As many of you may know, music is a way of portraying emotions. It uses sounds (and most of the time words) to portray the emotions that life puts us through, the best and worst of them. Some music perfectly hits the tone it’s going for, and that’s definitely the case with 1Day’s ‘The Murder of the Butterflies.’ ‘Murder of the Butterflies’ emotionally delves into the topic of tragic loss. Death. It uses poetic depictions and sounds of nature to give this portrayal, and the music weaves around itself in a way that further builds onto how it delves into this topic. It’s entrancing and well-crafted, and it hits what it’s going for spot-on.
‘The Murder of the Butterflies’ uses a somber and atmospheric lo-fi sound in its instrumentation with a breathy and raw vocal style. It has a creepy and dark R&B sound and uses the music to build an eerie presence within the sound. The child speaking about insect death adds to the atmosphere, and the harmonies build themselves in intricate and disjointed ways. This track is nothing short of intriguing and dark, and this tone extends itself straight into the lyricism.
‘The Murder of the Butterflies’ poetically captures the idea of tragically losing a loved one. The opening of a child talking about the enemies of butterflies and caterpillars dying really sets the stage for the rest of the track. The lyrics mesh themselves with the musicality in a way that enwraps the listener in the heavy feeling it portrays, and it’s truly chilling. The lyrics perfectly build themselves up with portrayals of rain and midnight trains in ways all grow into a big lyrical hit, ‘OD.’ Overdose. The lyricism actually tackles an extremely real experience for 1Day, the tragic loss of his own brother due to accidental suicide.
1Day is an eclectic R&B artist out of Topeka, Kansas who worked with non-binary Richmond-based artist Benét to create ‘The Murder of the Butterflies.’ 1Day has received critical acclaim from sources such as A&R Factory and Roadie Music, and he garners inspiration from sources such as My Chemical Romance and Frank Ocean. 1Day works with a rich range of genres to create an eclectic discography, and he refuses to fit into the mold of being musically basic.
Written by Sage Plapp
