Lyrics: Ascend - Sweatshop Union

Every so often, or whenever I find an exceptionally deep song, I'm going to post the lyrics here and try and break them down for you the best I can. By doing this, hopefully I'll be able to reveal the depth I mentioned in my last post, as well as the rhyming genius that it takes to produce a true gem such as this; Ascend off the Sweatshop Union's self-titled album. Now what I'm looking for here in particular is rhyming schemes, flow, and metaphors/similes. For all intents and purposes, I'll be going off of a modified template from a website I'm a member at (JeeJuh.com) that goes something like this:
1. Rhyme Schemes [italics are individual rhymes, bolds are mutli-word rhymes, green is miscellaneous patterns]
2. Wordplay [aka deep bars and meaning; explained after]
3. Metaphors/Similes
4. Structure
5. Flow
Also, there's a video at the bottom with the song in it.

Ascend -- Sweatshop Union

"We are passing into a great change of species
And no matter how loudly the old authorities
may proclaim that this is not so, it is going to happen
Our moment of time, when population reaches it's limit
and the world as we know it ends, is not about death at all
It is about ascending into a new kind of life

They only see to the sky
Our dreams and our lives
Our means to survive
But not between our eyes
We gotta free our minds and re-design them
Seek and find the trees to climb high and
Read the signs between the lines
Defeat the lies discreetly hiding deep inside them
Sheep unite and beat the tyrant
Leave the island but keep smiling (smiling)
'Cause why try to fit in
To this life that has been
Pre-planned to keep man in a cycle of sin
The fight could have been won
But we sit stunned
As we get drunk and forget once we were tricked
And now they can complete their goal
'Cause we're convinced that dung heaps are gold
People sold to keep our souls dug in
Deeper holes than we could know we're stuck in

'Now something is wrong with that... don't you think?'

[Chorus:]
Life can be a sequence of precluded opportunities
just like déjà vu that never ends
It seems our position as spirit beings
on this physical journey's to make our moves and then ascend
Life can be a sequence of precluded opportunities
just like déjà vu that never ends
It seems our position as spirit beings
on this physical journey's to make our moves and then ascend

I know sometimes it seems like it's some kind of dream, right?
Some try to scream and reach the sunshining beams
But the path is paved with choices, and the voices tell you lies
But it's your choice, your life, don't wait for hell to rise
It won't be televised in any case
On any stations anyways
Many wait for many saviors
Many say that any day
The penny's they attempt to save will buy them plenty acres
And the petty labor's every day's work's fruit can then be savored
Believe what you choose to but I refuse to surrender
To the people that rule you and their ruthless agendas
Spent a day away with me
Don't slave this week or play the game
End the pain, I'll make you see
The sacred tree and break the chains
Leave your alleys and streets, walk the valleys and peaks with me
This is all ours if you and I can just leave it be
Freedom is as easy as believing that we're one
Breathing it in deeply and the healing has begun

[Chorus]

Until we change our ways
There's no fucking way they'll change their ways
Manipulate our brains with the airwaves
Our kids will face the same shit when they're slaves
What gets me is they claim that it's fair play
But label us insane if we dare say
Anything that unlocks the staircase
So they can keep us locked in a scared state

Yeah, but until I change my ways
There's no fucking way you'll change your ways
So we'll keep celebrating Earth Day
Even though it's clear it's merely wordplay
What gets me is I know that they can cure AIDS
'Cause they control the healthcare and the birthrate
Then indoctrinate us 'til we serve hate
And incarcerate us in this birdcage

'And what frightens me is that... people are simply letting it happen'

[Chorus]

Sweatshop
You don't need to believe it
Or even agree with it
But give yourself time to make memories then leave it
Innocent Bystanders"

1. Rhyme Schemes: What I really dig about this song is the intricate rhymes that are woven into it. When I first heard this song, I had to listen to it a few times just to pick up on all the things Sweatshop is trying to tell me here. Their end rhymes are standard just like any other hip-hop song, but their massive amount of multis makes this drop one-of-a-kind. It takes true skill to be able to spit something as real as this.
2. Wordplay: I wasn't quite sure how to title this part of the song, but I thought wordplay would work alright. You could call it depth I guess. But this song is all about the government keeping you down. Sweatshop Union is a Canadian group, meaning they live in a largely socialist country where the government runs a lot more companies/services that it does here in the U.S. The first highlighted section is just deep. Talking about your girl like that really puts things in perspective. It's all about putting animosity aside and just loving. Speaks deep to me, I don't know about you (good rhymes also). The next two highlighted sections are about the government keeping a man down. How they run everything but don't help the people. The government keeps everyone in a 'scared state' while controlling the 'birthrate' and spitting whack 'wordplay' to keep the people locked in their 'birdcage.' The line "cause they control the healthcare and the birthrate" is a direct reference to Canada's socialized medicine that uses the peoples' tax dollars as funding. Then the lines ending in "Earth day" and "wordplay" hints at the governments shady intentions. They use Earth Day as a cover to make it look like they're doing real work, but everyone knows they'll just keep funding the polluting corporations. Alright I've said enough, next section.
3. Metaphors/Similes: I was only able to pick a few metaphors and similes out of this piece because I actually find it to be pretty cryptic at times and I get blinded by the depth of this song. If you can find anymore, post them and I'll add them in.
4. Structure: This song is structured very well. There's an intro, 4 drops from each of the four members of the crew, then a conclusion that wraps it up really nice. This song isn't too short or too long, it's a good length where all of what Sweatshop wants to say is said without it getting stretched out too far and losing its meaning. The length is 4:47 for anyone who wants to know.
5. Flow: To get the flow you really have to listen to the song. My favorite part about it is that it's really chill and smooth. The mellow beat accentuates the lyrics, which are the focus in this piece. I've listened to this song many times and I've yet to notice and awkward verse, so the flow checks out with me.

Have a song you want broken down for everyone to see? Post it here.

----------------
Now playing: Lifesavas - Me

Components of Music

When you think of the word music, what comes to mind? Beats, lyrics, bands, stages, crowds, instruments, etc. Music is made up of many different aspects that all merge together to give a certain type of music a certain feel or an impression that it leaves on the listener. Many artists sound completely different depending on whether you're listening to them live or sitting at your desk typing out a blog like I am right now. Moving along, I'm going to do my best to break the concept of music down into its primordial pieces and sort a few genres out and see which one satisfies all the pieces.
First, you've got to start with the beats, or the "music" of music if you will. This precisely blended mix of instrumental sounds is what gives you the sound/beat aspect of music. If music were a towering skyscraper, the beat would be the foundation. Without a beat, music is just lyrics/poetry, which is a separate entity in and of itself. This isn't a negative thing necessarily, it just alters the chemical makeup of the product on the molecular level; it becomes and entirely different work of art (because music is art). Now some genres, like classical and jazz, rely heavily on their beats to form their version of music. Classical is practically all beats, which is why it's an incomplete genre of "music." It's missing the lyrics and depth necessary to inspire. As a listener, I'm left wanting more. Now these "beats" may inspire some sort of emotion within the listener, based on the cadence of the song or the instrumentals featured within it, but I feel like it's lacking a human element. I want to hear the lyrics of the composer and decipher what he or she is trying to say through this piece of music.
This brings me to the second aspect of music: lyrics. The words of a song tell a lot about the artist and help the listener to interpret what the composition is getting at. Without lyrics, the song is just a beat as outlined above. One genre, rap, makes use of lyrics and beats, but it lacks depth (we'll get to that in a minute). The beats are usually acceptable, and the lyrics/rhymes are there, but again, I'm left feeling more-or-less empty when the last few bars are dropped and iTunes rotates on to the next song. It's a superficial existence; dwelling within the beats and lyrics dimensions of music. This is where the majority of mainstream music makes its entry. Akon and T-Pain get paid millions to make songs, about what? Clubs, hoes, drinking, being on a boat, etc. The beats, I'll admit, aren't always bad, but the lyrics are only skimming the surface of our existence. For something more, we must turn to hip-hop.
Hip-hop combines the trifecta of beats, lyrics, and depth. To start off with, the beats are off the chain. A good beat in and of itself can incite depth. That's why you occasionally find gems within every genre. Though I may dislike classical music, I'm sure I could find a few songs that utilize the depth I'm looking for by just pairing a few instruments that really speak to me together. But the lyrics are what really ignite the depth of a song. Groups like Blue Scholars, Strange Fruit Project, and Sweatshop Union (just to name a few) even tell stories with their lyrics. This shit just speaks straight to me like I'm sitting there face-to-face with the emcee and he's telling me what's good. Think of music as an arch (I'm nailing these metaphors today), the beats and lyrics are the arch itself, but it's nothing without the keystone to hold it all together; the keystone being depth.
Now when you go to listen to your music, check for these three aspects and you should be able to tell if what you're listening to is legit or whack. So don't be afraid to critically analyze a few songs and decide if you're getting musically short-changed or not. Music needs to be able to impress thought and emotion on to the listener. Are you feeling that?

P.S. I know this may seem hypocritical, but what I'm listening to right now (see below) is actually an instrumental piece of hip-hop. But like I said, sometimes you find those hidden masterpieces that can get by on just beats or lyrics alone. For the record, DJ Shadow makes some seriously ill beats. Word.

----------------
Now playing: DJ Shadow - What Does Your Soul Look Like (Part 1, Blue Sky Revisit, Transmission 3)