Ants From Up There

Ants From Up There offers a interesting contrast to Twin Fantasy. It is a similar album in many ways, about obsession and love but the way it portrays it is so different. While Twin Fantasy is messy and personal, I would say Ants From Up There is grand in a sense, with this almost Sisyphean sense of sadness. That doesn’t take anything away from it, in fact it is one of the most crushing records I’ve ever heard. The instrumental is seemingly upbeat and bright for most of the album even while the lyrics are soul crushing. Perhaps this is intentionally ironic, or perhaps they’re trying to somehow restrain Isaac’s vocals, not letting them cloud the whole sound.

Anyway, the next song, Concorde is my favourite in the album alongside The Place Where He Inserted The Blade. The way Isaac says in the opening “What a funny way to speak” just jumps out to me. He sounds so lost and hateful, I can’t ever get over those lines. The analogy with Concorde is so well done and

But, for less than a moment
We’d share the same sky
And then Isaac will suffer
Concorde will fly

is such an incredibly devastating portrayal of his love. The analogy in Bread Song, this over-dramatic portrayal of sadness in The Place Where He Inserted the Blade (which to me represents is the thesis of the album); they’re all things that make the album special to me. It is also the most accessible of three records, so I really do recommend to try this out.