5 Songs About Abstinence

Music, by its nature a passionate performance of rhythm and vocalization often finds sex, as its subject matter, whether overtly or obliquely. For a bit of fun, I decided to try to find some songs about abstinence. Of course, as noted above, there's something absurd about creating a song about abstinence because music is an art form. Art has always been inspired by beauty, and one of the most direct, universal forms of human beauty lies in sex. Most of music is about coupling. Most musicals are about coupling. And while in many cases, the direct subject of sex may not come up, that doesn't mean that the allusion is there. So, let's look at 5 songs about the opposite of sex.

5 Songs About Abstinence

1. "Abstinence" by Temple of Venus - Actually a quality track by the British pseudo-prog-pop act. This song captures the feeling of thirst that abstinence likely creates, as well as the potentially connected depression. Slow, sullen vocals take their time with every lyric because, well, if you're already waiting on one thing, why rush the music too?
   
2. "Feu d'Abstinence" by Suarez - There are a surprising number of songs about abstinence by French acts. This one, another break up style track, is a classic bit of joyous, jangly propositioning. In breathy lines, Suarez's protagonist seeks to break down the abstinence wall between him and his love. It's pretty sharp, a sweet, childlike and honest request to "go all the way." It just sounds better because it's in French.
3. "Addicted to Abstinence" by Sodom - The thrash/black metal German trio spends most of the song evoking the rending of viscera and the frailty of the body. In a harried two minutes plus, Sodom lists numerous other ways that one can be penetrated, violated, opened, split or spill fluids, sprinkling the title lyrics in as the chorus. For Sodom, it seems that an addiction to abstinence leads to homicidal, destructive tendencies. They could be right...
4. "Abstinence Redux" by Cindy Cornelsen - This comedic little bit takes direct charge at stories that kids at the Saddleback Church who began having anal sex to avoid losing their virginity to vaginal intercourse. The song never approaches a form of commentary, and it's not particularly funny, but the school-age sound and chipper Disney songbird-esque vocals add to the fun.
5. "Abstinence" by Talein - This is the Winner Winner Chicken Dinner find of my search. Evangelical Christian R&B artist Talein doesn't even bother to tell a story about what having sex could do to a child. Oh no, instead, she goes straight at it with a clinical gym-teacher-awkwardly-saying-chlamydia inflection. After explaining what bad comes from sex, Talein turns the song into a bland one-sided argument that if you have sex you will have abandoned God, and that demons will inhabit your soul. It's beautifully alarmist and absurd. And it was released in 2010.

 And here they are in embedded form! Enjoy!

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Vices I Admire - 2012 Sampler

First, an apology is in order. I was out on a long whirlwind trip to see relatives, including my elderly (95) grandfather. Those trips always remind of a few things. Thing One: We do not choose our family, but we love them anyway. Thing Two: There's something valuable about the idea of living a long life, but I wonder how much we obsess over the idea when we're younger, forgetting that those people who have reached "long life" might not be as happy as we believe they should be. Thing Three: I have a very nice life of my own that is worth enjoying for every single second of it. In any case, I have been away from this space for a little while, focusing on the comic, but I will never let Gas Lantern go because the music means so much to me. Also, it has afforded me some great inside tracks to incredible bands like Vices I Admire.

With hints of The Killers, but with Hot Fuss lyrical coherence throughout, Vice I Admire is a hidden gem. To boot, they're from Denver, my incredible home city. In short, this band fucking kills at everything. In a song like "Sweetest Girl" David Curtis's vocals growl while giving away a bit of vulnerability that makes the lusty narrative and Madonna/Whore complex story depth. Mickey Dollar on guitar shreds beautifully, angrily and sensually at once, and Dan Battenhouse's bass lines are hearty, driving, and leading. The drumming via Mark Towne, create a controlled chaos that's brain-rattling and energizing. This is driving music. This is also Queens of the Stone Age/Foo Fighters/so much more. "Kiss Kiss" sounds dangerous, but never lost of its pop sensibilities. Whispered backing vocals create a call-and-response that's haunting. The crawling guitars frighten and entice.

The band, according to their website, met at CSU up in Fort Collins, but this point, today in 2012 may well define them the most. They are Colorado's next big act. They just are. The music is refined and potent. These songs will stick in your head. They will make you move. They aren't cock rock, they aren't stadium rock, they are super-garage rock, vibrant and fiery. There are even shades of Prince in songs like "Heartbreaker." And the potent rattling march of "It Is" can give way to a more casual, softer feeling too. I hate to make broad declarations about music, but there's really no downside here. You'll find male confusion, sexuality, loss of self, rediscovery, powerful calls for revolution, and all of it with perfectly crafted melodies and arrangements. They get heavy and a little overwrought in places. "Poor Boy" felt a little too frantic, but amid the rest of the mix, it's not a failure, but a digression.

Holy shit. Listen to it here. Then think about offering Vices I Admire something and buying it.

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