Levi‘s contribution to volume 35, “5 Year Plan,” veers away from the rumble and fuzz of his recent work with the Library and returns to the organic folk simplicity of his earlier recordings. Acoustic guitar and voice sit way up in the mix, with Levi singing a simple homage to domestic peace and happiness in the face of the social pressures of planning and ambition. Levi sings sweetly and without guile, “and maybe I am simple / but where I am is where I want to be” and “and here’s my ten year plan / our animals, our friends and you and I.” It’s a pretty, contemplative song both humble and fully-formed as a love song – if you were to sing this song in earnest to a partner or spouse all heart strings would be appropriately plucked.
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When I first moved to Seattle I lived in a house alongside nine roommates, none of whom I knew very well. One time I got into a conversation about five year plans with this one roommate. She was organized! Her education, her job prospects, you name it, she had it all mapped out. This song perfectly captures my mixed reactions to this conversation. On one hand, I sort of felt like a loser, like maybe I ought to get it together and stop being so passive and make something of myself, you know, start a landscaping business or take up tai chi. On the other hand I felt, well, as long as I don’t die in the next five years I’m doing something right.