Today, in the music scene, we see songs in the pop or rap genre that just don’t happen to make any sense at all. That is why I treasure the songs that tell a good story, something meaningful. When I listen to the song, “Check Yes Juliet” by We the Kings, an alternative genre, I think of the modern kind of “Romeo and Juliet” Romance, put in song. This song is a good song because of the beat, lyrics, and theme.
The beat of “Check Yes Juliet” is very unlike the common mainstream music you hear on the radio nowadays. I t seems to have a rock tune, but not so hardcore as to take away some of your ear frequency. In fact, iTunes categorizes “Check Yes Juliet” as an alternative genre. This would mean that it does not have a particular category, but is different from the usual. But I like the way the guitar strums blasting chords during the chorus, but lowers the dynamics during the rest of the song. This goes the same for the drums. I love this, because I feel as if the song is slowly transitioning you to the chorus, bringing you into a full dance rhythm. Some songs start out with a beat that is already right spot on with dancing, but these songs keep playing the same beat over and over again. In my experience with music, these types of songs get me tired over listening to them quickly, so I definitely prefer this soft to hard beat. My music teachers always told me that dynamics were important, and they are right. Also, I like the background vocals adding to the music. The additions to the main singer’s voice gives his voice a fuller sound. The “ahhhhhhs and ohhhhhhs” in the background helps add another instrument into the music, blending the guitar and drums and taking their place in certain parts of the song. I used to watch “Glee” and I know that Glee Clubs at real schools sometimes don’t even use instruments to make their music. The other members just are the background, the bass, treble, etc. while the main singers sing. The voice, to me, has always been a musical instrument. Everyone has it, and everyone can learn to tune it on their own. Singing is to music like writing is to literature. The background vocals made the song more enjoyable for me, a deviation from the hard guitar strumming and drum hitting. In all, the piece of music was well blended, but it also had good words to go with it.
Lyrics have come to be something not as important to artist today, but “Check Yes Juliet” tells us a story. For instance, “..Run Baby Run. Don’t ever look back, they’ll tear us apart if we give them the chance. Don’t sell your heart, don’t say we’re not meant to be. Run Baby Run, forever will be, you and me.” This gives me a little taste of Shakespeare’s original, “Romeo and Juliet”. Romeo and Juliet were not supposed to be together, they were forbidden from seeing each other. But they still tried to keep up their love anyway, as this man is talking about in the song. In addition, he sings, “The view is getting better with you by my side.” This is an example of how people feel when they are in love. I’ve read many books about falling in love and according to their point of view, falling in love means that if the other person you love is happy, you’re happy. If they are right next to you, no matter what you do, you’re happy to be with them. This shows the love between the singer and Juliet, expressing how he feels for her, how she seems to make his life better. As you can see, this song truly portrays innocent youth love without the devious messages sent through the music of today, but the song’s message is intertwined in its lyrics.
The theme of this song would be to never give up on love. Evidence form the song would be, “…Rain is falling down on the sidewalk. I won’t go until you come outside….I’ll keep tossing rocks at your window, there’s no turning back for us tonight.” The determination of this young man to wait for his love must show how important it is to him. Would you stand in the rain waiting for just anybody? This person has got to be really important right? Furthermore, “They can change the locks, don’t let them change your mind.” So, even though they have been stopped with countless of measures, the couple still wants to go through the obstacles in order to achieve being together. To me, achieving happiness is the most important goal in life. So, if the singer believes being with Juliet is making him happy, then I would love to root for him. Love has always been a motivation for many heroes and heroines in many of the stories I’ve read, it has always been an important aspect of the plot. Letting go of love might be a really huge hardship for many. For all the reasons above, “Check Yes Juliet” sends a message of perseverance to couples everywhere to achieve their happiness and not let it go.
“Check Yes Juliet” by We the Kings is worth a listen because of the soundtrack the beautiful words are set to and the message that is given across to listeners. I have always loved listening to music, but I’ve always been picky with what I listen to. This song was one of those songs that took me the time to learn to love. At first, it was just another typical track on the radio, but it became a daily repeat on my iPod. I have learned to love this song in its entirety and I hope you can too. So, give it a listen sometime!