Soundtrack of My Life

"Shake Me Down" by Cage the Elephant

For Day 2, something a little bit alternative.

"Shake Me Down" by Cage the Elephant

Shake me down
Not a lot of people left around
Who knows now
Softly laying on the ground
Not a lot of people left around

In my life, I've seen
People walk into the sea
Just to find memories
Plagued by constant misery
Their eyes cast down
Fixed upon the ground
Their eyes cast down

I'll keep my eyes fixed on the sun

Shake me down
Cut my hair on a silver cloud
Broken sound
Softly laying on the ground
Not a lot of people left around

In my past, bittersweet
There's no love between the sheets
Taste the blood, broken dreams
Lonely times indeed
With eyes cast down
Fixed upon the ground
Eyes cast down

I'll keep my eyes fixed on the sun
Turn back, now it's time for me to let go
Way down, had to find a place to lay low
Lampshade turned around into a light post

Walk around the corner
Never saw it coming, still
I try to make a move
It almost stopped me from belief
I don't wanna know the future
But I'm like Rolling Thunder

Even on a cloudy day (x 7)

I'll keep my eyes fixed on the
I'll keep my eyes fixed on the
I'll keep my eyes fixed on the sun

Shake me down
Not a lot of people left around

Just from the first stanza alone, you can probably tell why this song kind of embodies this last year. Not a lot of people left around. It's been a very rough few years for almost everyone. People have lost jobs, homes, their savings, their health, loved ones, in some cases their own lives. It's become a kind of global inside joke that 2020 and 2021 have been the worst years that have ever happened, to the point of absurdity. I mean, Firenados in California?   Only in 2021. It honestly does feel like the end-times are here.

This song reminds me not to keep my eyes cast down. Especially when things seem the bleakest. The sun is still there, even when you can't see it. Of course, there is a point where optimism and positivity can reach a toxic level, especially when it's forced. No one wants to be told to just look on the bright side when they are suffering. But I don't think this goes that far. I really enjoy the picked guitar line at the start and the dynamic range between the verses and the chorus. The video tells a visual story of a man's life as it flashes before his eyes at the end of his life. It adds even more depth to the song.

Hope you all enjoy!

Anni