I’m just trying to be brave
The haunting soundscape that Riley Pearce has managed to produce reflects and supports the dream of many: To be brave. This song has the potential to deeply resonate with anyone who has lost or fears losing a loved one.
Pearce’s ability to draw audiences in and connect with them on such a personal level has led to many successes within the Australian music scene. The release of his EP We Are Fools in 2013 allowed him to receive recognition that has given him the undeniable confidence to continue writing music that directly accomplishes his dream, “to play for a room full of people who enjoy my music and admire all that I have accomplished.”
Listen: “Brave” – Riley Pearce
[soundcloud url=”https://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/217711082″ params=”color=ff5500&auto_play=true&hide_related=false&show_comments=true&show_user=true&show_reposts=false” width=”100%” height=”166″ iframe=”true” /]Mature beyond his years at 22, Pearce beautifully channels his cross continental childhood to illustrate the calamity and confusion of emotions experienced by those who embark upon long distance relationships. The slow, calming progression and build up featured within the song depict how time stops just before you know that everything is about to change forever.
She tells me that I’ll be alright, and for a second it feels like I believe it, because I forgot the way that I felt
From the very first chord that breaks the silence, there is a heavy, somber undertone that immediately invites the listener to tap into every resonating memory. From the very first expansion of the soundscape, the lyrics and pounding bass drum allow you to feel hesitantly optimistic – yet this is undermined by the old cliché of being caught between your head and heart.
As the story unfolds, you cannot help but yearn for the past that didn’t require effort to be brave – “Directions mean nothing in the dark when you don’t know where you stand.” Halfway through the chorus that is underpinned with a consistent marching beat, there is a new triumphant addition. This smooth, glossy, understated trumpet texture adds another dimension to the already pleasantly emotive chorus.
As the emotional outpouring of the song begins to climax, so does the instrumentation. Nearing the end of the song, Pearce exclaims, “I’ll be coming back for you,” backed by the interplay between the trumpet and piano motives. These two expressions could be considered to be a portrayal of the masculine and feminine expressions that exist before an unavoidable separation.
The video clip, produced by Revelation Pictures, a Western Australian production company is a very sensual and evocative portrayal of the moments before the couple’s hearts drop like the beat.
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Watch: “Brave” – Riley Pearce
[youtube=https://youtu.be/1tnfFhpHHyA?t=0s]“Brave” – Riley Pearce
lyrics
You’re scared ’cause I am too,
This fear my head has been there for too long.
We sleep now with the light on,
The shadows make shapes in the light and I don’t know what they might mean.
You’re cold because I am too,
So cover your toes with the jacket in your bones, with the blanket I weave.
She tells me that I’ll be alright, and for a second it feels like I believe it cause I forgot the way that I felt.
I’m just trying, I’m trying to be brave.
I’m just trying to be brave.
It’s this body of water that splits us right down the middle,
And I’ll be coming back for you.
You’re lost because I am too,
Directions mean nothing in the dark when you don’t know where you stand.
The masks are gone, so are our footprints too.
To get home now will take something that I’m not sure I have left.
I’m trying, yeah I’m trying to be brave.
I’m just trying to be brave.
And it’s a body of water that splits us right down the middle,
And I’ll be coming back for you.
Oh, I’ll be coming back for you.
But I’ll be coming back for you
I’ll be coming back for you.
