Before I'm Old

The song "Before I'm Old" by the Utah based band Fictionist has been in constant rotation on my iPod lately. There's certain groups in this day and age that i "get" and certain groups that i don't "get"
and fictionist is a group that makes a lot of sense to me. It could be the fact that they're from Provo, and in that sense, seeing them succeed feels a lot like rooting for the home team. But that's not what does it for me. After all, there are a lot of great local acts. I think the thing that resonates with me the most about this group is that I can understand where they come from in a musical sense, myself being a fan of groups that inspire them, such as Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin. But the thing I like most about Fictionist is the song "Before I'm Old." It's a song I can really relate to, It's about figuring out your priorities and coming to terms with growing up, which is something I've always struggled with. The song reminds me somewhat of "The Suburbs" by the band The Arcade Fire, probably because of the references to growing up and holding the hands of their children. But the way Fictionists singer Stuart Maxfield sings the lyrics "there's tiny hands for me to hold, and I'd like to hold them, before I'm old" makes you believe that he is entirely sincere.  What works for this song is how it's structured. The beginning of the song comes from the younger perspective, and realizing that you're getting older. And then the tone changes, Coldplay-esque guitar playing enters and pushes the song, making you "feel alright."
It could just be me. But I think the instrumentation on this song is wonderful. It's a lot simpler than most of the other tracks by Fictionist taking up space in my iTunes library, but it's the most effective because of the way the simplicity is used.  I already feel like I've wrote far too much, and believe me, I've had my ring finger heavy on the delete button of my keyboard. Before i began typing, analyzing this song seemed a lot easier. But what makes a good song is that it can mean different things to different people.
Bottom line is: This is a great tune, I completely relate to it, and you should take a listen to it.

Blogger doesn't support music so I posted the song on my rarely used Tumblr blog, you can hear the song here: http://.austinahatch.tumblr.com, here are the lyrics:

If I'm say I'm scared, it doesn't mean no

there's a thousand places, that I would like to go

that I don't

there's a tiny hand for me to hold, and I'd like to hold it, I'd like to hold it

before I'm old

today I woke, and I found that I'd grown

got a house in the suburbs and a lawn to mow

and settlin' down was close to a curse word, as a young man when he dreams

wide as the sky, but I don't know why

I feel so old

I feel so cold

If the me back then, could see me now, would I shake my head

and wonder how, I can feel all right, I can feel all right

lettin' go of my plans, and givin' up the fight

and if the me back then, could see me today, would I tell me I was wrong,

and I got lost and gone astray

and I can feel all right, I can feel all right

lettin' go of my plans, like doves in the night

there's tiny hands for me to hold, and I'd like to hold them,

Oh, I'd like to hold them,

before I'm old.