A response to NEEDTOBREATHE’s album “Caves”
The beautiful part about coming out of a cave is that usually it means you are going upward. NTB takes that uplifting visual and implements it into their album Caves. I’d like to focus on three of the songs from the album to show how their focus on growth separates themselves from the norm.
How Wonderful We Are. Contradictory to the claim many religious people say for the condition of humanity. In my opinion the most fundamental switch from one perspective into the truth. The truth is that humanity was fallen and in need of restoration. The completion of that restoration comes from the new perspective that you are good in your truest form. And it is that truest form that you must pursue. While in the midst of that pursuit knowing that there are “holes” in the true self that can only be filled by a specific person. Thus creating a need that changes how wonderful I am into how wonderful we are. The dependency in we instills the need for the overcoming of the process from within a cave to now wandering in freedom.
Dreams. This song illustrates a fascinating perception into a tangible reality. Dreams in their truest sense come from the result of a heart condition known as feelings. Pure feelings fuel pure dreams. And NTB and Judah & TL absolutely capture that communication flawlessly. The dreams are solidified as pure creating a means through a person who will then make those dreams come true and, for the current Cave, has already made dreams come true. Consider that realization for a moment. A heart condition brings forth emotions. Those emotions produce feelings, which then create dreams. All encapsulated in one person who can make those dreams come true. In other words, what they are saying is that they have found the person who can cure the condition of the heart. This is the greatest miracle one could ask for and leads to the freedom out of the heart condition (the cave) and into the new world.
Fall on Me. These words scream: “Oh you think you forgot about me? Oh am I really too far gone for you to not come back for me? I’m still right here for you. I’m still the rock you can lean on, depend on, and rely on.” It’s mutual. There is a mutual breaking point for each of the artists in these lyrics. The male, who “should” be the rock, is revealing that he is only so strong and really depends on the stability of the woman to find his peace. This woman is the finish line for the male’s journey out of the cave and into his freedom. His reward is her. Yet she knows that she needs him too as she echoes his sentiment in the chorus.
Written September 26th, 2023
Jake Wentworth 