Meant to comment earlier - this was a fun interview, hope to talk to you again sometime. Thanks for all the kind words and support. Massive essay about "Will Wood is Dead, Rejoice!" below, ignore it if you hate reading a lot of words. I did want to mention that I feel I may have misspoken or something, because I personally think the "death of the author" approach to analyzing art is an attempt to put a piece of work into a vacuum, and try to limit its meaning to specifically what is on the page and nothing else, which cannot truly be done, as all things within a work must relate to things outside of it and be created by those things. That is to say "good luck with that historical fiction novel if you don't know what the Civil War is." If you're using the phrase in the original sense (based on the author of the essay's intentions, ha!), which was as a challenge to classic literary criticism, I think it has plenty of value, as it can be a way of determining whether or not the artist was *effective* in accomplishing a task and what other effects it might have had. But as a means of interpreting, experiencing, and discussing its meaning or value doesn't make any more sense than acting as though the author is the sole source of meaning, which I would argue is equally confused. To remove authorial intent from your scope of relevance in examining or interpreting is to cut out one of the available elements of its potential meaning and draw boundaries in your thought arbitrarily. While one is welcome to ignore an author's intent or identity, I believe this method isn't always a genuine attempt at reaching truth or more effective conversation about a piece, because information regarding a piece can never take away from the conversation, only add. And if it's not about criticizing the piece, which in this context it isn't, then conversation about the art and experiencing the art itself is the only goal, not some objective truth. If one does truly believe that art's meaning can only be in the purely subjective and not come from any of its sources, then there is no greater truth to be found in killing the author than the extreme opposite side. The facts of an author's intentions are not less real and existent than your feelings toward how it should be interpreted. Context defines all things; historical context, cultural context, etc, and the choice to try to remove the direct source context suggests to me a personal desire is actually at play, not an interest in exploring the substance of a piece. I think there's a strong undercurrent in the way "fandom" culture consumes media right now that is more akin to "death of the text," because I believe many enjoy the choice to remove authorial intent from their interpretation because it gives them more means of deciding what a piece of work *is.* Meanwhile, the identity of the author of a piece of work suddenly becomes the *only* relevant thing in this subculture if something suggests the author's intentions were somehow bad, disagreeable, or offensive. This way of looking at things can be a fun exercise, but is often a futile attempt to find a way to make text fit feelings you already have, not a consistent worldview or necessary tool. I think this is an example of some of the issues that arise in parasocial relationships. It comes in part from people using versions of me as a comfort character or symbol of something, and actually being more interested in the idea of me they have in their head than the actual contents of my art, which makes it necessary for that type of fan to interpret my art without authorial intent in mind. Like any other piece of art, there will always be subjectivity in my work, and I don't believe that the author must be considered the sole arbiter of meaning or source of meaningful information. And I do appreciate any connection people have to my work, and am well aware that one of the most beautiful things about art is that it can be shared in many ways. Ultimately, what it means to the listener *is* what's most important, but that doesn't mean all interpretations are valid and my intentions are irrelevant. I worry I may be misrepresented in this video as being some diehard proponent of the "Death of the author" as somehow a superior way of viewing or discussing art over considering all possible variables and sources of information. I've noticed people making declarations that I don't care how my work is received or what ideological statements or stories are projected onto my words, and citing this video as a source that that's like my whole thing, and that's just not true. I choose my words carefully and with a lot of intention. They may be difficult to decipher or a little out there, but they're not gibberish or a blank canvas. They're at least not intended to be, but if you're of the belief that nothing but directly the words on the page are relevant, then you either make them gibberish or at least can choose to see them as gibberish, which renders the art intrinsically valueless and therefore in my mind destroys it, as it then is no different in substance from any other entirely unrelated piece of art. It is no longer its own work of art, its vapid and empty entertainment. Art, for me, is about connection and communication and reaching out to the world at large, and if I reach out to the world with something deeply personal and it's misconstrued as something I am actually personally against or would never want to say anything about (especially if the text is ignored and/or projected onto, which I often see) it's quite painful. I try not to take it personally, and instead have mostly internalized it and I think gotten better at writing lyrics as a result of it, but of course when I say something clarifying that a popular interpretation of a song of mine is very much not what I'm trying to say, and a fan says "fuck you, this song is mine and about whatever I want it to be about because 'death of the author,' whatever that means," that obviously feels like a dick move. Also hearing the sentence "Will Wood is dead, rejoice!" is vaguely terrifying lol. My saying that I as a person become public domain was my expressing a very painful experience that I wish didn't happen. This isn't me saying "respect my authority!" or "I will tell you what this piece is about and you aren't allowed to see any other meaning(s) in it!" It's me saying that there are genuine intentions and goals behind my work, and that I do not believe my work is more valuable as a blank canvas to make into whatever you want than it is as an object with its own substance in addition to the subjective experience of consuming it. I think "death of the author" is an unfortunate and inevitable thing that happens to artists that robs the art of value for both artist and audience alike, and while it can have value in criticizing a piece of media's effects or artist's success level in accomplishing a certain task, it doesn't actually make any sense as a way of interpreting, experiencing, or discussing a piece of art. Anyway, thanks again for the great video and the fun interview, sorry to get hung up on that subject I just started to see people talk about me as though I've stepped up as like the patron saint of intentionally ignoring authorial intent and citing this video, so I felt I had to say something. Much love.
Thank you very much for this comment! really helps understand some of the fundamental misunderstandings i had with what you said, i had no intention to take your words out of context, however it seems i have accidentally. My sincerest apologies!! thank you so much for coming onto my channel, and i hope to speak with you again as well. I have also spent a lot of time with comments on this video and am most likely going to make a response to my section on death of the author to further ensure the proper message you intended to send gets accross.
Aaa yeah I’ve thought about this before (not specifically w your music in mind, but just in general) but I never had the words for it! This is so well put, thx!! I’ll def keep this in mind going forward, w your music and other art in general
Hearing him say the album is called “in case I die” and the finished product being “in case I make it,” gives me such an intense feeling that I can’t even put into words.
