Music Review: Ryn Weaver "OctaHate"

Ryn Weaver

OctaHate

Album: The Fool

Year: 2014

           Ryn Weaver realizes she was used by her boyfriend in the  scarred             “OctaHate.”

                 In the intro, she just wants to be left alone. (“Watch it, watch it/Watch it, watch it.”)

                    Innocent synths open the single, setting a wounded tone. When she first met him, she was going through a hard time. She was arguing with her parents a lot. Some of her oldest friends began to distance themselves from her. Her attitude was causing problems within the group. She could talk to him and helped her get back on track. (“Lost in the cracks of the landslide/You saw me slipping on my blind side/I'm feeling lost, feeling tongue-tied/And now I'm frozen in your headlights.”)

                  In the pre-chorus, having him in her life made everything better. Until he began making excuses. Now, she sees him for who he is and isn’t sure if it’s someone she wants. (“Deep in the haze of your love high/I used to soar on the live wire/I'm coming down from your supply/And I don't know if you can make right.”)

                In the chorus, she thought they were meant to be. However, his friends (who claimed to be hers) didn’t warn her. They just let him ignore him. Neither one defended her.  (“I can't take it/From the day I saw/My heart start breaking/No one saved me/I can't take it/Can't believe I went and lost you baby/Earth keeps shaking all around/Oh, you let me down/And I can't take it/From the day I saw/My heart start breaking/No one saved me.”)

             It was a shock. It couldn’t be happening again. She went numb. She wanted the hit the bar, drink until she got drunk and bring someone back to her house. All to get rid of the pain. (“Shot through the cracks of the earthquake/My body's moving into retrograde/I'm feeling loose, feeling untamed/And you're the dynamite, in my chains.”)

               In the second-chorus, somehow it became a war. She became the recipient of death glares and snarky comments. She figured he was talking about bad things about her. He turned everyone against her and then got rid of her. Unbeknownest to her, he was playing games where she didn’t know the rules. She had no way to fight back. (“Deep in the trench of the crossfire/You shot me down from the live wire/Tossed to the loss in your love game/You beat me cheating and now I can't play.”)

                 The chorus is sung again.

                  In the bridge, she isn’t sure what she did to make him hate her. It’s mostly cryptic messages she keeps getting. She knows what’s going on now. But there’s nothing she can do. (“Hit the ground running up from you/Baby, you know I don't want to, no, I want you/But there's nothing left to say/Lost in the riddle you gave me/Caught in the middle, you played me/I see so plainly, but there's nothing left to say/I should have known, I should have known/Known, no, no-no-no-no..”)

               The chorus is sung again.

             In the final section, she repeats she justs want to be alone. (“Ah, all around/Ahh, all around/Watch it, watch it/Watch it, watch it.”)

                  Weaver is hurt and disillusioned by everyone’s betrayal. She sees the best in people. She is determined to get past it and make changes in her life. She was vulnerable and he took advantage of it. It was wrong of him to do it.

                The guileless “OctaHate” needs to catch a break.