Titles of Instrumentals

tomewing:

Who does them best? What do they mean?

Tom always asks good questions, but this one’s been stuck in my head for a few days now. I’ve been trying to divide it into schools of thought, and here’s what I’ve come up with:

  1. Just tell people what it is. For example: Symphony #21 in E Flat Minor, Opus 212. Sometimes it’s not quite so straitforward. See Charles Mingus’ “Boogie Stop Shuffle.”
  2. Maybe tack a little descriptor onto that matter-of-fact title: Symphony #21 in E Flat Minor, Opus 212: Mating Season of the Loons. A lot of composers did this. See Beethoven’s “Eroica,” for instance.
  3. Put an image in the listener’s head. The phrase “The Snow That Fell And Covered Everything” puts the listener in a mindset—it’s a filter that colors how they’ll hear the piece, whatever it sounds like. “Gathering Storm” pretty well describes the song that Godspeed You Black Emperor! gave that title.
  4. Throw some politics on that. Ahleuchatistas is the best example of a band that does this a lot. They’ll giving a squirming, uncomfortable instrumental a title like “Lament For Bhopal” or “Remember Rumsfeld At Abu Ghraib.”
  5. Tell the listener where you’re coming from. Because he was so good with titles, I’ll use Mingus again: “Better Git It In Your Soul”
  6. Dedicate it to someone. Sticking with Mingus, how about “Goodbye Pork Pie Hat”? It doesn’t directly name Lester Young, but people in the know were aware it was an elegy for him.
  7. Imply a physical sensation. Lionel Hampton’s “Flying Home” comes to mind.  
  8. Imply an emotion. Benny Goodman’s “Goodbye” is a nice example.
  9. I need a drink. Just give it a name already. Okay, this one’s called “Refrigerator Magnet,” and I think this one’ll be “Jane.” No wait, call it “Kate.”
  10. Imply exoticism or ethnicity. Think Creed Taylor’s “Outer Island,” or just look at some Les Baxter album sleeves.
  11. Get Lazy. “Untitled # 8”
  12. Be intentionally obtuse. Autechre are the masters of this. Hey, you know what I really feel like listening to right now? “90101-5l-l”. I swear they just put a cat on a keyboard and let it title their tracks.
  13. Mess with people/have fun. Mogwai’s “A Cheery Wave From Stranded Youngsters” was the first thing that came to mind when Tom posed the question. See also: Happy Apple’s “Koala Bear Wearing A T-Shirt With Your Corporate Logo.”
  14. Something kinda vaguely badass. How about “Frankenstein,” “Fracture” or “Larks’ Tongues In Aspic”?
  15. Makes you think. DJ Shadow’s “What Does Your Soul Look Like?”
  16. There are plenty of other strategies—the first thing that comes to mind, a headline from a newspaper (“Atom Heart Mother”), band in-jokes, secret messages to fans, references to historical events (which could be political), a disjointed or meaningless phrase… It’s a long list. Have fun with it, bands.