"People see me as evil piano Man, spooky jazz guy" - Will Wood I mean, the person who first recommended Will's music to me more or less called him "arsonist jazz moth cryptid".
the interview kinda looks like a before/after picture, where they advertise basically having an artistic career and being vaguely adjacent to being gay somehow
EIAL is an emotional rollercoaster, a party where everyones intoxicated. Self-Ish is a Korsakoff-hangover. The Normal Album is the road to sobriety, and "In Case I Make It" is recovery.
I'm fairly certain will Wood mentioned In Case I Make It being written at one of the lowest moment in his life, i like to think that thinking of those 4 albums through this very linear simple character development lense isn't the most accurate
Thank fuck I’m not the only one who believes Dr Sunshine is Dead is a little too overhyped. While yeah, its still a bop (a big one at that), I tend to find myself enjoying some songs from Mr. Wood’s catalogue more than that one just a bit. So for that song to be his most famous one and most recognized is a shame when all of his other songs are *so. Fucking. Good.* They too deserve a slice of that recognition pie.
I'm glad to see that other people think this too!! I love Dr Sunshine but it isn't my favorite, I love a lot of his other songs more! Too bad his other songs don't get as much attention.
I really, really like Mr. Capgras, probably way more than any other songs lmao Another good one would be Front Street, very good song and i like how it gets more intense the farther you go down, same with Skeleton Appreciation day and -iSH red moon and chemical overreaction are really good too
I like a lot of his other songs too, but Dr Sunshine Is Dead has a special place in my heart since it’s what got me into Will Wood. With that in mind, I do think it is overhyped.
@@darxxcyxx Oh ye, I see that. "Well... Better than the alternative" and "BLACKBOXWARRIOR" got me into WW but the first song I heard by him was Dr Sunshine is Dead
First time I listened to will wood I went to bed and had a dream I was a supervillain made of shadows wearing a suit. The entire dream was my character going to perform thermodynamic lawyer right in front of my superhero counterpart at a singing competition. Dream ended right when I was gonna preform, one of my coolest dreams I remember.
*Intense music* .... Will Wood-"Are you also wearing sweatpants and a button down?" CN- "Absolutely!" I appreciate your guys' back and forth commentary, you both bounce off each other well, and keep engaging and down to earth conversations. The video quality is impressive as well! Thank you for the engaging commentary and retrospective :).
I actually believe that “jimmy mushroom” was one of will woods past aliases, I think the song represents him killing the person he was, changing, and growing!
I think he does that often. I mean he called himself "William Sunshine" in (and get this) 2012 while part of "a verbal equinox" and, you know, litterally has a song called "dr.sunshine is dead". Also I think he kinda did it with "vampire reference in a minor key" at least he said that in an interview I think So if all these really are the deaths of his past personas he killed them three times already
"...Well, better than the alternative" speaks to me in such a deep level, specially as a survivor of sexual abuse and a very toxic relationship with my blood relatives; and people at reddit says it's not a popular song because it sounds "too pop" >.>!
this is really interesting after watching sex, drugs, and rocknroll. as much as i love seeing will as this flamboyant outrageous person, its definitely good to acknowledge its kinda an act. i also almost didnt recognize the man, cuz ive seen so few full beard, lots of hair will.
im drunk at 1:36 am, and i listened to ish when you metioned it, and honestly? i think im gonna be is the whole sentence. he isnt going to be anyone, he's just going to be. and honestly, right now, staring out of my window at the skyline obscured by the century old barriers placed to make my balcony walkable, it speaks to me so much. ill always love th enormal album, those songs told me more about me than i ever could have come upp with myself, but this song speaks to me, an unemployed 25 yer old with their 26th birthday on the hoizon, more than anything has ever spoken to me before. i'll be,
@@floraetta Engaged to my best friend and currently writing for a local paper. this night changed me fr fr. lmao. thanks for bringing back the memories
A whole hour of deep analysis, greatly edited, with jokes and memes, with parts of the songs placed in there, amazing quality AND WILL WOOD HIMSELF WHY THE HELL DOESNT THIS VIDEO HAVE MORE VIEWS finn you did such a great job thank you for blessing us with it :pray:
Chemical overreaction has the same instrumental part that skeleton day has, which might align somewhat with the fact that one of the last lines of skeleton day being "Give me all your LSD so I can feel my mind unweave again" and the following chemical overreaction must then be the trip ending in the self reflection at the end.
47:30 Just a personal theory, the two K's in Thankk You Marsha are meaningless... because that's their meaning. They are there to have you ascribe meaning to them. Hence "if I tell you it stops working." If you really want to go wild with it, it might be an allusion to self diagnoses and the "check the boxes, see the answer you want to see" sort of idea presented in parts of this song. You see the extra k and it *needs* meaning, so you'll jump through whatever hoops necessary to find one. But there I am, ascribing meaning. I have no idea, really.
Will Wood came right in the middle of my identity crisis, hit me so hard some of that crisis probably was ignited by him. It messed me up as much as it helped so idk if I hate or love the songs but they slap either way
im so so so happy to find out that will wood's own favorite song is also 'well better than the alternative', that song makes me feel like im looking in a mirror (in a way that i cant tell is good or bad) and i think it will ALWAYS give me chills, no matter how many times i listen to it
i have a lot of trauma with drugs, addiction, and sexual stuff as it runs through the family and im terrified of it. i cut off many people, including my parents, because of their current/previous addictions and the permanent effects from them. will wood really helps me cope with all of that. he's like a middle point between me and my parents so it feels like i have a connection that i'm not terrified of. ofc i don't just see him as a bridge to cope with my hopeless longing for reconnection, i still see him as the artist he presents himself as and i have MAD RESPECT for it. i also love the tapeworms band, every time a saxophone starts coming on, i already know it's gonna make me vibe so damn hard. when they go back-up vocals, UGH i love it. i just love them so much, they add so much relief to the chaotic pain present in these songs.
