A visual album review of Lee DeWyze "Frames" : Track #4 "Frames"

*this painting is rather large & wide...making it hard to take a great picture! But you get the idea 😉 

Frames, the title track (#4) is not only my favorite song on this album, but quite possibly of all Lee DeWyze songs. Instead of searching for the perfect words to describe the melody, lyrics and his voice… I’m going to describe it as this….everything about this song puts you under this mesmerized spell with its beauty. Or I can go the route we all describe it as: Hauntingly Beautiful!  Without being dramatic about it, I listen to this particular song about 20-30 times a day. I love it THAT much.

I’m excited to talk about this one because if there was ANY one thing that can show you just how in tuned I am to this man’s music… it’s this one, even though the art itself looks so simple and minimal.

 

The obvious choice for the visual here are picture frames…no shocker there, but this thought process has an interesting story.  I was actually thinking of another painting that I was working on while I was at work. (shhh..multi-tasker…my creative mind never shuts up) well literally out of nowhere this image just randomly popped in my head. I was so excited that I got out a piece of paper and started writing down the colors I wanted, the textures…. Everything about it. I actually put my other one on hold to start this. Out of all the inspired paintings I have done, this one hit me like a Mack truck. I had this painting done in about 2 days. This was the same week that the album was released. *fun fact: did you notice that the only frame that has a picture in it was one of my original Lee-inspired paintings? It’s for “Dreaming Alone” off of one of Lee’s Pre-Idol albums* see?:

 

  I was telling Mare about how strongly I felt about this idea and how it just came out of no where… Then something freaky happened…. Lol…. Ready?

 

So the day the album was released, a lot of us fans had already pre-ordered it. So we were all excited to go home and see if the album was delivered, like a little child wating to open their Christmas presents. I’m sitting at work and I get a text from Mare to the effect of “Do you want me to show you something, or do you want to be surprised?” well. Um…. Now you have to show me. Lol. Can’t do that to someone…

So she sends me a picture of the CD art… and it was eerily similar to my painting! The colors, the textures… everything…  How weirdly awesome is that? A few things that made it so freaky were that 1) the image came into my head so fast when I wasn’t even listening or thinking about that song at that moment. It was like it pushed its way in there  and 2) since the Album was already being delivered they had to have already been at the printers before I even started my painting. Obviously I have always felt a strong connection between my art and the music but damn, this was just too much. You can see the side by side images here. I am also including one of “The Ride” which is track 8, however we already wrote about that in a previous post. When I got home, I noticed that another pic in the CD art had a similar vibe to the Ride painting. Mare saw this also but was waiting for me to see if for myself… what do you think? Also, I wanna know what Lee thought when he saw the painting, haha… since obviously the art was already on it’s way to being printed.  :

 

Here is Mare’s point of view, as a fan of the art and the music:

 

I will start off by saying this is one of my favorite songs on the album and one of my favorite pieces of art. Trying to break down and edit everything I feel, hear and see is extremely difficult. Isn’t that what truly makes it all “art” though? Something that makes you feel SO much, that it’s hard to put into words.... It goes to my soul. I feel this song. Literally. Sometimes, if you’re lucky, notes, lyrics, tone... they vibrate within your body in an un-namable place...

 

When I hear this song, I actually imagine a spectrum of feelings pounding within a heart. If feelings of sorrow, desolation, hollowness, hurt, disillusionment, reminiscence, reflection, haunted, aching, anger, hope, regret, loneliness, defeat and acceptance could be visually seen marching through someones heart and soul... well that’s what I “see”. I live those feelings every time I listen to it. In the background of this song, there is a specific beat... a slow one, that gradually picks up speed, before slowing again. It’s those feelings taking place within the song...and the heart. The guitar, the tone of his voice... that’s what makes the story within the soul wrenching lyrics resonate. 

 

Visually, I imagine a person sitting in a dark, empty hallway, on a dusty floor with only their memories surrounding them. Filling in these empty frames with the images behind their eyes. The art is the visual view inside the imagination of the writer as he writes. The wall is old, weathered, textured, stained and cracked.... so are memories and imaginings. It’s how we can sometimes feel if we go down that dark hallway of thoughts in our minds. The frames are antiqued, without a pattern up on the wall... a few are missing and leave only a reminder that they were once there, and one..... one has an image peeking out. A torn, hazy picture... but it is still hanging on. This wall, and these frames have been through hell, and yet as a whole, they are painfully, achingly beautiful. 

 

“What could have been... What would have been.... What was..... What if, what if, what if.... Just make it stop....”.... Echo's that we all hear at some point in our lives.... I know I have.

 

 

Here is Danielle’s point of view, looking at the Art alone:

Frames.... this is such an awesome painting. The first thing that pops in my head is forgotten memories, lost friends, dreams abandoned by the wayside. Although in another perspective perhaps the empty frames represent an inner cleansing in order to rid ourselves of negative and replace our old frame with  positive. There are so many ways this painting can be interpreted whether it represents positive or negative emotions would depend on what mood I'm in when look at. Either  way I can take away the notion that we as individuals are free to fill our frames with anything we wish...and only we have the power  to empty them when those things no longer full fill our needs. 

 

 Listen to "Frames" here: 

 http://youtu.be/oKKXrQr9vGs this awesome video was taken by Kelly ( @LeesBiggestFan) thank you!!!!! 

Frames lyrics:

 

My heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it could

And for awhile I believed that I was Superman but I misunderstood

And you could chase me down, 'cause you know how, I wanna feel like what we had was good

Now my heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it should

With this empty space I can't replace the overwhelming memory of your face

And in this hall of empty picture frames I wish I never even knew

These halls of empty picture frames who knew the heartache they could do

Halls of empty picture frames I wish I never even knew your name

Sleepless nights I'm terrified I wonder if I'll ever leave this space

But I'll lay here and wait my dear in case you ever need a place to stay

Well I know that this is just a song but maybe it will reach your ears someday

We both know I fucked it up now suck it up, and live and learn to love another way

Oh, easier is said than done my heart is growing heavy anyway

Well it's better to have loved and lost at least that's what the lonely people say

Well, I feel alone, I told you so, and time and time again I let it go

But if you've never had a broken heart then there's no way in hell you'll ever know

Oh my heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it could

My heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it should

Now my heart is getting heavier, now heavier than I ever thought it could

Well my heart is growing heavier, well, than I ever thought it should, ever thought it should

Now my heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it could

And for awhile I believed that I was Superman but I misunderstood

Well you chase me down, 'cause you know how, I wanna feel like what we had was good

But now my heart is getting heavier, heavier than I ever thought it should, ever thought it should

I feel alone, I told you so, and time and time again I let it go

But if you've never had a broken heart than there's no way in hell you'll ever know

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I'll be away for the weekend, so we will continue the posts on Monday!!!!!

Have a nice weekend!!!!!