Blue Sky & The Painter — Bastille Lyrics

Song Details and Analysis

• Album: "&" (Ampersand)
• Producers: Dan Smith & Mark Crew
• Release Date: September 13, 2024
• Genre: Alternative Rock, Pop
• In Collaboration With: Greenpeace UK

"The Painter & The Blue Sky" is a song by Bastille that was presented through an acoustic session aboard the "Arctic Sunrise" ship in conjunction with Greenpeace UK. The song is referred to as a "unreleased song" in the description of the video that can be seen on YouTube. Dan Smith spent many days onboard the ship in the Bermuda Triangle, which is located in the Sargasso Sea, in order to achieve his goals of increasing awareness about climate change and spreading the word about petitions urging the United Kingdom and the United Nations to take action to preserve the seas of the globe. During this time period, the band's social media page featured Dan playing three of their earlier songs in an acoustic rendition. Subsequently, the page hinted at the release of this acoustic song the day before, on June 5th, 2024. Munch suffered a collapse in 1908, which led to his admission to a hospital in Copenhagen, where he remained for a period of eight months. Before his breakdown, Munch had been struggling with drinking and his mental health had been deteriorating for a long time. He eventually made a full recovery, which resulted in a change in his painting approach. While Munch was painting more and more landscapes, he began to concentrate more on the outward world as his subject matter rather than the emotional anguish he was experiencing within. His paintings got brighter and more happy, with his painting "The Sun," which he began shortly after his release, being one of the most renowned instances of this. His work became more optimistic and brighter. As part of a campaign that Dan was working on with Greenpeace to promote awareness for an international treaty to protect the seas of the globe and to assist in the fight against climate change, Dan put together the song. Through his own journey through darkness and despair into renewed optimism, he draws parallels between Munch's personal experience and the worldwide efforts that are being made to combat the climate disaster that we are all presently experiencing: The story is about having been through a really difficult period and then seeing a little bit of light and hope and a little bit of optimism emerging from the darkness. I believe that Greenpeace heard the song and thought that it spoke to this campaign. To think about how many of us feel about the current situation of the planet and about climate change is something that I think about. At the same time, I believe that we all have the same desire to see positive growth and change on a large and local scale. – Sky News conducted an interview. It has been announced by Dan Smith that Edvard Munch is the artist depicted in the song: Edvard Munch, a painter, and his connection with mental health and despair are the subjects of this book. To put it another way, being so sad is a really challenging way of life for him, as you must be aware. But more importantly, it made it possible for him to create these incredible works of art that have been admired all around the world. Consequently, I suppose that the song is written from his point of view. It is Edvard Munch's picture "The Scream" that brought him the most fame. Munch was a Norwegian artist who worked throughout the latter half of the 19th century and the early 20th century. His mother passed away from tuberculosis when he was just five years old, and his sister also passed away from the disease just a few years later. Munch's youth was marked with a lot of upheaval. There were various members of Munch's family that suffered from mental illness, including Munch himself:

For as long as I can remember I have suffered from a deep feeling of anxiety which I have tried to express in my art.“ – Edvard Munch

This is notably evident in his earliest paintings, which have a propensity to be rather gloomy and melancholy, expressing recurring themes of death, loneliness, and existential dread. His paintings are a good example of this.

Exploring the meaning of "Blue Sky & The Painter" by Bastille

Overview of Themes

Blue Sky & The Painter takes inspiration from the emotional journey of the artist Edvard Munch, reflecting on themes of mental health, recovery, and optimism. The song delves into Munch’s transition from despair to renewal, mirroring his artistic evolution toward lighter, more hopeful works after a breakdown in 1908. Bastille’s Dan Smith uses Munch’s struggles as a metaphor for humanity’s hope in overcoming personal and global crises, notably climate change, which is central to the song's collaboration with Greenpeace.

Technical Analysis

The song blends Bastille’s characteristic pop-rock style with reflective, emotional lyrics. Layered vocals by Smith and background harmonies evoke an expansive feel, giving depth to the lyrics. Subtle strings (cello, viola, violin) add an orchestral touch, enhancing the contemplative mood. The recurring "blue sky" motif in the chorus, echoed through the song’s production, underscores a gradual shift from darkness to light. Smith's vocal dynamics, set against swelling instrumentals, emphasize the emotional highs and lows of finding hope.

Emotional Analysis of Key Lines

1. “Left a trace on my lips / Do you always run away when it gets wild?” – Embodies the bittersweet taste of fleeting happiness, suggesting a struggle to embrace joy.
2. “Feels like a new rush, new rush flowering” – This line signals the fresh excitement of rediscovering joy, mirrored in a sense of renewal.
3. “Is that a blue sky? It’s about damn time” – Repetition here expresses relief and longing for stability and positivity.
4. “Mix the paint on the page / Because I ain't nothing without joy and sorrow's fire” – Reflects the essential balance of highs and lows, using painting as a metaphor for finding oneself through emotions.
5. “Would I be who I am without the sadness in me?” – Acknowledges the impact of suffering on personal growth, questioning whether the pain was crucial to his identity.

Similar Songs

The journey from darkness to light in Blue Sky & The Painter can be found in other songs about resilience and hope:

• "Pompeii" by Bastille – Explores the theme of resilience amid decay and ruin.
• "Here Comes the Sun" by The Beatles – Captures the uplifting emergence from dark times into hopeful light.
• "The Sound of Silence" by Simon & Garfunkel – Portrays themes of isolation but ends with an implied hope for connection.
• "Fix You" by Coldplay – A comforting song about enduring support and emerging from pain.
• "Shake It Out" by Florence + The Machine – Encourages leaving darkness behind and moving toward self-forgiveness.

Comparisons to Previous Work

Blue Sky & The Painter marks a new level of depth in Bastille’s discography. While tracks like “Pompeii” and “Doom Days” discuss confronting disaster, this song directly embraces optimism. Similar to the introspective narratives in songs like "Things We Lost in the Fire," Blue Sky & The Painter amplifies Bastille's messaging about resilience and activism. With its Greenpeace collaboration, this track extends the band’s thematic range to include environmental activism and global awareness.

“The song is about Edvard Munch finally seeing a crack of light in life after a long period of darkness, and it felt like a theme that resonated with this particular opportunity that we now have to protect these vast blue spaces that we all depend on.” – Dan Smith via Music News

By connecting Munch’s narrative to environmental activism, Bastille offers an artistic call to action, advocating for both personal and ecological healing. This song enriches their catalog with its poignant imagery, inspiring both reflection and hope.