Yeah! In my eyes that was him saying it doesn’t matter what he is gonna be, it’s his choice and he is gonna be whatever he wants to be, rather than saying “and I’m gonna be myself again” he states he is just gonna be.
i’m sure someone has said this before, and this is very late, but i’ve always thought that thermodynamic lawyer is about a mutually 🆎usive relationship. the narrator pretty graphically describes hitting the subject of the song as well (‘buckle your knees… beg me to spare thee the back of my hand’) pretty scary, but i enjoyed this a lot!!
1:20 This is pretty much how every interaction between me and my friends has gone lately. I've been hyperfixated on Will Wood since like a year or two ago, and I almost _always_ bring him up. In any case, fantastic video, and I pretty much instantly subscribed after the first minute. I hope more of your content and videos get seen and recognized for their own class of art that they are, and that your channel continues to grow!
Honestly Dr. Capgras and HMMS are ones I like more than Dr Sunshine, but that's not saying I don't hum Dr. Sunshine to myself almost constantly XD Will Wood's music is just fantastic and I'm excited for the next set of stuff
Timestamps per song: EIAL album- 3:54 6up 5oh: 4:25 Skeleton appreciation day: 5:21 Front Street: 6:35 Akido: 8:05 White knuckle jerk: 9:14 Cover this song: 10:33 Thermodynamic Lawyer: 11:34 Red Moon: 12:53 Lysergide daydream: 15:28 The first step: 16:56 Jimmy mushrooms last drink: 17:46 Chemical overreaction: 18:58 Everything is a lot (song): 19:43 Destroy to enjoy: 21:02 Self-ish album- 22:48 Self: 24:07 2012: 24:53 Cotard's solution: 26:14 Mr capgras: 27:17 The song with 5 names: 29:21 Hand me my shovel I'm going in: 30:20 Dr. Sunshine is dead: 31:28 Ish: 32:41
Is it weird that I heavily relate to Bones a lot, despite having an ED that doesn't involve starving myself? (I know he said it wasn't about EDs specifically, however this is how I relate to the song, and what it means for me.) Especially with the line "I can see my bones," since I see myself as too skinny (describing it more tamely to not upset ppl) since I can literally see the outlines of my ribs and bones despite eating more than i should-
OH GOD same here, I feel the EXACT same as someone with a fast? high? Metabolism to the point where I’m extremely underweight but eat so unhealthily to the point where I should be gaining weight. it’s awful.
I honestly agree with your comment about Dr. Sunshine. Will Wood has alot more to offer that I personally would say is more deserving of that number one spot like Suburbia Overture.
That interview gave a really humanizing perspective on Mr. Wood. Another smashing video. P.S. If you aren't already aware, there are two other albums that are seldom talked about by Will Wood. "Magpie Brain and Other Stories" and "Broken Man" Released in 2016 and 2014 respectively. They're much softer and have folk music aesthetic. I definitely recommend checking them out.
So I have a different take on the end of -ish, that 'and i'm gonna be' isn't an incomplete sentence. He doesn't care about who he has to be anymore, or at least not to the point where it's consuming him. He simply knows that he wants to keep on existing, he wants to Be.
Gosh, I just discovered Will Wood a couple of weeks ago and the songs are a BOP , but I hardly can undestand the lyric (it also happens when I listen music in spanish, my first languaje, so is really normal for me ) and listening the retrospective/review HOWLY COWS I wasnt prepared for the intense themes, I will try to read the lyrics while listening the albums again cause I want to disociate with an undestanding of the history to create more stories. I was just vibing with the saxofon, man. What a shocker . I love this.
i think mr capras is about a tulpamancer thinking the faces he is seeing in random patterns are tulpas that are trying to replace him, he looks into a vanity mirror and thinks that his own reflection is also trying to replace him
oo it's so cool to hear him talk about his newest album, as much as i love his old stuff i ADORE in case i make it, it is like he said so genuinely raw and real, it makes me go feral fr
One of the most interesting-to-see things about artists is how the way that they portray themselves becomes inevitably tied to their music. For more personal musicians like Car Seat Headrest, Will (Toledo) feels that he needs to, in some capacity, create distance between himself and his persona to develop as a musician. But for more extravagant and performative artists like Will (Wood), he feels the need to make his music more honest because of how distant he's grown from his persona. Great video. I loved seeing you delve deeper than just a lyrical analysis and actually platform Will to give his thoughts without it being clinical or overly interview-y.
Thanks for this interview, it's usually a bad decision to look too closely at those you admire, but I respect Will's honesty here. The way he constantly questions everything and is so passionate yet unsure is very relatable. It's always entertaining to see Will doing his persona in interviews and concerts, but I'm glad I got to see him talking openly about his music without feeling obligated to make it into a performance piece with entertainment as the main motivation instead of expressing thoughts and emotions about his work.
The three minutes of ominous silence is just how hidden tracks work in the modern ages. Most albums have them just invisible but most remasters have them on their own since everyone knows about them already
@@pepsikong9524 I think it’s really interesting! The name change was a good thing in my opinion and I’m SO excited, I’m also pretty sure they’ve already started recording so hopefully it comes out soon ee
I just wanna say that Will Wood is an artist, at least to me, has no bad songs. Granted I prefer some songs over other but if I wood I will 100% listen to all of his songs
I really thought that "Hand Me My Shovel, I'm Going In" was about not feeling one's own psychological problems are important or "heavy" enough to warrant any concern and thus subconciously works towards worsening them whilst also conciously feeling terrible for doing so, hence the request to hand them a shovel to dig themselves to ground bottom with, even if maybe they already hit the bottom of the well and they merely feel as though they are unjustified in their dissatisfaction I can't tell if I was projecting or if that is in any way a worthwhile interpretation, though
saw someone say this on reddit and had to point it out: Will Wood: talks about how death of the author is inevitable and sometimes good but also how frustrating it is for people to be misunderstood and misinterpreted interviewer: (entire segment about how Will Wood says death of the author is good and doesn't care how your interpret him)
Last year We attended the vocal party for Falling Up and the video party for White Noise. We flew from LAX to EWR, then to JFK the next month. It was an impulsive, once in a lifetime event. We had so much fun. If he ever decides to come up with another Patreon event we might just have to relive the experience. I love NJ&NY.
