Pair an unavoidably catchy rhythm with the dichotomy of positive folk-pop beats and lyrics embedded with an empty world of loneliness, and you have Of Monsters and Men’s single “Little Talks” from the Icelandic band’s debut My Head Is an Animal. The song, honored as an iTunes Single of the Week, has grabbed the hearts of many while conquering the world’s airwaves.
The masterful vocals of Nanna Bryndís Hilmarsdóttir and Ragnar “Raggi” Þórhallsson dual back and forth, illustrating the darkest places a relationship can go and the blind fight that keeps a couple together. Guitarist Brynjar Leifsson, drummer Arnar Rósenkranz Hilmarsson, piano/accordion player Árni Guðjónsson and bassist Kristján Páll Kristjánsson create a melody that breathes life into a song about suppressing a masked reality, with lyrics revolving around the hurt felt in a damaged relationship.
More somber lyrics such as, “Some days I don’t know if I am wrong or right,” communicate how this woman is dying a slow death in her own thoughts—an internal conflict that continually pulls her heart and soul in different directions. Refusing to believe that her disconnect will change the structure of their relationship, the man tries to pull her back to reality, singing, “Your mind is playing tricks on you, my dear.” These characters are avoiding the inevitable—they are no longer right for each other. She is miserable; he is too, but they both can’t let go of what was.
The urge to sing along to the upbeat, “Hey!” is a way to avoid the true nature of the song’s meaning just as the characters do in their relationship.
The song digs deeper into her suppressed psychological wrestlings with lyrics, “And some days I can’t even dress myself,” representing her numb, empty world. There is no fight left inside of her. “It’s killing me to see you this way,” exposes the man’s microscopic acceptance that the woman he first met is long gone. The man has brainwashed himself into oblivion, which gives him enough hope to stand by her side no matter how treacherous their path.
However, together they harmonize lyrics, “Though the truth may vary, this ship will carry our bodies safe to shore,” giving way to the small flame still burning that this relationship has yet to give up on, no matter what the struggles.
The bridge brings the song to a full circle. Passionately, they sing the lyrics together: “You’re gone, gone, gone away/I watched you disappear/All that’s left is a ghost of you.” The song culminates to the realization that the couple can no longer fix what’s broken. “Now we’re torn, torn, torn apart/There’s nothing we can do/Just let me go/We’ll meet again soon,” are the lyrics that reflect on games played in the dynamics of a relationship. Finally, the two run back to their comfort zones of a broken affinity for each other, and when they sleep, the idea of their love comes to life by singing, “No wait! Wait! Wait for me! Please hang around/I’ll see you when I fall asleep.”
Not only has Of Monsters and Men made a hit single, it also has created a ballad that reaches out and touches the hearts of many with its familiar subject matter.
