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This was my first encounter with Bat for Lashes as a band. I came to this video without any knowledge of the type of music they create.
Thank you to David on Patreon for the recommendation!
Commentary in writing: www.brunaclaas.com/commentary/first-time-listening-to-bat-for-lashes-my-thoughts-on-glass
Parts of the writing in this track sounded very ancient to me. The biggest example is the line: “Him. whom my soul loveth”.
Loveth: (archaic) Third-person singular simple present indicative form of love.
Natasha, the main singer, is also the songwriter of this song. So this is not an ancient song, but rather an intentional use of archaic English.
The instrumentals sounded suspenseful and mysterious to me, which created the perfect vibe in combination with this lyricism.
Lyrically, this song’s storytelling was so interesting to me. We’re following a journey.
She starts with:
I will rise nowAnd go about the cityIn the street'sBroadways I seekHim whom my soul loveth
This sounds to me like she’s looking for her soulmate all over the world.
Went over the seaWhat did I find?A thousand crystal towersA hundred emerald cities
While she’s on her search, she adds intrinsic details characterizing the cities and towers she’s seen.
And the hand of the watchmanIn the night skyPoints to my belovedA knight in crystal armour
And I tried to hold himI tried for the creedI'll make a suit of coloursTo stop the blinding mirrors
This track is called ‘Glass’. Natasha seems to follow this theme by referring to a many breakable things. There seems to be a pattern: crystals, emeralds, mirrors, etc.
On this last verse she seems to finally find the person she’s been looking for, but then realizes there are challenges they need to face.
“Blinding mirrors” is a very interesting image to me. When I think of something blinding, I think of a very bright light, such as the sun. When she says blinding mirrors, I think about mirrors that are reflecting something so bright it becomes blinding.
To be made of glassWhen two suns are shiningThe battle becomes blinding
These lines serve as confirmation that my interpretation just before is probably not too far fetched. When two suns are shining the battle becomes blinding.
When we talk about being made of glass, we associate that with being easily breakable. Being so delicate that one would be need to be very careful not to break you.
And with two suns spinningAt two different speedsWas born a hot white diamondBurning through the rainbow
While two suns becomes blinding, and you cannot win a battle in which you cannot see, two suns also emanate a huge amount of energy - strong enough to create diamonds, which are so precious.
After listening to this song for the first time, I was definitely not able to comprehend it fully. But still, the songwriting was the highlight of this track to me. I was also very impressed with her vocals - this was a life performance and she did not shy away from going for very challenging notes.