Speak No Feeling

By my count, in the last two posts I've written, I churned out nearly 2,000 words in trying to figure out what gives the human voice such a powerful ability to entrance and enthrall us in a way that instruments rarely seem to. That's a lot of typing, and I don't know that I've really gotten any of us any closer to an answer.

So today, I'm trying the opposite approach. Rather than tell you about some powerful experience I've had with vocal music, I'll just offer you the same experience. The video below is of a British singer-songwriter named Imogen Heap, whose music you may have heard on the radio, especially if you're in the habit of listening to The Current. The song she's singing is called Hide & Seek. The first time I heard it (I won't tell you where and when, because it shouldn't matter, other than to note that I was not in the least paying attention to the radio before it came on,) it absolutely stopped me and the friend I was with cold. The conversation we'd been having came to an abrupt halt, and we both just sat there listening until the song ended.

One caveat before you click play: If you're of my generation, you will undoubtedly have trouble getting past the fact that the video makes Imogen Heap look a lot like the evil ancient god that tried to vanquish the Ghostbusters on top of a New York skyscraper. It's distracting, I agree. Just look away and listen.