A Static Lullaby presses on with the 2008 release of their fourth album, Rattlesnake!.
Though leaning on the hopeless side of emo, this post-hardcore/alternative rock band continues their message of resolutely journeying through life -- through the genuine pain, the accusations, the exiles, the pain of naive intimacy, and the agony of murderous souls. Intense in delivery, they use a lot of biblical/mythical/religious references.
In the song "Scavenger" for example, the speaker cries out to God, wanting to be heard. The speaker then curses God -- "blaspheme until you lend a hand" -- but becomes ultimately too tired to fight and expresses only fatigue that he/she can't even "burn a cross." The band also alludes to Icarus "hit[ting] the ground" to portray the loss of vision and future, and "wear[ing] the mark of the beast" to portray an evil heart destined for punishment.
But A Static Lullaby wants more than just the emptiness they sing of. In their first song of the album, they contemplate how their words are coming out: "How will my voice carry tonight? / How do I look under these lights? / Shove my head into the grand ivory keys / Maybe this will teach me how to sing." Even if the speaker doesn't know what he/she is asking for, wanting to be "taught" suggests a desire for the truth to be revealed. The band also recognizes that though the burden of life is trying, "we're mortal in humanity / Immortal after being."
Stories in the Lyrics
Many of the songs are ballads. "The Prestige" tells of a girl who is murdered by her father because she "had her mother's eyes." The song lays out the scene after the murder, with the girl "draped in red on the cutting board." The killer's voice describes the murder scene, and the boyfriend's voice begs her to breathe.
A common theme in stories is a girl who lacks her father's love and turns to sex as an alternative for the void. These stories are told by one of the girl's lovers, who sometimes tries to save her and sometimes hates her, feeling abandoned and belittled.
Musicality
The songs on Rattlesnake! have a driving beat, usually introduced in the beginning by a guitar riff that continues through the screaming verses. Good rhythm may be A Static Lullaby's first love, demonstrated by time signature changes and the various beats of the screaming. The guitar, drums, and screaming form a thin, grungy, simple layer throughout the verses, which thickens during the sung sections where music dominates and thus multiple melodic layers take place.
A Static Lullaby is dedicated to their music through the harsh realities and abuses that life brings. They sing about betrayal and hopelessness, but a light of determination flickers in the undertones.
 |
 |
