We’re quickly approaching the official release date of Jesyem Krzywym Lasem, and today we’re focusing in on track 4, “Butterflies”. This was a late addition to the record, I actually had already begun mixing the final EP when I felt like I wasn’t completing the thought of the overall record, so I knew I needed to add something new.

So on Monday September 27th, I scrolled through my lyric files to see if I had already started the thought I had in my head, and fortunately for me, I did! It didn’t have a title at the time, and I made a couple minor tweaks to finish what then became “Butterflies”.

About the Track

If I thought about Jestem Krzywym Lasem as a short story, what it seemed to be missing was an arc of sorts, an internal conflict for the protagonist to overcome and have their moment of heroism in some way.

At this point in the EP, I had covered a lot of ground in the mental despair department, and I didn’t want listeners to feel like everything was all doom and gloom all the time. So naturally, we break into a war and hostage scene with “Butterflies”.

Of course it’s not really about war in a literal sense but about that internal grappling, bickering with the devils and angels on your shoulder when you’re trying to make the big, important decisions life throws at you, which never seem to happen at an appropriate time, or a time that you feel you have enough time to afford to considering your options. It’s here and now, or never at all; “Should I stay, or should I go?”

The key takeaway from “Butterflies” is that internal struggle never really realizes; just dissipates into the air. There’s really no right or wrong path to take, but you still have to pick one and stick with it. From there, whatever happens, happens.

Official Lyrics

It’s a little lost on me
Why you’re here
On this date
At this hour
Catch your footing
Pull up a chair
Do you feel that
Wings aflutter

Particles dismissed
Hangtime in air
An ambush without a plan
A faulty flare

Full fledged attack
Retreat, get back
Distract
Bullets through the glass
Heat rising from the friction
Hesitation
Another impact
Repeat, get back
Frayed bristles
A fallen rope
An open window
A steady scope

Particles dismissed
Hangtime in air
Friendly fire
A faulty flare

A Little More

I have my own opinions of course, of how “Butterflies” plays out in my own mind. But this is very much where I find myself standing right now, climbing through an open window, and somewhere in the distance I imagine a steady scope. Whether it’s aimed at me or not remains to be seen.

As far as the production went, the chord structure on this one came together pretty quickly, but I wanted to reinforce that internal struggle and really make the listener feel like they were in the middle of the conflict. I tried to achieve this with a series of assorted delays, flangers, phasers and reverbs. You hear it throughout the “full fledged attack” section of the song, and it’s intended to grab your attention in the same way that being in a panic-stricken state grabs you from multiple angles.

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Next up, we’ll talk about our decision to add a cover song to the EP, and why that cover couldn’t be anything other than “Such Great Heights”.

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Keep reading the blog series on Jestem Krzywym Lasem:

Track 1: Quiksand
Track 2: Driveway
Track 3. Without You
Track 4: Butterflies (You Are Here!)
Track 5: Such Great Heights
Jestem Krzywym Lasem Bonus Blog: Sean Gallagher