Will making me google things is something I both respect and enjoy one tab on genius and the other on a random google search makes it really fun and gives new/interesting interpretations in songs lol
Damn after hearing this I just feel even more lucky that at the Will Wood show I went to about a week back he played Cotard's Solution. I wonder how long it had been since he played it last because he absolutely killed it on the piano with that song holy fuck.
I definitely agree with you on Dr. Sunshine Is Dead. It's definitely a good song, but in my own opinion, I personally like some of his other songs more like Front Street, or Hand Me My Shovel, I'm Going in, or Memento Mori! Maybe it's because I'm more into the meaning of songs and how the lyrics portray that or how it portrays an emotion. I have a harder time finding that emotion or meaning in Dr. Sunshine Is Dead. It also could be just because I prefer songs about darker subjects, which I love that a lot of Will's music has that. Update: I like Dr. Sunshine Is Dead more now lmao-
Thank u so much for your research! Even though analyzing songs by oneself is a super subjective and interesting experience It also means a lot to get to know Will's point of view "walking in his shoes" is the scariest, funniest and exciting emotional rollercoaster ride that I've ever taken while also making you feel comforted by both, other people and the human experience itself🐢
Seeing these 2 crazy men who are human as they come go at it in conversation about My favorite type of music is good. I like googling the lyrics and coming with certain points. Sure, my points aren’t the point of the song, but other times I completely agree With What Will Wood Worked Worryingly Woefully Wondering hoW He Will Dedazzle his Mob. Ps. I feel like For Me, ...Well Better Than The Alternative is essentially, Being in a relationship with a kid doesn’t fix your personality problems. And that makes me sad a I plan to be a Father One day...
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Meant to comment earlier - this was a fun interview, hope to talk to you again sometime. Thanks for all the kind words and support.
Massive essay about "Will Wood is Dead, Rejoice!" below, ignore it if you hate reading a lot of words.
I did want to mention that I feel I may have misspoken or something, because I personally think the "death of the author" approach to analyzing art is an attempt to put a piece of work into a vacuum, and try to limit its meaning to specifically what is on the page and nothing else, which cannot truly be done, as all things within a work must relate to things outside of it and be created by those things. That is to say "good luck with that historical fiction novel if you don't know what the Civil War is." If you're using the phrase in the original sense (based on the author of the essay's intentions, ha!), which was as a challenge to classic literary criticism, I think it has plenty of value, as it can be a way of determining whether or not the artist was *effective* in accomplishing a task and what other effects it might have had. But as a means of interpreting, experiencing, and discussing its meaning or value doesn't make any more sense than acting as though the author is the sole source of meaning, which I would argue is equally confused.
To remove authorial intent from your scope of relevance in examining or interpreting is to cut out one of the available elements of its potential meaning and draw boundaries in your thought arbitrarily. While one is welcome to ignore an author's intent or identity, I believe this method isn't always a genuine attempt at reaching truth or more effective conversation about a piece, because information regarding a piece can never take away from the conversation, only add. And if it's not about criticizing the piece, which in this context it isn't, then conversation about the art and experiencing the art itself is the only goal, not some objective truth. If one does truly believe that art's meaning can only be in the purely subjective and not come from any of its sources, then there is no greater truth to be found in killing the author than the extreme opposite side. The facts of an author's intentions are not less real and existent than your feelings toward how it should be interpreted.
Context defines all things; historical context, cultural context, etc, and the choice to try to remove the direct source context suggests to me a personal desire is actually at play, not an interest in exploring the substance of a piece. I think there's a strong undercurrent in the way "fandom" culture consumes media right now that is more akin to "death of the text," because I believe many enjoy the choice to remove authorial intent from their interpretation because it gives them more means of deciding what a piece of work *is.* Meanwhile, the identity of the author of a piece of work suddenly becomes the *only* relevant thing in this subculture if something suggests the author's intentions were somehow bad, disagreeable, or offensive. This way of looking at things can be a fun exercise, but is often a futile attempt to find a way to make text fit feelings you already have, not a consistent worldview or necessary tool. I think this is an example of some of the issues that arise in parasocial relationships. It comes in part from people using versions of me as a comfort character or symbol of something, and actually being more interested in the idea of me they have in their head than the actual contents of my art, which makes it necessary for that type of fan to interpret my art without authorial intent in mind.
Like any other piece of art, there will always be subjectivity in my work, and I don't believe that the author must be considered the sole arbiter of meaning or source of meaningful information. And I do appreciate any connection people have to my work, and am well aware that one of the most beautiful things about art is that it can be shared in many ways. Ultimately, what it means to the listener *is* what's most important, but that doesn't mean all interpretations are valid and my intentions are irrelevant. I worry I may be misrepresented in this video as being some diehard proponent of the "Death of the author" as somehow a superior way of viewing or discussing art over considering all possible variables and sources of information. I've noticed people making declarations that I don't care how my work is received or what ideological statements or stories are projected onto my words, and citing this video as a source that that's like my whole thing, and that's just not true.
I choose my words carefully and with a lot of intention. They may be difficult to decipher or a little out there, but they're not gibberish or a blank canvas. They're at least not intended to be, but if you're of the belief that nothing but directly the words on the page are relevant, then you either make them gibberish or at least can choose to see them as gibberish, which renders the art intrinsically valueless and therefore in my mind destroys it, as it then is no different in substance from any other entirely unrelated piece of art. It is no longer its own work of art, its vapid and empty entertainment. Art, for me, is about connection and communication and reaching out to the world at large, and if I reach out to the world with something deeply personal and it's misconstrued as something I am actually personally against or would never want to say anything about (especially if the text is ignored and/or projected onto, which I often see) it's quite painful.
I try not to take it personally, and instead have mostly internalized it and I think gotten better at writing lyrics as a result of it, but of course when I say something clarifying that a popular interpretation of a song of mine is very much not what I'm trying to say, and a fan says "fuck you, this song is mine and about whatever I want it to be about because 'death of the author,' whatever that means," that obviously feels like a dick move.
Also hearing the sentence "Will Wood is dead, rejoice!" is vaguely terrifying lol. My saying that I as a person become public domain was my expressing a very painful experience that I wish didn't happen.
