Music Review Magazine | Glass Animals | How to Be A Human Being
With Glass Animals currently on tour in America, we thought this would be the perfect time to take a look back at one of my personal favorite songs from their wonderfully weird 2016 album, “How to be a Human Being.” This was the second studio album released by the band and introduces a cast of strange characters mostly dreamed up by the band members, offering listeners a snapshot of their unique lives and quirks. The particular song is the first track on the album, “Life Itself.” The thing that first struck me about the song was the fact that at first listen, it is hard to pinpoint exactly what the lyrics are about. According to Glass Animals frontman Dave Bayley, the song describes an eccentric, exceedingly strange individual who spends the majority of his time in solitude, indulging in various sci-fi related activities such as searching for aliens and writing science fiction novels. Once you realize the true intention of the song, lyrics such as “I sit in the car and listen to static” (possibly alluding to the man searching for “alien signals”) start to take on a new meaning.
Glass Animals | Life Itself | Music Review Magazine
Life Itself | Song Dissection | Music Review Magazine
I love the way that Glass Animals can bring a character like this to life with such subtle allusions to their lifestyle and mindset. The thing that makes this song in particular so interesting to me, however, is that Glass Animals even created a website inspired by its character, called raygun123.com. With disorganized outer space-themed graphics reminiscent of early 2000’s websites, it is just as bizarre (if not more so) than the song itself. The text on the website suggests that it was created by the character himself, called “Chuck Rogers,” and features an entertaining and impressive amount of character development for a man who was imagined for a single song. Navigating the page, you can find things such as a poorly written short story, random pictures of ray guns, pixel art, “Google Finds” (a gallery of unusual images pulled from google maps), and and a family tree that can apparently only be accessed if you send Rogers “correct documentation” in order to receive a username and password for the site. It is truly a one-of-a-kind creation by a noteworthy band.
Madrigal Records | Music Review Magazine ® | Glass Animals Upcoming Shows
Glass Animals will be playing in select locales across America in 2018, including:
- Rams Head, Baltimore, MD
- Madison Square Gardens, New York, NY
- Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing, Philadelphia, PA
- Float Festival, San Marcos, TX
- The Ritz Ybor, Tampa, FL
- The Fillmore, Miami Beach, FL
- Georgia Theatre, Athens, GA
Glass Animals | Music Review Magazine | Online Music Publications
