I have just now come from a party where I was its life and soul; witticisms streamed from my lips, everyone laughed and admired me, but I went away — and wanted to shoot myself… The greatest hazard of all, losing one’s self, can occur very quietly in the world, as if it were nothing at all. — Søren Kierkegaard

Kierkegaard knew well the crags and cliffs that surround the social scene, the flinty points that impale themselves on the undersides of those who trade solitude for the party’s Siren call. But he knew also that a voyager could lose one’s soul in solitude as easily as in society.

With ‘The Loud Nothing’ and ‘(The Quiet) Nothing,’ Static In Verona explores the duality of Kierkegaard’s demons: one soul submerged in noise, the other deafened by quietness, both facing a future of nothing. The songs etch LIFE on an echoed wall of pop and rock, a message not lost beneath the massed guitars and cascading choruses.

‘The Loud Nothing’ inscribes the narrative arc of a rock star biopic. ‘The song is about the person who’s the life of the party that never seems to grow up,’ Rob Merz, the single individual behind Static In Verona, told me. ‘The first verse is how fun and great they are to go out with. In the chorus, Hear the sirens sing their deadly song is relating to the sirens in Homer’s Odyssey: meeting beautiful women than might be trouble. The second verse is the reckless side of their life and what a toll that lifestyle leaves behind. The sirens’ deadly song is now the ambulance siren.’

‘(The Quiet) Nothing’ inverts the celebration to create a mood of solitary despair. Punished by loss, a soul without sin – I’ve never done nothing wrong – contemplates the emptiness that stretches from this day into infinity. Time, your time’s past. It goes fast and all that’s left is nothing.

‘The Loud Nothing’ and ‘(The Quiet) Nothing’ are from Static In Verona’s new ten-song album, The Loud Nothing. Rob Merz and Static In Verona have been frequent visitors to these virtual pages. We have featured songs from his previous albums, Everything You Knew Before You Knew Everything, Odd Anthem, and Secrets Like Shadows, as well as a beautiful cover of ‘Daydream Believer’ that features English vocalist SERAPHINA. The Loud Nothing is Rob’s best effort to date, a series of sweeping sonic waves that wash over the listener with the power of a hurtling Chicago train.

Rob was kind enough to provide some background on today’s tracks: ‘I almost rushed ‘The Loud Nothing’ out on Secrets Like Shadows because I’ve had the chorus lyrics and melody for almost two years. I was just really struggling with a verse that complimented the music and chorus. I must have tried five different melodies before settling on the one I used. ‘(The Quiet) Nothing’ is actually an old song, probably 11-12 years old, that I wrote and performed with my old band Ash Avenue. Back then it was just called ‘Nothing.’ Earlier this year I almost had the album completed, but I felt like I was missing a lighter song in the second half. One day I was out with my family and ran into an old friend who said she had recently listened to the Ash Avenue album and how much she loved the original ‘Nothing.’ And I realized a stripped down version of that song would fit perfectly on the album.’

The Loud Nothing is available on Spotify, iTunes, Bandcamp, and Soundcloud. Visit the Static In Verona website to learn more about Rob Merz and his music. And be sure to follow Static In Verona on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.

Bonus Track: Ash Avenue’s ‘Nothing.’ The original electrified version of ‘(The Quiet) Nothing’ is worth several listens. Enjoy!