NUR EIN
almost 5 years agopassed
3:39
The Only Way Out
Brown Word and the Big Whine image
Brown Word and the Big Whine

Entry from The Only Way Out in Nur Ein XVI.

Downward Modulation

LyricsShow lyrics

The Only Way Out - Brown Word and the Big Whine
Liner NotesThis title lent itself immediately to a certain type of song with a certain type of story for me. These lyrics are based around one of the great Icelandic family sagas, The Saga of Burnt Njal. However I added a twist - in this song the intended victims of the house-burning are victorious. Njal and his family weren't so lucky, only a couple of people escaped to seek justice according to the laws of the land at the time. The challenge also naturally lent itself, in my mind to this style of music. So I took the plunge and went with my inspiration, perhaps a daring deed of my own at this stage in Nur Ein. You can hear the downward modulation during the middle guitar solo and also the final round of vocals. Musically, the song changes as the lyrics move from realizing that there is nothing to do but certainly die or try to fight and then facing down the enemy. I really enjoyed putting this together and learned a few things along the way.

The end of the line is here
Let's gather round and make our peace
The enemy surrounds us now
With no intent to set us free

But once we were just a dream
And once again we shall be dust
Nothing is our certain end
Take as many as we can with us

The only way out
We're going in a blaze of glory
Nobody can say what lies beyond
Together we will find
The only way out
The only way out

The flames lick at the rafters
The doors with men are guarded strong
Let us push while strength remains
And dash our blades into the throng

And the folks will speak of this night
In the ages that unfold
Of how we bravely bore our fate
Our daring deeds will be retold

The only way out
We're going in a blaze of glory
Nobody can say what lies beyond
Together we will find
The only way out
The only way out

We face the coming sting of death
My friends we draw our parting breath
As one machine, we draw our sword
And cut the legs from this foul horde
And like the gods had suddenly smiled
The ranks of foes lay dead or dying
They part like clouds after the storm
The only way out became our triumph

Reviews

3 posted notes

Pigfarmer Jr

Forum post

Cool guitars. I like the energy. I feel the vocal doesn't sit in the mix quite "right." It sounds either thin or a bit masked to me. But I liked the song.
Challengewise: I'm guessing your modulation was intended to be in the solo at 2:38 and in the vocal at 3:19. Both times the chords and riff go down but I'm not sure it establishes a new key. Maybe it does. Regardless, I had a hard time hearing it and felt the song didn't really embrace the challenge as fully as some of the other songs.

JonPorobil

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I wonder if Max Bombast can give you some tips on how to make the guitar sound a little less muddy? I like the chunkiness and the performance, but I do feel like you have a lot of clutter in the lower midrange frequencies, and addressing this would probably involve a mix of guitar tone balancing and EQ during the mix. What's interesting is that the guitars and synths are overwhelming your voice, so it's actually pretty hard to hear the lyrics in the verses, and even so, the guitars still don't sound particularly loud. Or maybe it's that they're loud in the wrong places, which again would be more of an EQ issue. Anyway, sorry, I'm not trying to play mix doctor here. I like the guitar solo in the middle and the way the key modulation follows the narrative. Hard to believe I'm suggesting this, but I think maybe another solo section after the last verse might have been appropriate here, to better illustrate the course of the battle as the tide turns. Right now it feels to me like there's not enough denouement between Njal realizing that he's going to win the battle after all, and the battle being won. "And like the gods had suddenly smiled" is the fourth to last line of the song, and there's no real outro. Still, hearing how the modulation works with your narrative made it "click" with me and you rose a couple spots in my scorecard after listening more. I've been really into your songs this year, and I'm happy to see you doing this well! As of the time I'm writing this, the votes aren't in yet, so anything could happen, but if you do get the (Viking) axe this week, I just wanted to say that I apprecaite you doing the same as Njal and taking "the only way out" by going down in a blaze of glory... or maybe not going down at all!

vowlvom

Forum post

the main guitar is a big cloud of fuzz that I find a bit ear-fatiguing, I wish there was a little more definition to it and that it left more room for the vocal. Chorus is excellently anthemic - it'd be cool if when it repeats it had some extra vocal layers, maybe some shouts or counterpoint stuff? The guitar solo absolutely rules, although again the rhythm guitar is taking up so much space in the mix, it'd be nice to hear the lead really cut through.

Brown Word and the Big Whine - The Only Way Out | Nur Ein