OceanLab's On A Good Day

I ran across this on one of the Ajunabeats CD’s I downloaded for train music.



Listen to it first, and reflect on the fact that Schubert never wrote a song this good. A lot of the impact comes from the singing of the then 38-year-old co-writer Justine Suissa,

and the time change between the rhythmic suspense created by the 7/4 of the lead-in to the release of the 4/4 for the chorus.

So here are the lyrics, courtesy of one of those lyric sites:

(verse)
A little bit lost and
A little bit lonely
Little bit cold here,
A little bit of fear

(Lead in)
But I hold on and I feel strong
And I know that I can
I'm getting used to it
Lit the fuse to it
Like to know who I am

(Chorus)
I've been talking to myself forever, yeah
And how I wish I knew me better, yeah
Still sitting on a shelf and never
Never seen the sun shine brighter
And it feels like me on a good day

(Verse)
I'm a little bit hemmed in
A little bit isolated
A little bit hopeful
A little bit calm

Repeat Lead-in and Chorus

As I (first) read it, this is someone who made a decision to leave someone or something (Lit the fuse to it) and hasn’t found any replacement (I’m getting used to it) nor do they really understand why they did it (Like to know who I am) or what they are going to do next (Still sitting on a shelf).

‘Strong’ is an interesting word. Women feel strong, and it relates to will, specifically to defiance. The song’s character is defying the emotional collapse she knows is one Really Bad Day away.

I see Instagram posts showing this month’s super-food, some yoghurt, a salad, a yoga pose or maybe a climbing wall session, and her (the song’s character, not Ms Suissa) smiling in front of some cute or scenic background.

There may even be a cat.

Because how does she feel? Lost. Lonely. Cold. Slightly fearful. Hemmed in. Isolated. Hopeful. Calm.

That’s a very specific list of emotions. The last two look positive, but aren’t.

You don’t feel hopeful unless things are bad. You don’t notice you feel calm unless you should be agitated and upset.

And only people who feel Bad most of the time talk about having Good Days.

So when I started on this, I thought the song’s character was a woman who had made a drastic decision that has de-railed her life. Or found that her life has hit The Wall.

But now I wonder.

In fact, if she’s talking to herself forever and wish[es] she knew [herself] better, is she in fact a Psych patient?