So what's your favourite band?

I wish you'd hold me when I turn my back

The less I give, the more I give back

Oh your hands can heal, your hands can bruise

I don't have a choice but I'd still choose you.

(Source)

No one ever really answers the question "What's your favourite band?" or "Who's your favourite artist?" properly because essentially, they're being asked to reduce all their varied tastes and preferences into one single subject. And usually when a person asks you that, it's because they want to know you better. So whatever answer you give, it's probably going to be a big factor in their initial impression of you. 

'I'd Rather Dance With You' by Kings of Convenience is one of my all-time favourite songs. If my music library hadn't decided to wipe itself clean every few months, it'll probably be the most played song on my phone. (Samsung people, please get your shit together). So does that mean that indie-folk-pop is my absolute favourite genre, and that my favourite  band consists of two men from Bergen, Norway? 

But I also really really like 'Bad' by Korean-Canadian rapper, Tablo. I liked it so much that 

I even dedicated 3 whole days to learning how to rap in Korean despite knowing (at that point) absolutely nothing about the language. (DON'T JUDGE ME OKAY.) You could probably classify 'Bad' as Alternative Hip-Hop.

Then there's 'Feel Good Inc.' by Gorillaz (alt. rock), 'Pain' by Loveholics (K-ballad), 'The Girl' by City and Colour (acoustic - also the only song on here that would ever make me cry even though it's hardly a sad one), 'Timeless' by Rameses B (electro? house?) and of course my angry PMS song, 'Make Me Wanna Die' by The Pretty Reckless (hard rock). I love all of these for different reasons.

So what answer am I supposed to give you? Would the person asking be able to answer this question? I doubt it. 

Now that we've clarified that it is really difficult to establish a favourite band, I will go on to the next part of my post. 

I actually do have one. They're called The Civil Wars. 

(Source)

Yes I do have a favourite band. And I know that just makes the whole first part of this post redundant. Sorry.  

Anyhow, if you read my old blog, you're probably banging your head against the wall right now because really, you should've seen this coming. I've literally written more than 15 posts about The Civil Wars on ablibberinghumdinger, each one more gushy than the previous. I have lots of ~feelings~ about The Civil Wars and I need to share these, preach the gospel, spread the love, or else I would explode. DON'T DENY ME MY LOVE. 

So yes, The Civil Wars are an indie/folk/country band (not a political conflict or bikie gang) composed of singer-songwriters Joy Williams and John Paul White. They specialise in raw, stripped back, acoustic-centric compositions such as the one I've posted at the beginning of this post. But even though their style is very minimalist, there is an indescribable strength in all their melodies and harmonies. Their music is melancholic, joyful, sorrowful, tragic, sultry and haunting. It reminds me of dreamy, smoke-filled stages of ages past, the golden leaves of Autumn, of fireplaces, lullabies, rainy-days and many other beautiful and wistful things. 

So basically their music is like a hipster's instagram. But much less pretentious. 

Apart from recording Grammy-winning albums, The Civil Wars also have an exceptional talent for live performances (see here). Adele once called them her favourite live act and a must-see-at-least-once during your lifetime type of band. Unfortunately, a lot of people didn't listen to her and they'll never be able to catch another The Civil Wars gig again. Why? Because the duo split up last year. 

When they picked their band name, I doubt they knew how fitting it'd become a few years further down the track.... 

(Source)

It's been a bit unclear as to why this happened even though they've both given interviews since the split. And despite having recorded one last(?) album together, it seems like Joy and John Paul aren't on good terms. The latter even failed to mention Joy in his acknowledgement speech when the duo won their fourth Grammy earlier this year. He then made a public apology about it, probably because of pressure from fans.

It breaks my heart that The Civil Wars are no longer working and making music together. Everything they wrote or performed was just so beautiful and pure. Their music was my rainy-day music, my sentimental-jam, the ultimate de-stresser during the HSC and after that, the tunes that kept away my early morning blues during those depressing train-commutes to university. It's saddening that everything came to an end so suddenly. But I guess it was nice while it lasted.