February 1, 2020: Clairvoyance (Mach II) (Read on the Porch, Episode 44)

Hi Jessi and Kate,

Jessi, I would like to point out that my wife saw your "Romeo and Juliet" shirt and wanted me to tell you how much she appreciated it. She also wanted me to mention she saw the movie in the theater 11 times!

I wrote the Brads last week about my nerdery on the term clairvoyant and how captivated I've been by the term. Since I wrote that email, my feeling on the connotation of it in this song has continued to evolve. If you look at the term "clairvoyance" it took me down an even deeper rabbit hole. So I'd like to share my feelings on the meaning of "Dance of the Clairvoyants" in regard to this new meaning. I'm going to call this my Nerdery going to Mach II.

The term clairvoyance can be tied to Parapsychology, which immediately got me thinking of Peter Venkman of Ghostbusters, who says he has a Ph.D. in Parapsychology. To summarize what I've found regarding clairvoyance, it references the paranormal. Essentially one who 'sees ghosts." So here's where I'm going with this and the meaning of the song. The "Dance of the Clairvoyants" is labeling those who are concerned with Climate Change as once who believes in ghosts. This is the anthem for those who are being labeled as those who are believing in a hoax. Just like in Ghostbusters, no one wants to believe in ghosts until they become a victim or actual witness of a ghost sighting. Sometimes I wonder if it literally would take another Ice Age to convince those who believe scientists are just blowing smoke up others ass.

I love this song and the more I get to know it, the more I love it. For me, this is the best single they have released in a long time. I can't wait to hear it in the context of the entire record.

Forced to endure, what I could not forgive,

Chris

Comments

October 17, 2010: RIP Mozart for Guitar

Hi Brad and Brad, I first want to mention that I can't remember the last time I laughed as hard as I did while listening to you two and Clint Wells go on about spoonfuls of flour and uncooked spaghetti. I almost had to pull my car over as I was driving home during that part of the episode! Since Eddie Van Halen passed away on October 6th, I've been listening to a lot of Van Halen. I didn't really get into them until 10-15 years ago, but I consider them to be one of my favorite bands of all-time. Eddie was truly an innovator on shredding guitar solos and may be my favorite lead guitarist ever. I saw Mike's comment on Pearl Jam's Twitter feed referencing how he began playing guitar shortly after their first record came out. He goes so far to say "it sounded like Eddie was from another planet" and "Eddie was like Mozart for guitar. Changed everything and he played with Soul." I know the guys have covered Van Halen here-and-there and I looked

December 26, 2020: Someday at Christmas

Hi Brad and Brad, First, I hope you guys have had a Happy Holidays. Secondly, I really enjoy your solo episodes. They have a deejay format to them which also feels personable in getting to know each of your lives and what has influenced you to be who you are now. I hadn't taken the time to get to know Someday at Christmas until after listening to BradB's recent episode. Pearl Jam does a great job in covering the song, and I prefer Stevie Wonder's version over the Jackson 5. Especially, after reading the lyrics and reading some interpretations of the song. At the time the song was released, the Vietnam War was still underway. The lyrics seem to voice opposition to the war itself, but also express the hope for racial and economic equality. Unfortunately, that message still resonates strongly. Stevie Wonder was one of the artists that shaped my musical interests when I was a teenager. I'm very glad the guys chose to cover this song for a Christmas single and have

December 31, 2020: Low Light

Hi Jessi and Kate, I have been way behind on my podcasts the last several weeks. The main reason is because myself and a friend started our own podcast! It's not Pearl Jam themed , however it's consumed a decent amount of my week preparing for each recording. So we now have a hit on the Dink-O-Meter for both of you. First Jessi and now Kate! I can't remember if I have proposed the Dink-O-Meter to you yet, but I have it as a three-tiered system: Dinky: Just your average dinky, will only skip if streaming Rinky-Dinky: Automatic skipper, even when listening to vinyl Stinky-Dinky: It's like nails on a chalkboard to you Based on Jessi's response to Parachutes, I have that somewhere between Rinky-Dinky and Stinky-Dinky. I would have to let Jessi be the final judge on that. For Kate's remarks to Low Light, I have it somewhere between Dinky and Rinky-Dinky, however I'm inclined to believe it's closer to Dinky because I wasn't able to note as many hot

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