Levels: Occupy Music

Originally written March 25, 2023; unpublished until July 2023 with minor changes

In the years following the 2008 American recession, a number of movements took hold, all trying to express distrust and distaste in the decisions that were impacting so many lives. People wanted an outlet. In the years that followed, a single word came to exemplify this idea: occupy. Although ‘Occupy Wall Street’ is probably the most memorable slogan, there were movements to occupy various institutions, corporations, and governments all across the world. People from East Asia to South America were participating in the push for freedom of expression because they were feeling things and they wanted to make it known. Tensions certainly couldn’t have been helped by the wild theories circulating that the world was going to end in 2012. Those sorts of ideas tend to lead to additional panic and generally unhappy people.

Tim Bergling, better known as Swedish producer Avicii, would have been coming into adulthood right as the world markets tanked, so despite not being American, he was probably used to the constant fear, anger and resentment of the time. To respond to that sort of environment with such sheer optimism is unthinkable. There is no reason that anyone understanding the stakes of everything should have made “Levels”, let alone anyone else relate to it. But maybe people were tired of being mad and wanted to express themselves in ways that felt good for once. Maybe Avicii wanted to feel good for once.

EDM was another outlet for all the pent-up energy. It was dancing, moving, and existing only for the moment, without any concern for the perils of the future or the issues of the past. It provided a way to rage against the machine simply through forgetting that the machine was even there. It wasn’t new, but it was fun. Despite electronic music existing for decades, it didn’t really hit mainstream popularity until the 2010s. Almost overnight there were bajillions of festivals, dubstep in diaper commercials, and crossovers between mainstream artists like Justin Bieber with the likes of Skrillex and Diplo. EDM was a freeing, youthful movement that celebrated being alive.

That’s what “Levels”, Avicii’s breakthrough hit, was. The success of the song was many people’s first introduction to the genre. The most popular version of the song featured a re-work of a line from the Etta James song "Something's Got a Hold On Me”. It was the first time in a while that a lot of people had let themselves “get a good feeling” and just enjoy life, no matter what the powers of the world were constantly breaking around them. This was a change that people needed, and he was the spark that launched the 2010’s EDM explosion.

Arguably, Avicii was to EDM what Nirvana was for grunge in the 90’s. A new hit sound took the youth culture by storm, dominated pop music and culture for several years before an unfortunate suicide cut the life of a star short and left a community hurting. Comparing Bergling to Kurt Cobain might seem borderline sacrilegious among the music community, but I think the only reason that it isn’t more apparent is because EDM had already begun to decline before Bergling’s passing. Like Cobain, he was far from the only artist in his lane and probably wasn’t even the best at it, but he was a face for so many youths who needed someone else who felt them. He was one of the biggest faces in his genre and provided a voice for a generation through songs like “The Nights”, “Hey Brother”, and “Wake Me Up”. His struggle with mental health was very public (akin to Cobain’s fight), and it caused him to pull away from touring and the public eye (not unlike Cobain’s rehab time). His untimely death marked the end of EDM’s heyday, just as Cobain’s denoted the end of grunge’s and signaled that the times had changed once again. Pop music once again took a darker turn, as it’s impossible to live in perpetual ignorant bliss.

Almost as fast as EDM swarmed the cultural consciousness, it left it. By 2018, pop and EDM were no longer married to one another, and the electronic music scene returned to the relative underground spot it had previously resided. However, for many, “Levels” is still the embodiment of angst and frustration turned to a more hopeful outlook. For many, it’s still worthwhile sometimes to try and catch that “good feeling”.

Note: This was an assignment in my Writing About Music class. We were instructed to look at a pieces of music in a cultural critical lens and avoid making obvious connections. Essentially we were to connect music to a cultural movement that was taking place at the same time and figure out how the culture/time period may have affected the writing and reception of the music. Target 500-750 words.

