An energizing addition to The Staves’ catalog, new single “Waiting for the Joy” is an angsty existential crisis channeled into four minutes of cinematic, harmony-soaked rock.
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Stream: “Waiting for the Joy” – The Staves
Despite them definitely not being a “singles band,” some of The Staves’ best songs – “Home Alone, Too,” “Mexico,” “Steady,” “Roses,” even “Nothing’s Gonna Happen” – started out as singles. Now, they can add one more notch to that belt: While I’m sure that “Waiting for the Joy” is the precursor to an as-of-yet unannounced “deluxe” edition of their fourth album All Now (released in March), The Staves’ latest offering is, at least for now, a standalone stunner.
I’ve been asleep for a week
And I don’t know where I’ve been
I know I should, if I could, I’d be good
And I’d eat my greens
Up all night
Locking ourselves inside
Everybody’s singing all the songs I love
Waiting for the joy to come
But it never does
I’m pushing buttons keeping on the lights
Even doing nothing
I’m not quite doing it right
Shut the front door
Tell me what to do and what to do it for
Everybody’s singing all the songs I love
Waiting for the joy to come
But it never does
Surprise-released on August 8th, “Waiting for the Joy” is an angsty existential crisis channeled into four minutes of cinematic, harmony-soaked rock. Whereas their last two LPs have toed the line between folk and rock, this song eschews that balance, with the Staveley-Taylor sisters turning their guitar amps up and singing their heavy, frustrated hearts out. The tension and turbulence that birthed these lyrics, so filled with a sense of discontent and defeat, uncertainty and self-doubt, demanded The Staves be loud and bold. They follow through on both fronts, delivering a song that is as catchy as it is cathartic: An anthem for all those moments where we feel unmotivated; apathetic; directionless; hollow.
“The song began in the throes of the first lockdown when the feeling of isolation was so prominent,” The Staves tell Atwood Magazine. “Everyone seemed so inspired, and we were worried that we weren’t inspired by music in general anymore.”
Sitting on notions in oceans of time
And my hair got long
Meant to reply to your message but now
I don’t feel too strong
Sink like a stone
Sorry I don’t answer the phone
Props to The Staves for taking their writers block and making something truly irresistible out of it; whereas most songs of this ilk end up feeling like self-fulfilling prophecies (as dull and uninspired as their source material), “Waiting for the Joy” ends up tackling much larger themes of purpose and mental health with grace, vulnerability, and the band’s charismatic humor.
It may not have made the cut for All Now, but that just means it gets to enjoy a bigger spotlight on its own.
“Waiting for the Joy” also arrives with news of The Staves’ return to the US for an acoustic tour this fall: The Staveley-Taylor sisters will be playing shows starting November 6, the day after the Presidential election, in Philadelphia, and have a full calendar for the next twenty days, hitting spots in New York City, Nashville, Atlanta, Denver, and more before wrapping up in Austin, Texas just two days ahead of Thanksgiving. Find tickets and more information at thestaves.com/tour, and for now get lost in the warm light of “Waiting for the Joy” – a song that, perhaps in defiance of how it came about, sparks plenty of wonder, elation, and inspiration.
Everybody’s singing all the songs I love
Waiting for the joy to come
But it never does
I’m pushing buttons keeping on the lights
Even doing nothing
I’m not quite doing it right
Shut the front door
Tell me what to do and what to do it for
Everybody’s singing all the songs I love
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:: stream/purchase Waiting for the Joy here ::
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Stream: “Waiting for the Joy” – The Staves
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© Josh Shinner
© Josh Shinner
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