REWIND: GLOBELAMP Weight Of A Shrug
Globelamp Weight Of A Shrug is available on Bandcamp, Apple Music
by Walter Price
When I first heard Globelamp sing the poetic “Weight Of A Shrug” (2022) I, at the time, did not understand the significance behind the song. Her emotionally driven vocal quiver and heady lines drew me to the track. But there had to be more…
Resonatong lyrics such as, “College-age degenerates, chasing fears with cigarettes/ Smoke gets in the lashes on your back,” and “You saw this way of life is a drug/ And the price you pay is the hole you dug/ They tell you to shake off the tatters (and nothing else! Nothing else matters!),” only become weightier as Globelamp gets deeper into the vibes as she navigates the words.
But why is this song more than what it seems? Just last week I discovered that this track is a poem, but not by the singer herself. But a poem by a dear friend who has left this mortal coil far too soon. I now know the author’s name is Maia Hisamoto and from what I could glean from a search, she was a multifaceted artist and had passed in 2013. And it appears Globelamp, who has been through the wringer a time or two in this life, took this loss hard and continues to be a torchbearer.
In 2022, Globelamp posted on several social media platforms, “For Maia Hisamotos’ 33 birthday I am putting out a demo of one of Maia’s poems that I turned into a song. I don’t know how long I will keep it online, because it still needs some over-dubs on it, but I thought it would be a nice way to mark the day of what would be her 33rd birthday. RIP angel.” I hope she keeps this song available as the beautiful tribute it is.
So, with more context at hand, the stardust beauty of “Weight Of A Shrug” is even more palpable. Feel it for yourself, by streaming it here at the GTC.
GLOBELAMP Weight Of A Shrug
Artist photo via Bandcamp // Artwork by Maia Hisamoto
lyrics written by Maia Hisamoto
guitar and vocals by Globelamp
recorded by Sean Paul Pillsworth
Maia Hisamoto 1989 – 2013
You saw this way of life is a drug
And the price you pay is the hole you dug
They tell you to shake off the tatters (and nothing else! Nothing else matters!)
But the whole world shatters
with the
Weight of a shrug…