it's a good life, end of discussion

I find it a bit ironic that I discovered the best Canadian song of the summer, just as the season was drawing to a close—but am I ever glad to have discovered it!

Rah Rah’s “Ghosts,” off their June release Breaking Hearts, is the kind of upbeat indie tune that renders you physically incapable of not bobbing your head and singing along. The Regina, Saskatchewan band pulls off a stunning duet that mixes wide-ranging instrumentation with a lovely electronic backing track that immediately conjures up childhood playfulness.

You can almost hear the mid-afternoon Nintendo games with friends in the background. But don’t be fooled by the presentation—as the band’s self-description aptly states, they write songs “built to break your heart.” There’s no exception here; coupled with the brilliant lyrics pointing to the perils of age, separation, and longing, Rah Rah manages an impressive dichotomy of young vs. old, pep vs. pitfall, male vs. female, and sound vs. lyric.

I don’t yearn for any lost loves, but should I ever, this is the song that’ll longingly be set on repeat.

I haven’t been able to perfectly transcribe the lyrics, but this is the best they’re going to get without some divine (or artistic) intervention:

Sweep it under the rug until that sun comes up
And reveals how you’ve changed, the wrinkles on your face
Memories of love left behind, I can trace them in those lines
Oh, my love, how you’ve aged, just don’t forget the way that
I once held you close in that bedroom full of ghosts
Pressing sobbing shuttered eyes, trembling legs and loosened thighs

My love, how you’ve aged
I can see it in the way you huddle close to dying flame
Singing out some stranger’s name
Remember that night before I left you said, “Babe, this is all I’ve got left”
A final embrace, a last goodbye
Sadness creeping through those eyes

Just don’t forget what we once were, I still feel you in my core
You broke my heart so I broke yours
Now we’re apart, well, that’s for sure
Well, I once held you close, in that bedroom full of ghosts
Pressing sobbing shuttered eyes, trembling legs and loosened thighs

Sweep it under the rug until that sun comes up
And reveals how you’ve changed, the wrinkles on your face
Memories of love left behind, I can trace them in those lines
And after scars and sleepy wars, oh, how my hands miss yours
After scars and sleepy wars, oh, how my hands miss yours
After scars and sleepy wars, oh, how my hands miss yours

Unfortunately, Breaking Hearts is not available for purchase in the U.S. iTunes Store, and I can’t find a physical copy available for order online, either. I’ve written Rah Rah’s label, Young Soul Records, to request that fans in the States get some love, too. If you’ve got an account on the Canadian iTunes Store, the album is available for purchase for just $7.99.

Otherwise, you can listen to “Ghosts” for free at CBC Radio 3’s New Music Canada, and you can learn more about Rah Rah on iTunes, at CBC Radio 3, at MySpace Music, and on their official blog.

Oh, and if you’ve got any insight into the correct lyrics, please leave a comment!

UPDATE (2010-12-29): Rah Rah is awesome, and a CD is on the way—look for a full review in the short-term future. Also, thanks to Marshall of Rah Rah, the lyrics above have been corrected!