“Swim” by Jack’s Mannequin, Sunday, April 4, 2021

 

Andrew McMahon has led three successful musical projects over the span of 22 years, starting with the pop-punk band, Something Corporate, the piano-driven band Jack's Mannequin, and his solo project, Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness. I first got to know Jack's Mannequin in college during a class trip for my Intro to Caving class, a class you take when you need a P.E. credit to fit into your 16 hours of literature, education, and history classes, but it becomes more intrusive because you have to schedule caving trips. The class made me never want to crawl through another cave again, but I still listen to Jack's Mannequin's The Glass Passenger fondly. I dug into their first album, Everything in Transit, but my favorite is their final record, People and Things, in which McMahon's lyricism and the piano/guitar melodies are the strongest. 

I FOUND A TIDAL WAVE BEGGING TO TEAR DOWN THE DAWN. The Glass Passenger
was written and released after McMahon's recovery from acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The record's title refers to McMahon's fragile state after his diagnosis. Not all of the songs on the album address this time in the singer's life, but "Swim" talks about fighting against hopelessness. The music video includes fans and their artwork which contains messages of why they keep "swimming." The central metaphor in this song reminds us of how big the ocean is that we are up against. It doesn't let us off easily with platitudes or sugarcoat the battles, or even say that it's possible to win. We just have to try and hope that the small efforts we make will keep us alive. We hope that the small strokes we make in the ocean through our struggles, others will join with us to offset the injustices done in the world. 

I SWIM FOR BRIGHTER DAYS, DESPITE THE ABSENCE OF SUN. In some ways, last year seemed to be a finale of 5 bad years, starting with 2016. But when one problem comes to a close, we find five more to take its place. And yet, I think about today, being Easter, and what that really means to those who believe in the hope of Resurrection. Metaphorically, the resurrection of Christ takes place in the spring, a time when life is renewed after a season of death in fall and burial in winter. Belief in the resurrection of Jesus propelled his followers to make a religion that claims a third of the world's population by some estimates. The significance around the belief in Christ's resurrection has been the source of joy and freedom to many, but also used as power to enslave and weaponize against others. But no matter your belief--in God, in Buddha, in man, in family, in money--everyone believes in something. And that something doesn't come easily. You have to work for it. You've gotta swim for it.



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