"Well, I have a big heart... I bought it at the dollar store..."
The Robotanist album was written, recorded and mixed. A release date was set and the tracks were being moved to Bandcamp and the online distributors. Everything I needed to do was done, or so I thought... But then someone that I hold very close in my heart let me know about some of the heartaches she was experiencing that week. I wanted to do something, anything, to help...
I began to think about my own heartaches and heartbreaks over the years (and there’s been plenty!) and how those of us with big hearts that are open and loving, can sometimes be hurt by those we love. Whether it was something they did intentionally, or unintentionally, we just tend to feel it more. We have a lot of love to give, but then it can also hurt a little deeper too when something happens.
While having a shower that evening, I was suddenly struck by the concept for a song that would become Five Part Heart. But I had a deadline to meet. Could I actually pull this off I wondered... Well, when inspiration strikes me, it usually strikes pretty fast! The song went from concept, to demo version, to completed version in less than 24 hours and became the perfect ending to the album. It was meant to be…
As some of you may know already, the songs for The Robotanist album were created with my little homemade, semi-depressed robot botanist in mind for every song. While the songs were about my personal experiences, the point of view, or the narrator of the album if you will, was that of The Robotanist. I realized that in all these songs about love I had written for the album, and all of the personality I had placed in my little tin-can man, I had never actually given him a heart. Maybe he should get one. But where would he find one?
It all played out in my mind - there was just something very sadly-optimistic about The Robotanist saving up to buy a plastic heart at the Dollar store. It came in five individual plastic parts, which gave it lots of room to hold love, but it was from the Dollar Store, so chances were good it was a cheap piece of crap that fell apart quite easily too… His little adventure brought a smile to my face and a tear to my eye.
In the end, Five Part Heart was a reminder to myself (and hopefully you too) to keep your heart open. Yes, our hearts can break sometimes, but we need to keep filling each other up with love, kindness and compassion.
See ya next time…
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