High Places - “On Giving Up”
It’s not ‘giving up’ as in rolling over, throwing your hands up, or chucking in the towel. It’s a song about addiction and the fleeting moment of conviction when you almost believe you can fix yourself by sheer force of will—“tonight is going to be the night.” This is dark, heavy subject matter for any band, much less one so previously given to sunny sounds and twee playfulness. That’s not to say High Places underwent a complete transformation in 2010 (they didn’t), but it’s interesting that the one song from High Places vs. Mankind that actually stuck with me was the one that strayed furthest from their roots.
That disco beat is tough as nails, though, a dogged and stoic pulse meant to illustrate Mary Pearson’s steely resolve. You can still hear echoes of their dubby stylings in the watery tones of the rhythm track and the hollow reverb of the bass, but it’s not as bright or elastic. Instead, High Places sound jaded, hollow, and urbane in the coolest way possible, even if the deep tension in the song undercuts a lot of the glamor. You’d never wish feelings like this on anyone, but the fact that they can pull it off with such convincing chutzpa and grit makes me wonder if there’s a second incarnation of High Places just waiting to come into its own.
