The Wombats, an English indie rock band, released their fifth album in January. Fix Yourself, Not the World begins a philosophical shift in their music while maintaining the synth and pop sounds of their old albums.
Previously, their work focused on themes such as toxic relationships, hedonism and money. You may be familiar with Greek Tragedy, their most streamed song, which is focused on the theme of doomed romance. This new album takes an existential turn and focuses on the universe and letting go, themes which are perhaps overcoming the band members more now as they approach middle age.
Some may recall their second album, The Wombats Proudly Present: This Modern Glitch, with the single Jump into the Fog. This song calls the listener to jump into moral fogginess, because its clear we feel nothing. Matthew Murphy, the lead singer, also sings that life tastes sweeter when its wrapped in debauchery.
This same album holds the single Tokyo (Vampires & Wolves), wherein Murphy, attempts to escape his demons by going to a bar, yelling if you love me, let me go back to that bar in Tokyo. Whether this commentary on escaping suffering through pleasure and numbing is being satirized or not, their ideas were clearly less sophisticated than they are currently.
According to the band in an Instagram post, the track This Car Drives All by Itself sets the tone for the new album.
The song was based on a saying a band member heard: We row, but the universe steers. This isnt a nihilist outcrying of mans lack of control, but rather a call to let go of the illusion of control by means of surrender.
The title song of the album, Fix Yourself, Not the World, stems from Carl Jung, a nineteenth century psychiatrist. When one fixes something within himself, he fixes it in society. Jordan Peterson, being steeped in Jungs psychology, is most likely paying homage to this sentiment when he continually states, Start by fixing yourself before you start to fix the world.
The track itself only has two lyrics paired with slow echoing guitar, as Murphy drolls, I dont want to lose myself in someone elses game / Im gonna stay right here in the Californian rain. Perhaps, these lyrics elucidate the need to feel through ones own rain, before going out into the world, in an attempt to fix it.
Another standout song, sitting right in the middle of the album and surprisingly upbeat is Everything I Love is Going to Die. The band is sure to emphasize that it is actually a happy, liberating song, despite the macabre title. Murphy croons, Sometimes I forget that everything I love is going to die. This statement, acknowledging the finite nature of all worldly things, sets one free to be fully present in each moment, a primary aim of the album.
In Method to Madness, their most uncharacteristically lo-fi song on the album, The Wombats continue their theme of detachment. When one cannot find the method to the madness and acknowledges the control is out of their hands, they can let go of life plans, sadness and neuroses.
While this song ecoes some of the same lines found in Jump Into the Fog, such as the lyric, drop your map, drop your plans, drop that five-step program, it takes the lines in a different direction. Instead of telling the listener that nothing is off limits, because we live in a fog, Method to the Madness invites the listener to let go of things out of their control or understanding.
This track recognizes human limitation, and again, relinquishes the need to make sense of chaos. It is a call to presence. In surrendering these existential crises and understanding how they transcend our abilities, we can leave the confines of the mind, and simply live.
The Wombats continue to make danceable upbeat tunes, which recently have become more thoughtful. I highly recommend all of their albums; however, if you would like to feel slightly better about the type of music you are listening to this Lent, Fix Yourself, Not the World may be more suitable.
