Anna Nalick - Breathe

I’ve listened to this song before, but it wasn’t until my wife started singing along that I really started to appreciate the poetry of Anna Nalick’s lyrics. It’s rare that you find a musician whose song actually uses an atypical meter (I believe the song begins in anapestic tetrameter). This is not to mention its wonderful imagery or its simple message that you can’t undo past mistakes. All you can do is move forward and try to make the right decisions. The song is, in my opinion, a work of art and superb musicianship.
 

“Breathe” by Anna Nalick

2 AM and she calls me ’cause I’m still awake,
Can you help me unravel my latest mistake,
I don’t love him, winter just wasn’t my season
Yeah we walk through the doors, so accusing their eyes
Like they have any right at all to criticize,
Hypocrites, you’re all here for the very same reason

‘Cause you can’t jump the track,we’re like cars on a cable
And life’s like an hourglass, glued to the table
No one can find the rewind button girl,
So cradle your head in your hands
And breathe, just breathe,
Woah breathe, just breathe

May he turn 21 on the base at Fort Bliss
Just a day, he sat down to the flask in his fist,
Ain’t been sober, since maybe October of last year.
Here in town you can tell he’s been down for a while,
But my God it’s so beautiful when the boy smiles,
Wanna hold him, maybe I’ll just sing about it.

Cause you can’t jump the track, we’re like cars on a cable,
And life’s like an hourglass, glued to the table.
No one can find the rewind button boys,
So cradle your head in your hands,
And breathe, just breathe,
Woah breathe, just breathe

There’s a light at each end of this tunnel, you shout
‘Cause you’re just as far in as you’ll ever be out
These mistakes you’ve made, you’ll just make them again
If you only try turning around.

2 AM and I’m still awake, writing a song
If I get it all down on paper, its no longer
Inside of me, threatening the life it belongs to
And I feel like I’m naked in front of the crowd
Cause these words are my diary, screaming out loud
And I know that you’ll use them, however you want to

Cause you can’t jump the track, we’re like cars on a cable,
And life’s like an hourglass, glued to the table
No one can find the rewind button now
Sing it if you understand.
And breathe, just breathe
Woah breathe, just breathe,
Oh breathe, just breathe.

[…] For the some reason that I like “Breathe” by Anna Nalick, I can’t help but love “Unwritten” by Natasha Bedingfield. I had honestly never heard of her before this song, and it took awhile to grow on me. Once I listened to it, though, I really had to appreciate the poetry. The song can almost be read aloud without music and still be very moving. Personally, I’m not fond of it’s gospel-like qualities, but one can’t help but feel a little inspired. This is a wonderful song with great imagery. I wouldn’t be surprised to see more good music out of Natasha in the future. […]