This isn't me saying "respect my authority!" or "I will tell you what this piece is about and you aren't allowed to see any other meaning(s) in it!" It's me saying that there are genuine intentions and goals behind my work, and that I do not believe my work is more valuable as a blank canvas to make into whatever you want than it is as an object with its own substance in addition to the subjective experience of consuming it. I think "death of the author" is an unfortunate and inevitable thing that happens to artists that robs the art of value for both artist and audience alike, and while it can have value in criticizing a piece of media's effects or artist's success level in accomplishing a certain task, it doesn't actually make any sense as a way of interpreting, experiencing, or discussing a piece of art.
Anyway, thanks again for the great video and the fun interview, sorry to get hung up on that subject I just started to see people talk about me as though I've stepped up as like the patron saint of intentionally ignoring authorial intent and citing this video, so I felt I had to say something. Much love.
Thank you very much for this comment! really helps understand some of the fundamental misunderstandings i had with what you said, i had no intention to take your words out of context, however it seems i have accidentally. My sincerest apologies!! thank you so much for coming onto my channel, and i hope to speak with you again as well. I have also spent a lot of time with comments on this video and am most likely going to make a response to my section on death of the author to further ensure the proper message you intended to send gets accross.
@@confusedNarrator That's very kind of you! No need to apologize, I think I may have just been unclear is all, so I apologize myself!
Aaa yeah I’ve thought about this before (not specifically w your music in mind, but just in general) but I never had the words for it! This is so well put, thx!! I’ll def keep this in mind going forward, w your music and other art in general
I assume this means Aikido still isn't about falling in love with a corpse?
I am glad I read this whole comment, it also puts your newest song into even better context
i once described 6up 5oh Pro-Con to a friend as "anti-cop circus music" and i still stand by that description
Honestly, that's pretty accurate
when i introduced will wood to my dad he described it as circus music lol
@@kristopher4130 I can’t help but describe it as Paper Mario boss music with vocals.
@@wumpus976 His music does remind me a lot of Mario music, so I agree
I guess that's why I like it so much
You're not wrong
Hearing him say the album is called “in case I die” and the finished product being “in case I make it,” gives me such an intense feeling that I can’t even put into words.
why
The live version is actually titled “in case I die” so he kinda got it right
@@fries5849 the real question is which came out first??????? (i feel like the answer is obvious but i’m a big dummy)
@@clemclemclemclemclyou could argue that it was in case i die since the live versions were made before the official release
Im fucking crying so much
babe wake up new will wood content just dropped
"People see me as evil piano Man, spooky jazz guy" - Will Wood
I mean, the person who first recommended Will's music to me more or less called him "arsonist jazz moth cryptid".
ARSONIST?????
@@SPLARKK yes
MOTH
CRYPTID
Jazz...
the interview kinda looks like a before/after picture, where they advertise basically having an artistic career and being vaguely adjacent to being gay somehow
this is my single favorite comment
EIAL is an emotional rollercoaster, a party where everyones intoxicated. Self-Ish is a Korsakoff-hangover. The Normal Album is the road to sobriety, and "In Case I Make It" is recovery.
I'm fairly certain will Wood mentioned In Case I Make It being written at one of the lowest moment in his life, i like to think that thinking of those 4 albums through this very linear simple character development lense isn't the most accurate
Ye
@@nellobarto I wish I hope he is better now :(
Knowing what all of these songs mean, makes will woods music even more meaningful to me
i like how this is somehow the least chaotic interview will wood has ever done
Thank fuck I’m not the only one who believes Dr Sunshine is Dead is a little too overhyped. While yeah, its still a bop (a big one at that), I tend to find myself enjoying some songs from Mr. Wood’s catalogue more than that one just a bit. So for that song to be his most famous one and most recognized is a shame when all of his other songs are *so. Fucking. Good.* They too deserve a slice of that recognition pie.
I'm glad to see that other people think this too!! I love Dr Sunshine but it isn't my favorite, I love a lot of his other songs more! Too bad his other songs don't get as much attention.
I really, really like Mr. Capgras, probably way more than any other songs lmao
Another good one would be Front Street, very good song and i like how it gets more intense the farther you go down, same with Skeleton Appreciation day and -iSH
red moon and chemical overreaction are really good too
Dr. Sunshine is what Got me in. Man I love being drunk, thermodynamic lawyer, and momento mori is what kept me around.
I like a lot of his other songs too, but Dr Sunshine Is Dead has a special place in my heart since it’s what got me into Will Wood. With that in mind, I do think it is overhyped.
@@darxxcyxx Oh ye, I see that. "Well... Better than the alternative" and "BLACKBOXWARRIOR" got me into WW but the first song I heard by him was Dr Sunshine is Dead
First time I listened to will wood I went to bed and had a dream I was a supervillain made of shadows wearing a suit. The entire dream was my character going to perform thermodynamic lawyer right in front of my superhero counterpart at a singing competition. Dream ended right when I was gonna preform, one of my coolest dreams I remember.
fantasizing abt being a disney villain to will wood wongs is such a mood
Why is this cn show not currently being written
id watch that show
Will Wood does wonders not only to your emotions, thoughts and personality, but your dreams as well!
Superbowl? Nah I’m watching an hour long will wood retrospective
Fun Fact, if you reverse the backwards talk in the beginning of The First Step it's the serenity prayer
I’ve questioned what that was for so long, thank you!!
*Intense music*
....
Will Wood-"Are you also wearing sweatpants and a button down?"
CN- "Absolutely!"
I appreciate your guys' back and forth commentary, you both bounce off each other well, and keep engaging and down to earth conversations. The video quality is impressive as well! Thank you for the engaging commentary and retrospective :).
Time stamps for mobile users -
3:54 - EIAL
22:48- self-ish
33:48 - retrospective
38:30 - interview
“Man I’m really sorry about the alcoholism, but this song is a BOP :D”
you are lovely and deserve the world pls never change
will wood's songs read like poetry so much that every time i read the lyrics i almost feel like they belong in an anthology, with footnotes and all
I actually believe that “jimmy mushroom” was one of will woods past aliases, I think the song represents him killing the person he was, changing, and growing!
