For the newest volume of Ball of Wax Audio Quarterly, I solicited songs from artists near and far on the slippery, evasive, murky topic of The Future. Drew Danburry of Icarus Phoenix shared a number of forward-thinking songs from his brand new album No tree can grow to heaven unless its roots reach down to hell, and “All the Same” leaped out to me as the perfect way to start off this particular collection. The tune starts with Drew setting the scene over chiming acoustic guitars: “When I find myself in suffering/when I find myself in pain / Am I guilty of dishonor? / Can I find another way?” Alternating between a syncopated, loping verse and a driving chorus, Drew lets us in on his thoughts as he ponders big questions – not just questions of life, but how to even ask or consider these questions themselves: logic versus emotion, reason versus belief. “What is wisdom?” he ponders. “Is it similar to faith?”
You won’t be surprised to hear that all of our deepest philosophical questions aren’t answered in a three-minute pop song, but in the final chorus – this song employs a favorite device of mine, with no two choruses the same – Drew seems to settle into some comfort with both the uncertainty and the present moment: “There aren’t answers better than what’s here right now. These sweet details I can hold onto forever.” Drew’s music is certainly one of those sweet details I’ll be holding onto for a long time, as we hurtle into whatever the future holds.