Hasty Oolong Tea

The song "Legends of the Hidden Temple" by milo (apparently he does not capitalize it), tells the story of a modern man. And it is poetry. The song is part of the album Thing That Happen at Day,  which is part of pair, the other being Things That Happen at Night. One of the reoccurring trends on the albums is milo's purposeful overuse of allusions. Almost every line contains some kind of reference, forming into a thick forest of cryptic meanings and strangely placed lines, and "Legends of the Hidden Temple" is probably the most dense in terms of this. He uses these give the reader a feel for the rut he is in, and contrasts it with the past in order to develop this even more.

Before the song even begins, milo makes a reference in the song title, which is the name of a game show from the mid 90's, a time that he looks back upon fondly.

He opens with a statement about his current financial situation right off the bat:

     We were drinking coffee out of mason jars

     And replacing stars with cheap taboos

Although mason jar coffee is often associated with the hipster movement, he is probably referencing the fact that he has no money, which is reinforced by his choice of the word "cheap" in the next line. The "stars" he talks about could be his dreams, celebrities or literal stars, but whatever which way, they represent some idealized concept that he is substituting with some shallow desire. He is already filling Perrine's requirement for multidimensionality while also introducing allusions into the song.

In the second verse, milo says a complex sequence:
     Only muster the courage to leave the house when the oolong is gone

     I don't like my lentils hard

     You snatched me up like one of Olmec’s temple guards
     I splurged and bought a case of Bubba Cola
     For Pete’s sake, we had plans to buy a bloody Corolla

For a long time I was so confused by this section of the song. Eventually, though, I figured it out through Google. Oolong is just a type of tea, although it could also be weed, and the main focus of the line is that he has become so reclusive that he only leaves for leaves. It seems unrelated to the rest of the section, but it is important because it provides context for the break in the next line. where the lyrics shift directions entirely, talking about his food preferences and another reference to the game show. Instead of just allusions, he uses this break in the poem to show how intrusive his past is on his current life. He is trying to be serious and confront his money problems, but instead an unrelated memory comes flying in and disrupts it. But despite how unrelated it is, the flow of the music doesn't stop, almost implying that it is such a common occurrence that he can keep rapping through it. The next to lines are an exclamation about his frustrations with poverty. Bubba Cola is a cheap drink, but by buying it he is still spending way too much money, a fact that he is frustrated with, evident by his anger at once being on track to buying a car in the next line. His use of "Pete's sake" is also interesting, because he curses all over the album, but not here. Its possible that this another intrusion by his childhood, this time censoring his anger. This part of the song connects to the listener by giving insight into his thought processes and frustrations.

As the song fades out, milo ends with, "I feel like Duke William in the Battle of Hastings". This is a literal reference to the Battle of Hastings, where Duke William won by pretending to flee and then catching his opponents off guard. milo feels that he is doing something similar in life, but what that is is kind of ambiguous. It could be talking about how his unique style is allowing him to succeed. Or it could be referencing the shady ways he is making ends meet, and that he feels as though he shouldn't have success because of this, even though he does. And again, it could be another reference to something he learned in history class as a child, another example of his childhood creeping in. Its a simple line, but its ambiguity and unique reference make it a good example of the way milo fills his lines with overlapping complexity.

I only found milo earlier this year, and though he can get very cryptic, I found that slowly picking apart the lines with each listen through has made him one of my favorite artists. His dense lyrics add to the overall production and feel of the song, and I feel that it is both good poetry and just good music.