The Weather Station Offer Light Among The Gloom On ‘Endless Time’

There's a sense of peaceful resignation to be found in 'Endless Time', the latest offering from singer Tamara Lindeman's project The Weather Station (also featuring bassist Ben Whiteley, guitarist/keyboardist Will Kidman and drummer Ian Kehoe). 

Hot on the heels of the breathtaking and acclaimed 2021 album ‘Ignorance’, this new track is a simple piano ballad, but one that is perhaps not quite as melancholy as first meets the eye.

This much is clear from its first few lines. “It’s only the end of an endless time / I wake up in my own bed, the curtains open wide / To let in what light the sky has to offer today.” The listener is immediately presented with the end of something, which might convey sadness or despondency, but the sadness is not the focus. Instead, Lindeman chooses phrasing and imagery with brighter and more positive connotations. The use of “only” in the opening line suggests that her predicament is nothing major in her mind, and the inclusion of the sky and sunlight conveys the peace and tranquility that can be found in the natural world.

This is built upon later: “Maybe at first, you can’t believe your eyes / The sky all lit in colour and light.” For a song apparently documenting the aftermath of a relationship ending, it’s very vibrant and expressive, as if that feeling is, in some cases, something to behold. Nevertheless, the inherent sadness in every breakup is still very much still there in lines such as, “We can still walk out on the street and buy champagne grapes / Strawberries and lilies in November rain / It never occurred to us to have to pay.” It is this kind of reflection on what has been lost that helps ‘Endless Time’ retain that tinge of sadness, which the listener can clearly visualise as they absorb Lindeman’s voice and piano together as one.

That must surely be what makes the song work so well. There’s colour and imagery in abundance, and it’s not there by accident. It makes the listener close their eyes and lose themselves in Lindeman’s voice, musicianship, and, most importantly, her mind. With lyrics so vivid to cling onto, they have the opportunity to experience the thoughts and emotions of the situation for themselves - regret, but a healthy dash of optimism too, as a reminder that there’s always light at the end of any tunnel.

 

Mason Hawker

@HawkerMason

Image: ‘Endless Time’ Official Single Cover (PRESS)