The latest single from Dallas-born, Chicago-based singer-songwriter Marian Runk is an absorbing and timeless reflection on grief. Over Runk’s delicate guitar and Jess Baldissero’s gorgeous fiddle, Runk delivers a memorable tune and her words are captivating throughout. Jacqeline Boyd’s backing vocals provide a haunting edge as Runk sings of loss using both poetic images, like a heart in the snow, and specific narrative details, such as the, “…day that I watched six hours of Miami Vice.” Meanwhile, gentle rhythms from Andrew Wilkins’ upright bass have us swaying.
Ruck shared with AUK what the song means for her: “It’s about dealing with an onslaught of loss, and the never-ending grieving process that I suppose is a side effect of growing older. The title is misleading, the concept is really like the lyric, ‘halfway between broken and free,’ which for me is a sweet spot where I remember the person and they’re still part of my life, but I’m able to move about in the world, functioning with their memory/my grief more like a companion than a weight. I experienced the first verse on Valentine’s day, 2016. On the train between St. Louis and Chicago, on my way home from my uncle’s funeral, a group of teenage Mennonite girls sang hymns in the observation car. Their music was so confident and joyful, I can’t really overstate how much it moved me at the time. I held onto the voice memo I took that day for almost a decade, and couldn’t resist including it at the end of the song. I worked with longtime friend Latham Zearfoss, a Chicago-based artist, on the video. We spent a beautiful day filming near a railroad bridge in Chicago, soaking up the sunshine and planting wildflowers.”
Latham Zearfoss has created an effective video that serves to reinforce the song’s message; watching Runk plant flowers in an unlikely place is beautifully symbolic, offering hope and signs of recovery when life is bleak.
‘Broken and Free’ is the first song on Runk’s brand new album ‘Two Wires and a Spark’. Her sophomore album, co-produced by Steve Dawson, is a lyrical delight, full of intriguing images and captivating stories. Runk speaks passionately about what music means to her and many readers will associate with these sentiments: “Music has been a constant throughout my life, comforting and healing me in times of loneliness and change. It was especially comforting on lonely days as an only child, and in adulthood it’s brought relief when I’m grieving a death or the end of a relationship. Music is magical, and that’s why I love it.” Indeed.
Thank you for this lovely write-up!