Fever to the Form

Music or madness? Quite possibly, it’s one or the other.

If you’re like me, music is an integral part of your life and brings you enjoyment and connection to emotions, and maybe your creativity. And solace in low times.

Today, songs were playing randomly on Apple Music, and I heard the unmistakable and soothing voice of English singer-songwriter Nick Mulvey. I don’t know much of his music, but I featured him on this blog once before, with my post on his 2014 single, “I Don’t Want to Go Home.” (Please check it out; it’s a beautiful song.)

In “Fever to the Form,” I believe Mulvey is saying it is essential to find something to be passionate about and then become immersed in it. A post I found by the well-travelled Pack the Story blogger Nathalie Alyon references the piece in a longer narrative about similar struggles, ultimately pointing to art and other creative activities to help make sense where there seems not to be any. Her post is is an enlightening piece; I recommend you check it out.

So, what else does Mulvey say?

“So whether music or madness
We live by one of the two
By one of the two
So go on, fill your heart up with gladness
Not a moment too soon
Not a moment too soon

Should we ration the reasons
Choose a child to ignore
Of this I’ve never been sure
So I will follow the feeling
And sing fever to the form
All of my fever to the form

Cause the very thing you’re afraid, afraid of
It keeps you clean but unclear
Clean but unclear
Is the dirt that you’re made, you’re made of
And that’s nothing to fear
No, it’s nothing, my dear

But how do I know what you’re thinking
Maybe I thought it before
Maybe that’s why I’m at your window
Heal me at your door
Singing give me some more

Oh fever to the form
Won’t you hear me at your door
Singing give me some more
Cause you were never empty
And we’ve been here before
Yes, we’ve been here before
And that was always plenty
Yet still we ask for more
Singing fever to the form”

“Fever to the form,” by Nick Mulvey.
Unofficial lyrics courtesy of AZLyrics.com.

While listening to “Fever to the Form” and following the lyrics, I was struck by the lines, “Should we ration the reasons / Choose a child to ignore / Of this I’ve never been sure / So I will follow the feeling / And sing fever to the form / All of my fever to the form.” To me, this speaks to intergenerational trauma brought on by cyclical, learned habits of silencing and shaming children, snuffing out their innocence and joy—a truly senseless and damaging practice.

Another verse that captured my imagination was, “Cause the very thing you’re afraid, afraid of / It keeps you clean but unclear / Clean but unclear / Is the dirt that you’re made, you’re made of / And that’s nothing to fear / No, it’s nothing, my dear.” That passage reminds me so much of an essay I read this past weekend by the prolific, Bulgarian-born, American-based Maria Popova, who creates The Marginalian (formerly known as Brain Pickings). Her article, “What Happens When We Die,” takes the reader on an intimate, illuminating tangent on what happens to not only the body—the “borrowed stardust,” the dirt—but also to the mind, the consciousness, the soul. It’s a captivating read that I also highly recommend.

In the spoken introduction to a live performance of “Fever to the Form” captured on an unofficial video I watched, Mulvey speaks of the fever as the busyness of life and the form being the music, the structure. These words embody the stability in his voice contrasted with the feverish strumming of his guitar. So, not only fever to the form but also fever in the form.

May we all find some form amongst all the fever.

“Fever to the Form” comes from Mulvey’s 2017 album Wake Up Now.

Now you know a little about why this is My Song of the Day for Today. Thanks for joining me here, and please enjoy.

Here’s a solo performance by Mulvey for the BBC during the 2014 Glastonbury Music Festival:

And, the studio audio from Nick Mulvey’s YouTube channel: