“(I Just Died) Like An Aviator” by Matthew Ryan – A Song Review

     The start of “(I Just Died) Like An Aviator” contains the gravelly voiced woe of a Tom Waits song. The bass line governs the instrumental accompaniment for the lyrics, “Everything sucks… God, I’m a wreck.”  By the end, the tone becomes supportive, although still far from high spirited – “Don't die, don't disappear; I swear to God we need ya here.” Reflecting the uptick in tone, a higher frequency guitar riff drives the finish.

     The lyrics of the song are included in this post. When placed in the light of last week’s death of Chris Cornell, they take on a greater significance.

     A comparison to Tom Waits is appropriate, but the influence of Gaslight Anthem is more apparent. The frontman of Gaslight Anthem, Brian Fallon, contributed backing vocals and guitar. Fallon also produced the album that includes “(I Just Died) Like An Aviator.” The ten-track album, “Hustle Up Starlings,” was released on May 12.

      According to the SubmitHub information:

  “’Hustle Up Starlings’ is an album in the truest sense of the word — it’s a cohesive sonic and narrative expression with a beginning, middle, and end. It was in a conversation with the great producer and songwriter Joe Henry that Ryan realized once again the importance of committing to the fullness of experience that an album offers. ‘It’s an intimate story I’m telling here. These songs are personal, but if I’m lucky and I’ve done my job, they become universal. The story I’m living and writing about is happening in the context of this world we’re all observing and feeling right now, a world that feels like it might catch fire with all its uncertainty and friction, the ugly politics and rising impulses.’

Ryan explains further, ‘You see, this is what we do though, even when the world feels like it’s about to burn down, we keep leaning for tomorrow in our own lives and stories and families. It’s all hope and perseverance. We get up and we go to work. We believe in tomorrow, even when we’re not sure what tomorrow will be. Joe helped me to realize that I should probably tell the whole story as best I could. Brian and Doug [Lancio] and the band helped me bring it to life so it could be heard and shared. And hopefully felt.’"

     “(I Just Died) Like An Aviator” - Matthew Ryan (lead vocals), Brian Fallon (electric guitars, backing vocals), Brian Bequette (bass), and Brad Pemberton (drums, percussion).

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Lyrics of “(I Just Died) Like An Aviator” by Matthew Ryan

Everything sucks

As bad as it gets

It all fell apart again

God, I'm a wreck

Rock ‘n Roll

My oh my

The same thing that makes you live

Can bury you alive

And we fall so easily

I just died

Like an aviator

With my heart on my sleeve

And somebody said

"Look at that bum!"

Since the sound of monuments

It's all heartless and dumb

I'm pouring a drink

And smoking a smoke

Our guts are born in that fiery trench

Between hurt and hope

And we fall so easily

I just died

Like an aviator

With my heart on my sleeve

I just died

Like an aviator

With my heart on my sleeve

Don't die, don't disappear [Repeat 6x]

I swear to God we need ya here

Here

     The video was directed and edited by Gorman Bechard. Produced by Charlotte Beatty and Isabella Germano. And shot by Gorman Bechard and Isabella Germano.

    The video features performances Chloe Barczak, Carina Begley, Chloe Lang and Erica Gonsiewski.