Need 2
Pinegrove
The Need to Create Even in the Absence of Inspiration
The song "Need 2" by the band Pinegrove addresses a very introspective theme common among artists: the need to keep creating even when there isn't something significant to say. Evan Stephens Hall, the vocalist and author of the song, stated that the work is about the creative process of producing new lyrics.
The singer begins the song by expressing a feeling of emptiness, stating that there is nothing important to worry about or talk about. This feeling of emptiness is reinforced by the rhetorical question "What's that sound? What's that song about," which shows how the lyrical self feels lost, unable to find something meaningful to mention in their work.
However, despite feeling that there is nothing relevant to express, the song questions the human need to keep caring about the world and creating art. The repetition of the question "Then why do I seem to need to?" reveals an internal struggle between the lack of inspiration and the compulsion to create. Here, this desire to express does not seem to be caused by external motives but by an internal human need to communicate with others and bring meaning even where there seems to be none.
