Yeah Yeah Yeah, Yeah Yeah Yeah

Hercules & Love Affair “Hercules’ Theme” – When I was on my way to work yesterday, I was standing in a packed subway car about two feet away from a girl who was really, really, really loving the music she was listening to on her iPod. She was not being obnoxious about it; she was not trying to make a show of herself — it came across like a natural, perhaps involuntary response to whatever she was hearing. Her eyes would flutter, her hand occasionally tapped the metal pole as if to play chords. Her neck would arch back slightly, and she’d sway to the beat just enough not to knock into the next person over. A few times, she just smiled this huge, beatific smile that seemed totally out of place in the context of a densely packed train at 8:30 in the morning. Given that I was basically locked to a position opposite her for about eight minutes, it was hard not to look at her, but still, it can take some effort not to notice someone who appears so totally joyful. I actually felt a bit self-conscious, as though I wasn’t enjoying my music well enough. I wondered what it was that she could be hearing — it had to be something kinda groovy and cheerful, that much was clear from her body language. Maybe it was something like this Hercules & Love Affair song, something that struts along without a care while still seeming grounded (tethered?) to reality; something that seems to say “I can’t ignore my problems, I can’t ignore this world around me, but most of all, I cannot ignore my own pleasure.” (Click here to pre-order it from Amazon UK.)

Hey, NYC Readers! Yelle is playing a show at the Knitting Factory on Tuesday!