ICON FOR HIRE. What can we say? This is such an interesting band with such an interesting history. The band has been through a lot and have made no secrets of their struggles and their albums are highly encouraging, often relating to mental health, addiction, and the general struggles of life. Their latest album, “Amorphous,” was released on February 19th, 2021, and a handful of days ago on April 9th, 2021, they released an acoustic version of “Seeds” as a single.
ICON FOR HIRE is not necessarily my thing most of the time, even though they have some brilliant music, but it’s worth mentioning that I support this band alone on principle, based on what they stand for as people and artists: openness, kindness, conversation, and support. On my first listening of the album a week or so ago, “Seeds” was the first and main song to catch my attention for its interesting electronic vibes, as well as the powerful delivery… but it was the lyrics that really hit me: “The tried to bury us / they didn’t know we were seeds.” That’s one of the most evocative metaphorical lines I’ve heard in ages and is such a great empowerment anthem. It’s commonly known that aggressors try to “bury” the weak, so what’s a more powerful statement to bullies than that they tried to bury a seed? How beautiful!
The original version of the song, as mentioned, is a pretty upbeat electronic song, so the acoustic rendition certainly has a different feel. The vocals come out of the mix to the forefront and Ariel Bloomer is backed solely by acoustic guitars done by Shawn Jump. The melodies are extremely pleasant but the acoustic version slows the song down a bit. Personally, I do prefer the original electronic version of the song, but if you really want to hear those lyrics I mentioned, the acoustic version is the one to listen to for details. Furthermore, the single offers a very different take on the original, so if, for some reason, there was something about the original that rubbed you the wrong way but you liked the lyrics, it’s worth listening to this version to see if it might tickle you a bit better, as it could stand on its own due to the sheer difference created by converting it to an acoustic form.
There is no accompanying music video to go with the acoustic version of “Seeds,” but there is an assortment of videos to go with the original single, such as the visualizer and the music video. The former is a somewhat psychedelic take on a pale pink rose wilting and perking up, while the latter is a beautiful video featuring warm ambient light, growing vines, and the band doing what they do best – performing! Both are worth checking out.
“We’ll go up in flames and down in history / as the ones who break through to find the sun.”
If these types up never-give-up, never-back-down, find your strength songs are your jam, definitely check out this track, as well as the whole album!
Line-up
Ariel Bloomer
Shawn Jump
