If your grew up in church, you know that hymns are a thing. Like a big thing. If you’re a tried and true hymn worshipper, you’ll know the ins-and-outs of what makes a hymn a hymn. There’s a reason it’s not just called a “song.” It’s got characteristics. Here are a few of them.
Hymns can be condensed down to simply verses and choruses. If it has anything else (coda, vamp, bridge, etc.) it’s not a tried and true hymn.
The lyrical structure is also consistent. Typically the lyrics begin on the same beat in every verse.
Also, the accents typically fall on the same notes.
So that’s the gist of a hymn. And guess what? A hymn does not need to be religious in order to be a hymn, that’s just typically where they land. Hymns can kind of be about anything.
Like a girl.
Day 26: Hymn for Her – Anchor and Braille
Fun fact: Anchor and Braille is also one half of Anberlin. Stephen Christiansen started Anchor and Braille as a side project. And this song is especially good, because it encapsulates how some people feel about finding the “love of their life.”
I don’t wanna find someone I can live with
I just want to find someone that I can’t live without
I’m not looking for another saviour
I’m just searching for a little lamb that I can hold
To keep so safe and warm
Obviously, our crooning hero has been hurt before. He’s looked for someone to tolerate – didn’t work. He looked for someone to save him – didn’t work. Now he just wants the one. The one for him. And maybe even protect her in return.
This is a hymn
A hymn for her
To the one that I’ll adore
So sing your hymn
Your hymn for her
Is this too much to ask?
Guess how this song is structured? Yup. Verse, chorus, verse, chorus. Kind of like a…hymn. Huh. There’s something adorably hopeful about this song. He knows that someone is out there for him. And is that too much to ask?
I can’t wait, for those sleepless nights
Where only the bottle seems to calm the little beast
Daydream now of your dear embrace
Where we lie, lie in the still of morning face to face
Dreaming face to face
There’s something intoxicating about being in love with someone new. There’s even something to be said about those sleepless nights where you wonder if it could become anything at all. I’ve been there, believe me. And even though it’s a bit uncomfortable, there’s something fun and exciting about it. And then there’s also that idealization of how it’s going to be. Cue deep sigh.
This is a cute little song that’s worth giving a listen. You won’t be disappointed in a little hymn.
Audrey D. DeBoer 