Showcasing the overarching struggle of growing older when it feels like the odds are against you, Brother Moses’ “What Does It Take?” is 2 minutes and 26 seconds of pure desperation packaged in an undeniably catchy pop song.
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Stream: “What Does It Take?” – Brother Moses
Living in New York City in your twenties and trying to make your dream work is a feeling Fayetteville, AR’s band Brother Moses knows all too well. The second single off of their upcoming record, “What Does It Take?” is 2 minutes and 26 seconds of pure desperation packaged in a pop song with a melody nearly impossible to get out of your head.
Barely left the house
before the day started breaking
You make it to the train
but then you hear it’s running late
Thousand bucks a month to keep
your pillow off the pavement
When’s it gonna work?
When’s it gonna break?
The scene is set on a New York morning where nothing seems to be going right, backed by a drum loop that builds slowly into an old fashioned alarm. With the title being a question in itself, “What Does It Take?” is laden with the existential questions anyone who has taken a risk or moved away from home on their own has likely asked themselves:
What does it take to be wanted?
What does it take to live a little bit?
A slight departure from Brother Moses’ last LP, 2018’s Magnolia, “What Does It Take?” begins to showcase the overarching struggle of growing older when it feels like the odds are against you.
The song continues to build, backed by guitar riffs that roll on with determination, culminating with a realization in parts: this is what we wanted and worked for, but why doesn’t it feel good yet? Why do I wish it would end? This is what I asked for, right?
Twenty-something years
and still nobody really wants you
Save for all your family
and a couple lonely friends
Looking back, it feels like
you’ve been working for this moment
Now that it’s arrived,
you’re wondering when it’s gonna end
After a pause and an attention-grabbing saxophone solo, “What Does It Take?” winds its way to a final build and a loud, abrupt ending. After a final chorus, a gang vocal slowly explodes, asking over and over again:
What does it take?
What does it take?
What does it take?
What does it take?
As for me, I’m not sure what it takes. And for the record, I don’t think Brother Moses does either, but they’ve given themselves and us an opportunity to cathartically scream out our frustrations in the meantime.
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Stream: “What Does It Take?” – Brother Moses
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