Music Review: Tegan & Sara "Closer"

Tegan & Sara

Closer

Album: Heartthrob

Year: 2012

                     Yearning looks begin a romantic night in the unhesitating  “Closer.”

                 Insatiable synths open the single, setting a private tone. Tegan Quin put a loose strand of her girlfriend’s hair behind her ear. A shy smile appears on her lips. Tegan scooches herself over on their bed until her bare arm brushing her girlfriend’s. She stares into her eyes, not needing to say the words to ask the question that is on her mind. Her girlfriend takes a long breath and starts to lean in. Tegan’s heart pounds into her chest, silencing any outside noise. (“All I want to get is/A little bit closer/All I want to know is/Can you come a little closer?/Here comes the breath before we get/A little bit closer/Here comes the rush before we touch/Come a little closer.”)

            In the pre-chorus,  it’s the end of a cool, summer day. Their relationship has been building up to lovemaking. Her girlfriend, newly out, has held her hand and kissed her. She’s become comfortable a bit more each day with her sexuality. Finally, she’s ready. It’s another important for her. (“The doors are open/The wind is really blowing/The night sky is changing overhead.”)

          In the chorus, she says their relationship does not revolve around sex nor is it an experimentation. Tegan has strong feelings for her that go beyond meeting in a bathroom stall. She likes smallish boobs and flat butts. Her girlfriend doesn’t have to get self-conscious, worried that she will tell her she should get implants.  She plans on having her meet her parents and hang out with her sister. (“It’s not just all physical/I’m the type who won't get oh so critical/So let’s make things physical/I won’t treat you like you’re oh so typical/I won’t treat you like you’re oh so typical.”)

           After they break away from the kiss, her girlfriend confesses to her that she’s thought about sleeping with her. But she didn’t know how to say it. Either way, it seemed to be awkward. She’s tell her she’s been waiting for her act or say something. Tegan gets up from the bed and turns off the lights and returns back to her girlfriend sprawled out with her head on a pillow. (“All you think of lately/Is getting underneath me/All I dream of lately/Is how to get you underneath me/Here comes the heat before we meet/A little bit closer/Here comes the spark before the dark/Come a little closer.”)

              In the pre-chorus, it’s about 8:30 pm and outside her window, the sky is flushed in various shades of pinks and orange. (“The lights turned off and the sun is finally setting/The night sky is changing overhead.”)

               The chorus is sung again.

             In the bridge, Tegan kisses her girlfriend again and again, enjoying her touch. What she thought about while she was at work or running errands has become a reality. (“I want you close, I want you/I won’t treat you like you’re typical/I want you close, I want you/I won’t treat you like you’re typical/Here come the dreams of you and me/Here come the dreams/Here come the dreams of you and me/Here come the dreams.”)

               The chorus is sung again.

               Part of the bridge is sung again. (“I want you close, I want you/I won’t treat you like youre typical/I won’t treat you like you’re typical.”)

                 Part of the first verse is sung again to end the single. (“All I want to get is…
can you come a little closer?”)

                      Tegan and Sara’s blunt, mischievious vocals are patient, allowing for the moment to happen. While Tegan may have been out longer and has had more experience, being in love has ignited her. For her, passion exists without the confusion or politics.
           

                    The implied “Closer” gets the U.S. one step closer to the day where a same-sex couple can be the topic of a hit song without  it becoming a national issue.