#in lieu of flowers

[sotiredmostnights]

when was the last time you saw a band create 3 full length albums and one 3-song EP following the story of a single dude's journey as he navigates death, divorce, and depression over the course of a decade. when was the last time you saw a musician so committed to their craft that they straight up roleplay as the lead character in their album to the point where even the live performances become a canon part of the narrative. when was the last time you listened to something as compelling and impactful as the aaron west and the roaring twenties discography.

[shea-like-the-butter]

[hearteyesmcgarrett]

Hold on, the wound is gonna mend And when it's all gone, I'll write in wet cement In lieu of flowers, shake the dirt off I'm with you 'til the bitter end

[punkrockmixtapes]

Aaron West and The Roaring Twenties - Alone At St. Luke's

[solisumbra]

The future’s a rhetorical question

So I open the door and I walk in

Dead Leaves- Dan “Soupy” Campbell / Aaron West and the Roaring Twenties

[espressonist]

If you can’t handle me at my Monongahela Park, you don’t deserve me at my In Lieu of Flowers.

[clunge]

Aaron West & the Roaring Twenties - In Lieu Of Flowers

[037official]

Once I pulled up the lyrics to follow along, this entire song gave me chills. Quite literally.

I really hope this isn’t the last record, but if it is, this song is the perfect way to recount every phase of the band. Ten years of craftsmanship, man.

Man.

[prodhorosha]

No one told the birds the world is ending,

so they keep singing like it's spring.

I walk with Colin after dinner;

We split a coke and watch the sunset do its thing.

The church around the corner is having service on the lawn

And drawing pictures on the pavement in pastel sidewalk chalk

of doves and palms and cartoon Jesus dying on the cross

I say he must be running late and we sorta laugh it off.

I've been having that dream

where I'm dying again.

The one where I get sick, and we can't afford it.

I've been walking around here with no health insurance,

and we can barely keep the lights on as it is.

Paying Bills at the End of the World // Aaron West and the Roaring Twenties

[sotiredmostnights]

how it's going rn

[hearteyesmcgarrett]

Aaron West & The Roaring Twenties + Oceans/Coasts

Carolina Coast//Green Like the G Train, Green Like Sea Foam//Lead Paint & Salt Air//Just Sign The Papers//Bloodied Up In a Bar Fight//Bury Me Anywhere Else//Alone At St. Luke's//Spitting In The Wind//I'm An Albatross//Runnin' Out Of Excuses

[The Wonder Years version]

[bloodonstraypapers]

You said, "Hold on, the wound is gonna mend And when it's all gone, I'll write in wet cement In lieu of flowers, shake the dirt off I'm with you 'til the bitter end"

-In Lieu Of Flowers by Aaron West and the Roaring Twenties

I think that these lyrics take the spot and will hold the spot for the best lyrics of 2024. I've never really understood getting lyrics tattooed on your body, but I think I get it now.

[punkrockmixtapes]

Aaron West and The Roaring Twenties - Roman Candles

[fairerhousethanprose]

In Lieu of Flowers  A few years ago I read a friend’s father’s obituary on Facebook. His father had requested in lieu of flowers, please take a friend or loved one out for lunch. Although I love flowers very much, I won’t see them when I’m gone. So in lieu of flowers:  Buy a book of poetry written by someone still alive, sit outside with a cup of tea, a glass of wine, and read it out loud, by yourself or to someone, or silently. Spend some time with a single flower. A rose maybe. Smell it, touch the petals. Really look at it. Drink a nice bottle of wine with someone you love. Or, Champagne. And think of what John Maynard Keynes said, “My only regret in life is that I did not drink more Champagne.” Or what Dom Perignon said when he first tasted the stuff: “Come quickly! I am tasting stars!” Take out a paint set and lay down some colours. Watch birds. Common sparrows are fine. Pigeons, too. Geese are nice. Robins. In lieu of flowers, walk in the trees and watch the light fall into it. Eat an apple, a really nice big one. I hope it’s crisp. Have a long soak in the bathtub with candles, maybe some rose petals. Sit on the front stoop and watch the clouds. Have a dish of strawberry ice cream in my name. If it’s winter, have a cup of hot chocolate outside for me. If it’s summer, a big glass of ice water. If it’s autumn, collect some leaves and press them in a book you love. I’d like that. Sit and look out a window and write down what you see. Write some other things down. In lieu of flowers, I would wish for you to flower. I would wish for you to blossom, to open, to be beautiful.

 Shawna Lemay

[037official]