It struck me just the other day I haven't listened to Damien Rice in such a long time, possibly over a couple of years now. Of course, I considered at the time looking him out and listening, but I forgot as quickly as I remembered.
Tonight, I witnessed a rather handsome looking maths teacher singing Cannonball and the thought was renewed: Why had I not listened to this music in so long and why am I not listening to it immediately?!
I stick on "9 Crimes" from "9" first, and it strikes me that several songs of his sound so very depressing, and perhaps I stopped in an effort to distract from such feelings. Then as I listened further into the song, memories came flooding back. 16 years old, freezing cold winter, the worst few months I have ever experienced in my life and this song was one I played so very frequently. Even before this period, I had played this song in certain conditions (such as when undergoing relationship issues) and so the emotions linked to the song are very much attached, very strong and very easily remembered. Other songs from that period of time include Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and Lou Reed's "Perfect Day" - unlike the aforementioned however, "Perfect Day" was a song I often listened to when numbed either emotionally or via drugs and so the feelings aren't quite intense.
So why did I take the time to write about this here? Well, first of all, I was clogging up my Twitter page speaking about this as it rolled out of my mind and through my fingertips. Secondly, it's a reminder that while so many things have changed in the past few years - including different conditions, different environments - the feelings still dwell and won't go away. I can still think of things that have happened throughout my life and of course no pill can numb the intensity of those memories. They overpower the strongest dosage of antidepressants and the strongest anxiolytics and I'm a crumbling wreck all over again... Even if it is just for 10 minutes at 5am on a Sunday morning.