get me off this crazy thing

Challenge #10: Big Mood (Board)

CHOOSE SOMETHING YOU LOVE AND CREATE A MINI MOOD COLLECTION OF THREE (or more) ITEMS THAT EVOKE YOUR FEELINGS ABOUT IT.

I wish I had more options to pick from here, with my massive song bank. Unfortunately, aside from a couple rare creepy ships there's no point subjecting anyone to a bunch of songs about, I rarely get obsessed enough to start attaching multiple songs to a specific canon. I can think of one song for Amanda, one song for Fred/Wesley ('Born to Die' -- I know! Shocking choice), and a couple for Cassie from 12 Monkeys, but nothing creating a proper trifecta except for thematic Jeremiah songs, and I already made a post compiling those years ago.

However, I just remembered the time I listened to Townes Van Zandt's album Flyin' Shoes and connected three songs to three of the tormented men of the Buffyverse. So that's what I'm going with, even though it's somewhat disparate.

Snake Song



This one is all about Spike, particularly his dangerous pre-soul era. In fact, it screams vampirism in general. "Ain't no mercy in my smiling/only fangs and sweet beguiling." But it also works for Spike's slippery ways, and tendency to cheat death ("skin I been through dies behind me") and his distinctive look ("shine like diamonds on a dark night"), before culminating with his whole season six interplay with Buffy: "You can slip and try to find me/hold your breath and flat deny me/it makes no difference to my thinking/I'll be here when you start sinking." Plus, it just SOUNDS badass.

Flyin' Shoes



This is probably the saddest song ever written to accompany a deceptively cheerful title, and I associate it with Angel. "Days full of rain, sky's coming down again/I get so tired of these same old blues." His depression, his multiple apocalypses, the rain in the alley... and the promise of the Shanshu Prophecy (his "flyin' shoes"). "Fall is a feeling that I just can't lose." It even mentions wanting to watch a winter day, which ties into 'Amends' and how he has to leave Buffy. There's enough to work in his love for his team, and how he finds connections despite himself, before it all circles back to the opening verse.

Dollar Bill Blues



Dark Wesley, angry, rejected, throat slit, on his self-destructive mission in life, including his significant abuse of alcohol. "Cast myself into a whirl, before a bunch of swine." The dollar bill is the symbol of his relationship with Lilah (which was depicted twice on the show, as it is mentioned twice here). The girl he wants to buy a diamond ring for is Fred (although the red hair would fit Virginia better), and the whole song reeks of desperation and damnation. "Long way down the Harlan Road/busted back and a heavy load/won't get through to save my soul." Oh, and "Always been a gambling man," says the man who was willing to summon Angelus and spring Faith out of prison. I'd say it fits Wesley pretty well, and it being fast-paced lets me picture all his action scenes between the verses.

And there you are!

I always hoped if I listened to enough Van Zandt, I would eventually find songs for all the other key players in these shows, to complete the picture, but it hasn't happened yet. His songs are magnificent, but often very specific narratives rather than character studies. Still, maybe there are a few more waiting to be discovered. His catalogue is very large.