Vienna Teng - The Hymn of Acxiom (with visual transcription)
Teng’s cited this song as one she’s proud of (though I don’t have a verbatim quote at the moment), and I think for good reason. Firstly, chorales are a tricky form to write in. It’s difficult to do this type 4+ part vocal harmony while still ensuring that words are clear and distinct. The harmonies she uses are really interesting and often dissonant, but in a way that enhances the reverent feel of the piece rather than detracting from it.
Then there are the lyrics. They’re interpretable without full context, but I think it’s helpful if you know what Acxiom is, and for that let’s turn briefly to Wikipedia:
Acxiom Corporation is a marketing technology and services company with offices in the United States, Europe, Asia, and South America. Acxiom offers marketing and information management services, including multichannel marketing, addressable advertising, and database management. Acxiom collects, analyzes, and parses customer and business information for clients, helping them to target advertising campaigns, score leads, and more.
Acxiom is the biggest compiler of consumer data in the world, data which it then uses to create and sell consumption-based profiles to various corporations.
The song is written from Acxiom’s perspective and is, in a word, creepy. Beautifully constructed, but creepy.
Leave your life open. you don’t have to hide.
Someone is gathering every crumb you drop, these
(mindless decisions and) moments you long forgot.
Keep them all.
O how glorious, glorious: a brand new need is born
On most albums, a robot choir singing about marketing software would feel pretty out of place. But Aims has a really broad range of subject matters it covers, and “The Hymn of Acxiom” is far from the only song on the album to tackle something unconventional. it’s maybe the most pointed, though–it seems designed to provoke unease with the way it juxtaposes form and content, and (for me, at least) it most definitely succeeds.
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