Songs for an endless summer #7

Hola dear readers, es Michael. I have six (now five) songs on a list to write about for this series. Much like the title, it’s limitless, as there are too many songs in the known universe. So I would love to hear what you consider a “summer” song. The lowercase summer is important to differentiate from uppercase Summer, which is the season also known as “songs to be played during the summer.” A drastically different playlist. The goal of an endless summer is to imagine what summer could sound like all year long. I guess then you would have to go to a warmer climate to experience that, making this entire project pointless. But this is an exercise in imagination, in dreaming of a future that is idyllic and of the earth, and most importantly, completely out of reach. Much like vaporwave, both the software and musical genre, the endless summer never happens because nothing is infinite. Everything ends. Anyhow, here’s a song made for Scarface (1983).

I’m hard-pressed to think of another soundtrack that has left an impression such as Giorgio Moroder’s. Scarface, a film about a man’s hubris and blind greed, is the poster child for the cultural legacy of 1980s commercial opulence. Expensive cars, shiny jewelry, the zeitgeist was “more is better.” Moroder’s compositions are predominantly built with synthesizers and drum machines, analogous to the passionate heights of Daft Punk, sophisticated layering, and complex repeating chords. This technique, called “hamming it in,” is effective for emphasizing emotional beats on-screen and keeping listeners in a swirl of self-projected emotions. Powerful music evokes intense feelings, and I am grateful to have the capacity to love this shit. For an example of this, listen to “409 Citrus Drive.” Anyhow, on the expanded soundtrack, there is an entire disc of songs recorded for the film. Leading to this post’s subject, “She’s On Fire” sung by Amy Holland.

An invigorating synth-pop song about a woman who cannot be contained. Holland sings: “And she burns through the night at the speed of light / She’s on fire / With the heat of the beat right beneath her feet.” My first thought imagines a woman who can’t be tamed by any man, and those who try to will be set ablaze by an undying passion (maybe her libido is insatiable). But after the 16th consecutive listen, my thought morphed into an aggressive dancer who dominates the club floor. The opening lyric, “Don’t be mistaken by the first impression / And watch out for that innocent expression,” could be a forewarning to would-be dance partners that this type of dance is no joke; if you mess up, you will die. The track’s guiding mantra is that passion is an all-consuming lifestyle only for those who can withstand the heat.

If I consider the song’s themes long enough, I can think of four more variations of that interpretation, but I won’t because I want to discuss the production. Again, most, if not all, of the instruments used for the soundtrack were synthesizers and drum machines, notably the Roland Jupiter-8. The melody that begins the track (I learned while writing this) appears to be an iteration on Styx’s “Castle Walls” from 1977. Lead vocals from Dennis DeYoung are laced with sentimentality backed by seductive guitar riffs, high-pitched keyboards, and ominous bongos; a power ballad if I ever heard one. Contrasted by Moroder’s faster, sexier, dance-oriented composition. Phil Collins would be an easy comparison for this sound, but again, we’re talking about the ‘80s, so it’s expected. There’s a steady kick-snare and a concise guitar solo to punctuate the song’s closing moments.

A lot of songs in this tradition would fit an endless summer. It's almost droll how clear Amy Holland’s performance makes it easy enough for anyone to sing along. It is a song that invites listeners to perform. We (the listeners) are the “She” who is on fire. So as we sing and dance, I say we do the narrative work to figure out what makes this woman so wild. What does the song mean? The answer is in how we find our groove.

This playlist is on Spotify, but I’m going to consider alternatives because it’s an evil company. For now, it is there, but keep a lookout. Thanks for reading.