
To make anything and everything that is scented blossom
The presence of you in my thoughts and in my life makes even the most mundane and insignificant things take on a new and beautiful meaning.
I'll run my fingers through your hair until your eyes blink out
In my imagination, I see myself touching you and exploring your physical features, and I revel in the thought of being that close to you.
All night long I laid in the grass
I spent an entire evening lying on my back outside, staring up at the sky and feeling overwhelmed by my emotions.
And listened with headphones to the saddest songs
As I lay there, I listened to music that only intensified my melancholy and made me feel even more emotional and sentimental.
It was a spiral of a night
The intensity of my thoughts and feelings pushed me into a deep and complicated emotional state that I could not easily escape.
You were spread out across the sky
Even as I gazed up at the stars, I could not escape thoughts of you and could see you in every element of my surroundings.
The way you skinned your knees chasing cars
Mundane memories of you, like the way you used to play and act as a child, take on a special importance in my mind and heart.
They're taking you away
Despite my intense longing to be with you and keep you close, I recognize that there are external circumstances pulling us apart and making it difficult for us to be together.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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