The only thing I know to do

Schoolkids Records is closing its Chapel Hill store soon. I’ve been in there a few times in the last year—I bought Chronicles of a Diamond, by the Black Pumas, and maybe a Peter Gabriel album. I stopped in recently to see what was left in the stacks, and only took out I Am Easy to Find by the National.

Then, in the other room, I noticed the used CDs, so I flipped through a few rows looking for any that I might not already have in the crowded bin out in the garage. I took U2’s The Unforgettable Fire, and Josh Ritter’s The Animal Years. Our eight-year-old van has a CD player, and I’ve been playing both on my drive to and from work, some days listening only to U2’s Bad and Ritter’s Girl in the War, then finishing the commute in silence.

Ritter: Peter and Paul, Laurel and Hardy, ‘pretend the dove from above is a dragon, and your feet are on fire.’

Mesmerizing storytelling and deep meaning, though I haven’t looked hard. I just feel soothed, anointed, challenged.

Some days, I hit repeat and listen again.

09.09.2024

 


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