I think he does that often. I mean he called himself "William Sunshine" in (and get this) 2012 while part of "a verbal equinox" and, you know, litterally has a song called "dr.sunshine is dead".
Also I think he kinda did it with "vampire reference in a minor key" at least he said that in an interview I think
So if all these really are the deaths of his past personas he killed them three times already
"...Well, better than the alternative" speaks to me in such a deep level, specially as a survivor of sexual abuse and a very toxic relationship with my blood relatives; and people at reddit says it's not a popular song because it sounds "too pop" >.>!
The part where your friends go off on you about talking about will wood too much is literally all my friends to me
Same
r.i.p
I managed to get a bunch of people into it lmao, now we're all hyperfixating together u_u
Pls me too
Bro Same idk how I still have friends rn 😨😨
this is really interesting after watching sex, drugs, and rocknroll. as much as i love seeing will as this flamboyant outrageous person, its definitely good to acknowledge its kinda an act. i also almost didnt recognize the man, cuz ive seen so few full beard, lots of hair will.
23:22 IS THAT A WILD BRIAN DAVID GILBERT I SEE??
Dances moving was amazing man
This isn’t a cashgrab, this is good fucking content.
@Viktor Apostolov ?
im drunk at 1:36 am, and i listened to ish when you metioned it, and honestly? i think im gonna be is the whole sentence. he isnt going to be anyone, he's just going to be. and honestly, right now, staring out of my window at the skyline obscured by the century old barriers placed to make my balcony walkable, it speaks to me so much. ill always love th enormal album, those songs told me more about me than i ever could have come upp with myself, but this song speaks to me, an unemployed 25 yer old with their 26th birthday on the hoizon, more than anything has ever spoken to me before. i'll be,
how we doing buddy
@@floraetta Engaged to my best friend and currently writing for a local paper. this night changed me fr fr. lmao. thanks for bringing back the memories
@@artemiswallace8716 that's nice :) np!
A whole hour of deep analysis, greatly edited, with jokes and memes, with parts of the songs placed in there, amazing quality AND WILL WOOD HIMSELF
WHY THE HELL DOESNT THIS VIDEO HAVE MORE VIEWS
finn you did such a great job
thank you for blessing us with it :pray:
Chemical overreaction has the same instrumental part that skeleton day has, which might align somewhat with the fact that one of the last lines of skeleton day being "Give me all your LSD so I can feel my mind unweave again" and the following chemical overreaction must then be the trip ending in the self reflection at the end.
Plot twist: The one dislike is from Mr. Wood himself.
The second dislike is from the tapeworms (collective)
too bad we can't see dislike number anymore lmao
@@JesseTwillaTUBA I know mann :(
@@SomeName_AlsoHandlesSucc I'm a girl~
@@JesseTwillaTUBA What? Man used in an Informal context can go as gender neutral. Others can include Dude or bro.
47:30 Just a personal theory, the two K's in Thankk You Marsha are meaningless... because that's their meaning. They are there to have you ascribe meaning to them. Hence "if I tell you it stops working."
If you really want to go wild with it, it might be an allusion to self diagnoses and the "check the boxes, see the answer you want to see" sort of idea presented in parts of this song. You see the extra k and it *needs* meaning, so you'll jump through whatever hoops necessary to find one. But there I am, ascribing meaning. I have no idea, really.
I've returned from my bo en hyper fixation to my Will Wood hyper fixation. So I'm happy about the background music hehe
Will Wood came right in the middle of my identity crisis, hit me so hard some of that crisis probably was ignited by him. It messed me up as much as it helped so idk if I hate or love the songs but they slap either way
1:20 THAT IS A PERFECT EXAMPLE OF HOW MY FRIENDS ACT WHEN I EVEN SAY WILL WOOD
YES EXCEPT MY ONE FRIEND WHO LIKES WII WOO (no one is as obbsessed as me sadly)
ILL TALK ABT WILL WOOD WITH ANYONE
BRO IM SO SAD NO ONE REALLY KNOWS ABT WILL WOOD WHERE I LIVE 😭
@@Wont_woodSAME OMG.
I’m so sorry will wood had to learn about transmedicalism
Same
why? transmedicalism isn't bad
@@ItsPersonaTime counter argument. it is
@@dangerousbeans counter counter argument, you're both wrong and I'm going to eat ice cream
@localbrit counter counter counter counter argument i have no idea what transmedicalism is and i really dont care
im so so so happy to find out that will wood's own favorite song is also 'well better than the alternative', that song makes me feel like im looking in a mirror (in a way that i cant tell is good or bad) and i think it will ALWAYS give me chills, no matter how many times i listen to it
holy shit why do all of your friends have homestuck profile pictures
Takes a homestuck to know a homestuck I’m assuming /hj
glad you couldnt see my pfp
@@ThePotionMaster413 dont expose me like this
@@confusedNarrator well now i've gotta go back and check don't i youtube user confusedNarrator
ay leave the kinnies be :((
i have a lot of trauma with drugs, addiction, and sexual stuff as it runs through the family and im terrified of it. i cut off many people, including my parents, because of their current/previous addictions and the permanent effects from them. will wood really helps me cope with all of that. he's like a middle point between me and my parents so it feels like i have a connection that i'm not terrified of. ofc i don't just see him as a bridge to cope with my hopeless longing for reconnection, i still see him as the artist he presents himself as and i have MAD RESPECT for it. i also love the tapeworms band, every time a saxophone starts coming on, i already know it's gonna make me vibe so damn hard. when they go back-up vocals, UGH i love it. i just love them so much, they add so much relief to the chaotic pain present in these songs.
The video of BDG but with Hand Me My Shovel playing destroyed me on sight, thank you
I legitimately did a spit take and said *out loud* "HEY. YOU'RE NOT SUPPOSED TO BE HERE"
I remember a few months ago listening to dr sunshine and thinking that it *"wasn't my speed"*
Oh boy was I wrong
tbh i interpreted "I'm gonna be" from -ish as him no longer caring what he is going to be, he is just going to exist
Yeah! In my eyes that was him saying it doesn’t matter what he is gonna be, it’s his choice and he is gonna be whatever he wants to be, rather than saying “and I’m gonna be myself again” he states he is just gonna be.
