Day Fourteen: Bay of Pigs – Rogue Valley

You can’t blame yourself for having feelings for someone. Even if they’re ill-concieved or it’s just a bad idea in general, you really can’t help it. I don’t know where you’re at right now – whether you’ve had a relationship or not, or whether you’re in one. But wherever you’re at, you’ve probably, at some point in your life, really really liked someone. And kinda missed them when they weren’t around. I’ll do you one better – you pined for them.

Good thing we have songs for that. Unrequited love is as old as time. And there’s a lot of songs that can help you describe what it feels like to be without someone – whether you’re with them or not. Feelings happen to the best and worst of us.

Waiting for someone can really suck. Maybe you’re waiting for them to like you back (bad idea in hindsight,) or waiting for them to come home. It sucks even more when they don’t know you’re waiting for them.

Looking back on times when I’ve pined after someone, I realize now how stupid it was to feel so much for that particular person/persons. But I also can’t blame my past self because I didn’t really know any better. It’s hard to reason with your emotions.

I was introduced to this lovely little band called Rogue Valley when I was a freshman in college, and it became the soundtrack of my romantic pursuits that year. You may remember their song “The Wolves and the Ravens” from the movie The Secret Life of Walter Mitty, which essentially catapulted them into minor stardom (with some help from Ben Stiller.) That song is from a four-album cycle that focuses on a love story that changes with the seasons. Their sound is what I like to call deep folk. They have a few run-of-the-mill, stomp-n-holler numbers, but most of them air toward cerebral and sophisticated, with an ethereal sound to boot.

Day Fourteen: Bay of Pigs – Rogue Valley

I know what you’re thinking. Why is a song about missing someone named after a historically controversial invasion staged in the midst of the Cuban Missle Crisis? And the answer is, I don’t honestly know. It’s only referenced once in the song. My best guess is it’s supposed to connote distance. “Bay of Pigs” is from the winter album of Rogue Valley’s four-album cycle, where our protagonist experiences True North americana at every turn (other highlights of this album include “Dangerous Diamonds” and “Shoulder to Shoulder Around the Fire.”) It’s a winter album, and the Bay of Pigs is not a winter place. So there’s definitely some distance here.

I’m trying to leave you alone
But deep into my head you roam
Like a sick buffalo separated from the herd
Looking lost at every turn

I’m not gonna lie. It’s a pretty hipster song, using imagery like a sick buffalo. But you gotta admit, that’s pretty vivid imagery. That’s serious imagery.

And in case you were wondering if this is a winter song:

You’re following the migration
Of geese and the grizzly bear
Hibernation
I think I’m gonna find a cave
And sleep til the ice is melted
To come out from your cave
Woozy and out of shape
Oh not quite as brave
As when you once escaped
Don’t stay gone on account of me
Pride’s a foolish belief

The imagery is solid. The song is sung throughout as a duet. The dreamy vocals paired with lush guitar chords and the occasional spacey synths give you an image of a chilly night sky. Maybe these distant lovers are looking at the same sky, from miles and miles away. Or even just minutes away.

It almost sounds like this is a post-breakup couple. One of them has left – either emotionally or physically – and the other is telling them not to let their pride get the best of them.

I’m keeping tabs on myself
Watching what I say
Watching my health
It’s impossible to reconstruct
Something that was always broken
Hollow bones eventually will bring you back
We’re all free to make our own mistakes
So, don’t take mine away
No, don’t take mine away

Evidently, this relationship has had problems from the beginning. Sometimes, it just doesn’t fit, as much as you want it to. I’ve tried to make relationships work (longer than I should have) when they never would. I regret a lot of it, but it’s also made me who I am – and in turn, it’s made me more understanding of people in their relationship situations.

Doubt crept up on its own
Like frost bite in the cold
Like hunters in the snow
With only phantom tracks to follow
From the bay of pigs
Deep into my head
And underneath my ribs
You find a way inside
You find a way inside
You find a way inside
You find a way…

Even when a relationship seems like it’s more flawed than whole, it sometimes feels hard to leave. Either because you think you can fix it, or you simply care too much. In this case, there might be too many doubts involved. But for some reason, you still stay.

It’s such a real feeling, though, isn’t it? Once you’ve allowed someone to attach to you, it’s hard to let them go. A lot of times it’s not a healthy place to be in, but it is a very real place. And, like we’ve been talking about for the last few days, it’s an introspective place to be.

Missing someone is a real thing. But looking back, you’ll realize that it doesn’t hurt that much anymore. And it helps you realize that it might be easier the next time. So sit back, enjoy the music, and watch the constellations.