Song Club #30: Imperfection

Finding grace in the weathered, the worn, and the asymmetrical

As a songwriter and producer whose ideas are not met by their executional ability, it has been wise, even necessary, for me to embrace imperfection. In some ways, it’s become a signature in my work: I often leave ambient noise and small mistakes in my recordings, allowing them to create new textures and meaning.

I grew up in the 90s hearing the phrase wabi-sabi thrown around quite a lot. It was a big, over-used concept and I had no idea what it meant. I would hear someone say things were ‘wabi-sabi’ and assumed it meant something like ‘a-okay’ … I guess I wasn’t totally wrong? Rooted in Zen Buddhism, wabi-sabi embraces the beauty of imperfection, impermanence, and incompleteness. It finds grace in the weathered, the worn, and the asymmetrical.

Thinking about it today, it seems I may have been practicing wabi-sabi in music without knowing it for a while. I’m a major proponent of letting songs be finished, rather than grinding them towards genius. I’d rather share something rough and vulnerable when I’m feeling it, then wait to it feels perfectly ready. I believe these things make songwriting more alive.

So, this week, let’s embrace imperfection in our writing.

Big love and keep going, 

Lucy 

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SONG PROVOCATIONS

Write a song that celebrates imperfection.

Think about a flaw or imperfection – either in yourself or in the world around you. How can you turn this into something beautiful through your lyrics and melody? Remember, the goal isn't to "fix" the imperfection, but to appreciate it for what it is.