I always thought it meant, that he doesnt know what hes gonna be (and maybe that thats ok and doesnt matter)
Will wood is such a good singer and songwriter
And piano player
first question, HOW ARE YOU SO CALM WHEN INTERVIEWING THE WILL WOOD????
44:50 we got it bois, will wood likes pudding, we got him
😱😱😱😱
i’m sure someone has said this before, and this is very late, but i’ve always thought that thermodynamic lawyer is about a mutually 🆎usive relationship. the narrator pretty graphically describes hitting the subject of the song as well (‘buckle your knees… beg me to spare thee the back of my hand’) pretty scary, but i enjoyed this a lot!!
1:20 This is pretty much how every interaction between me and my friends has gone lately. I've been hyperfixated on Will Wood since like a year or two ago, and I almost _always_ bring him up.
In any case, fantastic video, and I pretty much instantly subscribed after the first minute.
I hope more of your content and videos get seen and recognized for their own class of art that they are, and that your channel continues to grow!
Honestly Dr. Capgras and HMMS are ones I like more than Dr Sunshine, but that's not saying I don't hum Dr. Sunshine to myself almost constantly XD Will Wood's music is just fantastic and I'm excited for the next set of stuff
In the What Did I Do? interview, they mentioned “Mario left the band a year ago… and he’s still here.”
I found your channel from your mmmm video, and as a TallyHall & Will Wood fan, thanks! Keep up the good work!
Timestamps per song:
EIAL album- 3:54
6up 5oh: 4:25
Skeleton appreciation day: 5:21
Front Street: 6:35
Akido: 8:05
White knuckle jerk: 9:14
Cover this song: 10:33
Thermodynamic Lawyer: 11:34
Red Moon: 12:53
Lysergide daydream: 15:28
The first step: 16:56
Jimmy mushrooms last drink: 17:46
Chemical overreaction: 18:58
Everything is a lot (song): 19:43
Destroy to enjoy: 21:02
Self-ish album- 22:48
Self: 24:07
2012: 24:53
Cotard's solution: 26:14
Mr capgras: 27:17
The song with 5 names: 29:21
Hand me my shovel I'm going in: 30:20
Dr. Sunshine is dead: 31:28
Ish: 32:41
The First Step and Jimmy Mushroom have the same timestamp… well… time
@@HeadofPlantGangfixed
Nice
32:02 OMG I WAS SO SAD until you said it was a joke. The amount of RELIEF.
Is it weird that I heavily relate to Bones a lot, despite having an ED that doesn't involve starving myself? (I know he said it wasn't about EDs specifically, however this is how I relate to the song, and what it means for me.) Especially with the line "I can see my bones," since I see myself as too skinny (describing it more tamely to not upset ppl) since I can literally see the outlines of my ribs and bones despite eating more than i should-
OH GOD same here, I feel the EXACT same as someone with a fast? high? Metabolism to the point where I’m extremely underweight but eat so unhealthily to the point where I should be gaining weight. it’s awful.
Having skeleton appreciation as the most emotional song will ever made after “in case i make it” is insane
this video was made before that album
I love the homestuck music in the background of the speaking portions lmao
We appreciate a long video, I have all the hopes it will be good.
sorry in advance for any dissapointment you may or may not experience
@@confusedNarrator we were anything but disappointed, Finn you make great content.
I honestly agree with your comment about Dr. Sunshine. Will Wood has alot more to offer that I personally would say is more deserving of that number one spot like Suburbia Overture.
That interview gave a really humanizing perspective on Mr. Wood. Another smashing video.
P.S. If you aren't already aware, there are two other albums that are seldom talked about by Will Wood. "Magpie Brain and Other Stories" and "Broken Man" Released in 2016 and 2014 respectively. They're much softer and have folk music aesthetic. I definitely recommend checking them out.
I think those two albums were made by a different guy named Will Wood
@@alexm1785 that's strange because it sounds a lot like him. I could be wrong tho.
where do i find them...?
Spotify, Pandora, TH-cam
@@elkcrest4111 yeah, it's a different guy. the magpie will wood is from new zealand lol
So I have a different take on the end of -ish, that 'and i'm gonna be' isn't an incomplete sentence. He doesn't care about who he has to be anymore, or at least not to the point where it's consuming him. He simply knows that he wants to keep on existing, he wants to Be.
Gosh, I just discovered Will Wood a couple of weeks ago and the songs are a BOP , but I hardly can undestand the lyric (it also happens when I listen music in spanish, my first languaje, so is really normal for me ) and listening the retrospective/review HOWLY COWS I wasnt prepared for the intense themes, I will try to read the lyrics while listening the albums again cause I want to disociate with an undestanding of the history to create more stories. I was just vibing with the saxofon, man. What a shocker . I love this.
will wood is what twenty one pilots wanted to be
THIS!!! REAL!!
suddenly hearing the mellotron flutes from megalovania as you were talking made me freak out for a second lmao
I'm crying nooo I have the hufflepuff sweatpants and the heart shaped glasses 😭😭
i think mr capras is about a tulpamancer thinking the faces he is seeing in random patterns are tulpas that are trying to replace him, he looks into a vanity mirror and thinks that his own reflection is also trying to replace him
oo it's so cool to hear him talk about his newest album, as much as i love his old stuff i ADORE in case i make it, it is like he said so genuinely raw and real, it makes me go feral fr
Dr. Sunshine was will wood's stage name in 2012
I am just 100% on board for whatever Will does in the future
"dr sunshine, his best performing song by far"
i/me/myself: *am i a joke to you*
FUCK YEAH I CANT WAIT TO WATCH THIS
ITS AN HOUR LONG ASWELL THANK YOU
@@what7369 Steven Universe Future here we are
One of the most interesting-to-see things about artists is how the way that they portray themselves becomes inevitably tied to their music. For more personal musicians like Car Seat Headrest, Will (Toledo) feels that he needs to, in some capacity, create distance between himself and his persona to develop as a musician. But for more extravagant and performative artists like Will (Wood), he feels the need to make his music more honest because of how distant he's grown from his persona.
