The concept of the ‘Uncanny Valley’ was identified in the 1970s by the robotics professor Masahiro Mori – and is illustrated in the form of
a graph marking the varying degrees to which we hold empathy to humanoid-like objects. When they appear almost, but not exactly, like real human beings, they elicit an uncanny, or strangely familiar, feelings of eeriness and revulsion in observers – at which point the graph dips (into a valley) by comparison to replicating characteristics which otherwise increase the graph.
The lyrics in this song, draw on this imagery, in a self-reflecting look at the role that technology and social media in particularly plays in the narrator’s life - potentially distracting them from real experiences.
lyrics
Verse 1:
Feet on the solid ground,
Of this Uncanny Valley.
A perfect image,
Of an imperfect me.
Ignoring all around,
I’ll take a picture and leave.
I’ve got what I came for:
Social currency.
Pre-Chorus 1:
But I’ve…
Got to take a minute for what’s inside me,
Been feeling inadequacy - for much too long,
Got to take a minute for what’s around me,
And would it really be so bad…
Chorus 1:
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
Verse 2:
These pages I live on,
like sandpaper to me.
Careful constellations,
Consensual realities.
Pre-Chorus 2:
Got to take a minute for what’s inside me,
Been feeling inadequacy - for much too long,
Got to take a minute for what’s around me,
And would it really be so bad…
Chorus 2:
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
Bridge:
I’ve been sharing much too much,
All my fears, and all my loves,
I’ve been sharing much too much,
All my cares, and all my, all my […]
Final Chorus:
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
To leave no trace?
credits
from 'Oll Korrect' E.P.,
released November 23, 2018
Produced & Mixed by: Conor Dalton (Scew)
Art Direction by: Chris Falconer
Recorded by: Conor Dalton & Chris Falconer
Recorded In: New York, USA, and Waterford, IRL
Written By: Conor Dalton (Music) & Chris Falconer (Lyrics & Vocal Melodies)
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