Read more from the original source:
- Streaming, Politics, & Philosophy | Destiny (Steven Bonnell II) - The Daily Wire - March 24th, 2024 [March 24th, 2024]
- Jordan Peterson Proposes Using AI to Determine Whether Hitler Was Right-Wing Because He Cant Figure It Out Himself - Mediaite - March 24th, 2024 [March 24th, 2024]
- News round-up: Radical expats, Church of England anti-whiteness, and Jordan Peterson - UnHerd - March 24th, 2024 [March 24th, 2024]
- Jordan Peterson & Sam Harris Try to Find Something They Agree On - The Daily Wire - December 27th, 2023 [December 27th, 2023]
- Discussing Communism in All its Glory | Michael Malice - The Daily Wire - December 27th, 2023 [December 27th, 2023]
- Tammy Peterson's journey to Catholic conversion is really a ... - Florida Catholic - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- The hairy beer belly of the Tradwife movement - The Michigan Daily - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- How to Kill a Literary Genre | Jaspreet Singh Boparai - First Things - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- Men, Masculinities and Memes: The Case of Incels GNET - GNET - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- An Alternative to Western Nihilism | His Excellency Saeed Al Nazari - The Daily Wire - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- The Future of Canada | Josh & Nick Alexander - The Daily Wire - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- Thanks within Thanks - The Catholic Thing - November 28th, 2023 [November 28th, 2023]
- Here's Everything Jordan Peterson's Daughter Mikhaila Has Said ... - TheThings - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Kansas football recruiting: Jayhawk commit adding substantial offers - Through the Phog - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Have children, save the world? The right's push for the right kind of ... - Salon - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Sound of Freedom anti-sex trafficking "hero" charged with sex crimes - Daily Kos - October 16th, 2023 [October 16th, 2023]
- Jordan Peterson, explained - Vox - April 17th, 2023 [April 17th, 2023]
- UFC Champ Israel Adesanya Gives His Surprising Take On Masculinity, Lauds Andrew Tate, Jordan Peterson: They Are the Ones Who Are Really Pushing Men... - April 17th, 2023 [April 17th, 2023]
- Andrew Tate Again Loses Romanian Detention Appeal: His Human Trafficking Charges Explained And A Timeline Of The Social Media Stars Controversies -... - February 2nd, 2023 [February 2nd, 2023]
- Rex Murphy: If CBC cared about diversity, it would host Jordan Peterson global warming talk - National Post - January 31st, 2023 [January 31st, 2023]
- Jordan Peterson event in Ottawa that coalition tried to cancel goes off without trouble - Toronto Sun - January 31st, 2023 [January 31st, 2023]
- Andrew Tate Detained In Romania For Another Month: His Human Trafficking Charges Explained And A Timeline Of The Social Media Stars Controversies -... - January 22nd, 2023 [January 22nd, 2023]
- Free speech isn't what Jordan Peterson thinks it is - Canada's National Observer - January 10th, 2023 [January 10th, 2023]
- Andrew Tate Appears In Romanian Court: His Human Trafficking Charges Explained And A Timeline Of The Social Media Stars Controversies - Forbes - January 10th, 2023 [January 10th, 2023]
- Read the court filing by Jordan Peterson against the College of Psychologists of Ontario - Ottawa Sun - January 10th, 2023 [January 10th, 2023]
- Jordan Peterson and Bjorn Lomborg: Hunger is more pressing than ... - National Post - December 16th, 2022 [December 16th, 2022]
- Kathy Griffin on How Elon Musk Reinstated Her Twitter Account: Dont Put My Name in the Company of White Supremacists - Hollywood Reporter - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- Usman, Khamzat, Gaethje and Cejudo Visited a Chechen Dictator But: Robert Whittaker & His Wife Sofias Appearance With Controversial Figure Jordan... - December 12th, 2022 [December 12th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson | Events - November 25th, 2022 [November 25th, 2022]
- Elon Musk begins reinstating banned Twitter accounts, starting with ... - November 25th, 2022 [November 25th, 2022]
- Olivia Wilde says Jordan Peterson inspired Chris Pines terrifying ... - November 25th, 2022 [November 25th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson Returns To Twitter, Immediately Demands The Site Censor Anonymous Trolls - Forbes - November 25th, 2022 [November 25th, 2022]
- Jordan Petersons 5 most controversial ideas, explained - October 28th, 2022 [October 28th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson: Id Rather Die Than Delete Truthful Tweet For Cancel ... - October 25th, 2022 [October 25th, 2022]
- Opinion: MRA and Incel Red Flags - Houston Press - October 19th, 2022 [October 19th, 2022]
- Arizona Governor Candidate Kari Lake: 'There's No Such Thing as Toxic Masculinity' - Jezebel - October 19th, 2022 [October 19th, 2022]
- Olivia Wilde Responds to Claims She 'Abandoned' Her Children - 22 Words - October 19th, 2022 [October 19th, 2022]
- 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos by Jordan B. Peterson - Goodreads - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Looking for advice on masculinity? Try St. Joseph rather than Jordan Peterson - National Catholic Reporter - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson Cried Discussing How Dont Worry Darling Incel King ... - October 13th, 2022 [October 13th, 2022]
- Remember When Jordan Peterson Was a Thing? - thetriad.thebulwark.com - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Conservative stars Jordan Peterson and Ben Shapiro address sellout crowd in Jerusalem - JNS.org - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- "Might be the greatest promotion on Earth" - Twitter erupts after Bloodline member takes a shot at Andrew Tate on WWE SmackDown premiere -... - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Quiet, everyone! Megyn Kelly has thoughts about Jordan Peterson and Super Bowl vaginas! - The Independent - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- The Untold Truth Of Don't Worry Darling - Looper - October 8th, 2022 [October 8th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson Breaks Down in Tears When Asked About Olivia Wilde Calling Him a Hero to the Incel Community: Sure, Why Not? - Variety - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- Who is Jordan Peterson and what is his net worth? - AS USA - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- THE WEEK AHEAD: Jews mark the holiest day of the year, Yom Kippur; Jordan Peterson and Ben Shapiro speak in Jerusalem; and 'The Rosenberg Report'... - October 2nd, 2022 [October 2nd, 2022]
- OPINION: Ego is the main problem of our political polarization - N.C. State University Technician Online - September 20th, 2022 [September 20th, 2022]
- What is Jordan Petersons 'grandma dream'? Story goes viral 23 years on - September 17th, 2022 [September 17th, 2022]
- Canada's Trump - The Week - September 15th, 2022 [September 15th, 2022]
- 100-year-old Wythenshawe man one of the last to receive birthday card from Queen Elizabeth II - The Manc - September 15th, 2022 [September 15th, 2022]
- How Marcus Mumford turned torment into healing on solo album - Los Angeles Times - September 15th, 2022 [September 15th, 2022]
- Olivia Wilde on creating the most controversial film of the year - Sydney Morning Herald - September 15th, 2022 [September 15th, 2022]
- The Sacred Heart of Uvalde - The Texas Observer - September 15th, 2022 [September 15th, 2022]
- Dr Jordan Peterson Launches Greek Focused Masters Programme On The Island Of Samos - GreekCityTimes.com - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Conservative Party Leader Eric Duhaime Teases An Interview With Jordan Peterson On Twitter - MTL Blog - September 11th, 2022 [September 11th, 2022]
- Jordan Peterson says he would rather die than delete his 'hateful ... - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Who is Jordan Peterson, the alt-right darling of YouTube? - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Sci-Fi Writer Patrick S. Tomlinson Instructs His Followers To Mass Report Dr. Jordan B. Peterson For "Transphobia And Dead-Naming" -... - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- The top 10 audiobooks on Audible.com - Star Tribune - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- I Read Robert Greene's Best-Selling Books And This Is Why I Recommend Them To Every Woman In My Life - Evie Magazine - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Beverly Peterson | News, Sports, Jobs - The Daily news - Iron Mountain Daily News - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Wingstop launches their own chicken sandwich in 12 flavors - USA TODAY - August 30th, 2022 [August 30th, 2022]
- Freeze Your Eggs: The Worst Advice Ever - The Stream - August 29th, 2022 [August 29th, 2022]
- Is Scott Galloway the Howard Stern of the Business World? - The New York Times - August 2nd, 2022 [August 2nd, 2022]
- Stephen Harper may have picked the wrong horse again - Al Jazeera English - August 2nd, 2022 [August 2nd, 2022]
- The Daily, American Dream, Emily DiDonato & Jordan Millington Liquorice Celebrated The August Cover With A Fun-filled Family Fte At The Maidstone... - August 2nd, 2022 [August 2nd, 2022]
- Reality's revenge: The return of stagflation | Columns | timesnews.net - Kingsport Times News - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- America's heart of darkness: Making sense of the nonsensical allure of MAGA - Salon - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Letters to the editor: Irony and inspiration in Pope Francis's visit - National Post - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Charles Barkley Thinks Bob Myers is the 'Second-Best Thing' to Happen to Golden State - Sports Illustrated - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Can Q&A lead us out of the opinion wars its helped to fuel? - The Conversation - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- The World and Everything in It: July 29, 2022 - WORLD News Group - July 31st, 2022 [July 31st, 2022]
- Wisdom of the Ages: Email, Jordan Peterson, and a Latte - Patheos - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Learn from these heroic saints who lived against the grain - Fox News - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Vegans need to stop exaggerating the health benefits of a plant-based diet - Fast Company - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- Remembering the honest and natural voice of Amy Winehouse - The Daily Star - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- The Barstool Bros' Split Over Abortion Could Determine the Future of the GOP - POLITICO - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]
- From The Mailbag - The American Conservative - July 25th, 2022 [July 25th, 2022]