11-06-2017, 09:44 AM
I gave the album a spin on the weekend, and then listened to a few of the tracks from different live shows. One thing that struck me was how restrained the vocals are on the recorded version of Gift Shop, versus live. Especially the final lines "We get to feel small, from high up above...." were delivered with a far different emphasis versus the recorded versions. In the final Kingston show, Gord put an incredible amount of emotion into to the song.
It's always been a favorite of mine, but one that I never really ascribed a meaning to. I know in some interviews the band alluded to the Grand Canyon, and I always took it as "the smallness of humanity". Only in watching that final show did it really click for me that it's (maybe) about our place in the world and mortality.
I was also struck by how depressing this album is in spots. ABAC weirdly became a bit of a summer anthem, I think it took the place of the anthem on Parliament Hill on July 1, but that last line always gives me pause.
It's always been a favorite of mine, but one that I never really ascribed a meaning to. I know in some interviews the band alluded to the Grand Canyon, and I always took it as "the smallness of humanity". Only in watching that final show did it really click for me that it's (maybe) about our place in the world and mortality.
I was also struck by how depressing this album is in spots. ABAC weirdly became a bit of a summer anthem, I think it took the place of the anthem on Parliament Hill on July 1, but that last line always gives me pause.