Great video. I loved seeing you delve deeper than just a lyrical analysis and actually platform Will to give his thoughts without it being clinical or overly interview-y.
This is such an amazing interview, I could listen to him talk all day.
Thanks for this interview, it's usually a bad decision to look too closely at those you admire, but I respect Will's honesty here. The way he constantly questions everything and is so passionate yet unsure is very relatable. It's always entertaining to see Will doing his persona in interviews and concerts, but I'm glad I got to see him talking openly about his music without feeling obligated to make it into a performance piece with entertainment as the main motivation instead of expressing thoughts and emotions about his work.
manbun... she's back....
in all seriousness, i can't wait to watch this💟
i fucking love will wood, thank you so much for this!
The three minutes of ominous silence is just how hidden tracks work in the modern ages. Most albums have them just invisible but most remasters have them on their own since everyone knows about them already
I feel like every album he puts out is gonna be better than the last, my hype is unimaginable for In Case I Die
How are we feeling about the name change? I’m so excited bro
@@silkbugz dont mind. still excited
@@pepsikong9524 I think it’s really interesting! The name change was a good thing in my opinion and I’m SO excited, I’m also pretty sure they’ve already started recording so hopefully it comes out soon ee
@@silkbugz I bought one of his shirts from the new album and on a live stream heard some of the new songs. This album gonna be good.
*you got access if you had contributed*
1:09 - 1:29
yeah .
also so far i really like this, good content
i love your pfp💟
you are in every comment section i've been in. then ofcourse i think "ha, who is this guy again?" and i remind myself that you're, yknow, the guy.
@@unk1637 i dont comment on a lot of non-will wood stuff. im assuming you consume alot of will wood content
@@benreym you assumed right
I just wanna say that Will Wood is an artist, at least to me, has no bad songs. Granted I prefer some songs over other but if I wood I will 100% listen to all of his songs
will wood legend
never clicked so fast on anything
willwood content made by a homestuck fan. 10/10
I really thought that "Hand Me My Shovel, I'm Going In" was about not feeling one's own psychological problems are important or "heavy" enough to warrant any concern and thus subconciously works towards worsening them whilst also conciously feeling terrible for doing so, hence the request to hand them a shovel to dig themselves to ground bottom with, even if maybe they already hit the bottom of the well and they merely feel as though they are unjustified in their dissatisfaction
I can't tell if I was projecting or if that is in any way a worthwhile interpretation, though
noticing the homestuck music in the background is giving me fucking flashbacks holy shit
I found will wood’s music a lil while back and I’ve enjoyed it a lot. Also watching this was very enjoyable :)
normally i was not a big fan of everything is a lot, but seeing the meaning behind each song somehow made them better for me
saw someone say this on reddit and had to point it out:
Will Wood: talks about how death of the author is inevitable and sometimes good but also how frustrating it is for people to be misunderstood and misinterpreted
interviewer: (entire segment about how Will Wood says death of the author is good and doesn't care how your interpret him)
i responded to that reddit thread, and i agree it did come across as a counterclaim, although that wasnt exactly my intention
Last year We attended the vocal party for Falling Up and the video party for White Noise. We flew from LAX to EWR, then to JFK the next month. It was an impulsive, once in a lifetime event. We had so much fun. If he ever decides to come up with another Patreon event we might just have to relive the experience. I love NJ&NY.
Will making me google things is something I both respect and enjoy one tab on genius and the other on a random google search makes it really fun and gives new/interesting interpretations in songs lol
Damn after hearing this I just feel even more lucky that at the Will Wood show I went to about a week back he played Cotard's Solution. I wonder how long it had been since he played it last because he absolutely killed it on the piano with that song holy fuck.
I was waiting for this one 🤩
I definitely agree with you on Dr. Sunshine Is Dead. It's definitely a good song, but in my own opinion, I personally like some of his other songs more like Front Street, or Hand Me My Shovel, I'm Going in, or Memento Mori!
Maybe it's because I'm more into the meaning of songs and how the lyrics portray that or how it portrays an emotion. I have a harder time finding that emotion or meaning in Dr. Sunshine Is Dead.
It also could be just because I prefer songs about darker subjects, which I love that a lot of Will's music has that.
Update: I like Dr. Sunshine Is Dead more now lmao-
man i would love to be able to talk abt will wood's music with u
38:00 how to better communicate myself in the funer-... in the future
1:12 IS LITERALLY ME WITH ALL OF MY FRIENDS IM CACKLING
FR LMAO
THE SOLLUX PFP IN THE LIKE "shut up about will wood" discord call clip PLZL
Watching will wood hit a juul in the middle of an interview was very enjoyable
Have you heard of his old band a verbal equinox
i am a will wood enjoyer
The explanation for the quarantine line in love me normally was something I didn’t know I needed but it spoke to me
Thank u so much for your research! Even though analyzing songs by oneself is a super subjective and interesting experience It also means a lot to get to know Will's point of view "walking in his shoes" is the scariest, funniest and exciting emotional rollercoaster ride that I've ever taken while also making you feel comforted by both, other people and the human experience itself🐢
bro, you chose the absolute perfect dance meme clips for the Self-ish songs. :') that is on point with the vibes of every single one of those songs
Seeing these 2 crazy men who are human as they come go at it in conversation about My favorite type of music is good. I like googling the lyrics and coming with certain points. Sure, my points aren’t the point of the song, but other times I completely agree With What Will Wood Worked Worryingly Woefully Wondering hoW He Will Dedazzle his Mob.
Ps.
I feel like For Me, ...Well Better Than The Alternative is essentially,
Being in a relationship with a kid doesn’t fix your personality problems. And that makes me sad a I plan to be a Father One day...
Who's gonna tell him Avatar came out in 2009 and not 2012?
1:17 HEHE I WAS THERE
LMAO you are just like my friends 😭
maybe slightly off topic, but i would love to hear your opinions on Shayfer James. his music seems like it could be up your ally ^-^
in case i make it analysis when