THE OBSERVER

My musical journey was heavily influenced by “The Sign of Virgo”. In fact, I mentioned in the introduction that without this track, there would likely be no Sir Joe.

It may seem odd, but the refrain for the song was inspired by listening to an old Polish track called “Sen o Warszawie” by Czesław Niemen.

The video, which you can find on YouTube, was shot in Diego Merletto’s garage, the frontman of “The Frozen Autumn”. He skillfully transformed the dull space into an ideal video set.

In 2009, while walking home from a club in Krakow where EBM music was predominantly played, I pondered whether I could create a song that had a similar vibe. To start, I crafted a driving, repetitive bass line.

Although I believed German would be the ideal language for the singing portion, my grasp of it was not sufficient enough to write lyrics. Consequently, I chose to borrow heavily from a lesson on a serene trip down the Rhine from an old course. The jarring juxtaposition between the music and the lyrics amused me, even though German speakers might not share my sentiment.

“Frei” enjoyed considerable success in various German and Scandinavian clubs, where it was played frequently.

If you’re curious about the identity of the person I’m referring to as “She,” it is death, an inevitable visitor to us all: “She came down, and knocked at my door”.

The musical bridge between the refrain and the next verse was influenced by The Smiths’ song “Please, please, please let me get what I want“.

The track depicts an alien who lands on Earth and becomes horrified by the cruelty it observes, ultimately leading to the loss of its innocence and descent into madness.

The opening of the song features gentle sounds and an ambient atmosphere, but the pace shifts dramatically with the addition of fast drums and distorted guitars. Dual vocals were used to represent the alien’s lack of gender, and I wish to praise the contribution of Sara L.C., who recorded her part with a low-quality microphone in my kitchen.

Regarding the song’s lyrics, it satirizes individuals who feign intelligence by using sophisticated language to conceal their weak arguments.

The lyrics express this theme through a collection of disconnected concepts and sentence fragments, exploring the notion of reality versus falsehood. In terms of its musical composition, the song’s introduction pays homage to “If I ever” by ‘Red Flag.’

Initially, the lyrics focused on the Maia prophecy of 2012 and its various interpretations, such as the end of the world or the start of a new cycle. However, I later decided to create a story that would remain relevant beyond that date, so I eliminated the reference to the Maia while retaining the theme of change, which can still represent the end of the world or the start of a new cycle.

Regarding the music, I believe that my appreciation for Gary Numan is particularly evident in this song.

‘The Observer’ album had songs with English and German lyrics, and as two languages that I particularly feel connected to were not yet represented, I composed ‘Sahara’, with its brief text in Italian repeated almost identically in Spanish.

Fans of D.A.F. may recognize the similarity between ‘Sahara’ and their song ‘Der rauber und der prinz‘.

Until now, this is the solitary occasion where I have deliberately crafted a song with a particular voice in mind.

Typically, I rely on ideas to materialize on their own, which some may describe as ‘inspiration,’ and then swiftly capture them to prevent their loss. Afterwards, I supplement the rudimentary structure of the song with additional sounds. However, in this instance, when Froxeanne confirmed her willingness to perform one of my songs, I immediately set about devising a vocal component that would highlight her exceptional qualities.

The final outcome surpassed my expectations, perhaps due in part to Froxeanne’s emotional connection with the song, which enabled her to give her best performance.

The song primarily explores two themes: the concept of ‘haters’, which has become more relevant in recent times despite the lyrics being penned in 2010, and individuals who achieve success mainly through their connections.

Regarding its genesis, this is the only melody I crafted using solely FL Studio, a software that I’ve always found challenging to use and typically reserve for creating rhythmic components. If I had the opportunity and motivation to improve my mastery of it, I believe that I could produce even more exceptional outcomes than those evident in this piece.

I take great pride in this song, as the lyrics are a culmination of my extensive research and studies on self-improvement since 1998.

The music incorporates various styles that I particularly appreciate and the themes, expressed impressively by well-known authors such as Eckhart Tolle, Neale Donald Walsch, and Jon Kabat-Zinn, are extensively discussed in my book ‘Knowing the Deep Mind.’ Hence, the song concludes the album and serves as its title, The Observer.

The line, “You are needed for the symphony,” is a reference to Kate Bush’s ‘Symphony in blue‘, which includes the lyric, “…for now I know that I’m needed for the symphony.”