No Such Animal: Amusingly Human

Originally written March 11, 2023; unpublished until July 2023 with minor changes

No Such Animal at Festival of Fools April 2023

I met Finn Morrison, lead singer and songwriter for the Provo-based band No Such Animal, long before No Such Animal was even a thing. (The group would actually ask for band name suggestions during their sets.) It was a HOT summer day and the warehouse-turned-venue we were in was easily 93 degrees inside, so naturally he and his brother were selling snow cones in the back when they weren't on stage. It was goofy, but the music was good, and the guys were friendly, so it just kinda made sense. The best way I’ve heard their sound described is if Green Day started in Utah, though others have compared them to The Killers, Muse, and an angrier Two Door Cinema Club.

Like I said, No Such Animal wasn’t always a band. Finn began composing a few years after learning to play guitar. His parents’ tastes were diverse, so his musical influences were too. After moving to Utah, he played a show in early 2021 at Orem’s Boardwalk that sold so well the owner invited him back for more. I met him through a mutual friend who was also performing a few shows after that (shoutout to DōngSoo). He actually credits the pandemic with some of the group’s momentum, suggesting that people just wanted to get out and see live music and he happened to catch it at the right time.

Since evolving from a solo project to a fully-fledged band, No Such Animal has seen some rotation in members. Finn chalks it up to just young people going different directions and emphasized that it rarely comes from bad feelings or ill will; creative people are just always moving. His wife Ella and drummer Max have helped keep a sense of stability while he has learned how to bounce ideas around with other people. Finn met lead guitarist Cole Harris at Guitar Center and was immediately impressed with his skills. “In the musician’s world, [asking to jam] is like asking a girl out on a date… cause music is so emotional, you know? .. It’s kinda weird, a bit personal.” Despite the initial musical butterflies, Cole was a perfect fit and has been an integral part of the songwriting process in some of the group’s biggest tracks.

If it feels like ‘connection’ is the theme of No Such Animal, that’s because it probably is. For Finn, everything in music feels like it’s inherently about coming together. “There’s no other way to connect people like music,” he told me. By taking the power of language and adding an extra dimension beyond words, he said music creates create a space that people can’t help communicating in. Powerful artistic language plus melody equals connection. Boom. Even if it isn’t always what comes out, that’s the ultimate goal with everything the band does. Live shows are about connecting to the audience and fellow fans. Social media is about connecting to the audience meaningfully and authentically. Just being with fans in general is about legitimately trying to get to know people and enjoy life with them. I can attest that he and the rest of No Such Animal spend a great deal of time after a show laughing and geeking out with everyone in the audience.

This connection is one of the reasons the reasons that No Such Animal have been so successful in the local music scene. Finn said, “I’m not taking notes … to make [people] like me or whatever. It’s just because I like to connect with people… and people who don’t see that as valuable don’t get very far.” Plenty of bands and artists try to shortcut this, but according to him, that just doesn’t work. For example, The Velour “is a pretty coveted venue by many local artists, and we play there live a lot… There’s a lot of people who are like, ‘hey, can you get us a Velour show’ and I’m like, no.” Finn explained that nothing he does will help those groups get where they want if they haven’t gone through the steps of getting to know and respect the local scene and built that repertoire genuinely.

All in all, it’s about celebrating the good that comes from being together. It’s about losing your voice and pouring sweat in front of 200 people, then heading to Denny’s to laugh about Leslie Nielsen movies. It’s about connection.

If you need a place to start with No Such Animal, Finn’s personal favorite is 'Runaway'. He says it's arguably the most vulnerable for himself individually, and the writing was a big moment of relief for him. Along with that, I love 'Afraid to Die' and 'Painted Faces', though you can't really go wrong with any of their stuff. Also, if you're in the Provo/Orem area, consider trying one of their live shows! After all, any time you go to show, there is immediately something you have in common with everyone else there that helps with the (say it with me) connection.

No Such Animal's debut album Painted Faces

Note: This was an assignment in my Writing About Music class. We were instructed to interview a local artist and share what made them special. In addition to describing the sound and physical aspects of the artist, we were to tie the musicians to larger ideas and concepts beyond music. Target 500-750 words.