Greta Van Fleet takes their chaotic trip around the sun with dark comedy “Meeting The Master”
APRIL 9TH 2023 | by EMMA SCHOORS
This past Thursday, I headed to The Wiltern to catch the last night of Inhaler’s US tour, in support of their sophomore record Cuts & Bruises. (If you read our recent Sun Room EP review, you’ll know this has turned into a yearly tradition for me). Feather-lined cowboy hats, neon green light-up signs, and leather pants filled the iconic, 90-year-old venue; some fans I recognized from previous Inhaler shows, but the crowd was largely full of fresh faces.
When you go to a show alone, you find yourself attracting more people to you than when you’re in the comfort of a group. I’ve encountered my fair share of cornering, awkward conversations, and unsolicited comments when by myself. But if you’re lucky, you’ll occasionally meet kind people with interesting stories to tell, who help you pass the time more memorably than you could have by yourself. After all, you already have music in common with everyone in the room. Enter Megan: fellow solo concertgoer and longtime Greta Van Fleet fan.
In terms of concerts, Megan’s seen it all. While I generally consider myself well-versed in music, she was spitballing names I’d never heard of left and right. In-between sets, she told me stories of dancers flashing audiences, shows being abruptly cut short, and shared her biggest concert regret: not seeing Wu-Tang Clan when they stopped by the House of Blues Hollywood before it permanently closed. That experience taught her a valuable lesson: go to the show. Even if it’s far away, even if you’ve seen the band before, even if you go alone. Naturally, and not unlike other fiercely devoted fans of the Frankenmuth-based band, Megan had just attended her 8th and 9th Greta Van Fleet shows. I shared my experience seeing them support Metallica in Las Vegas, and my astonishment at the number of fans who were there solely for them. As we spoke, she was counting down the minutes to 9pm, because their latest single, Meeting The Master, was on the brink of its highly-anticipated release.
The new single, a small taste of what’s to come on the band’s third full-length studio album Starcatcher, is noticeably simpler than their roaring hit singles My Way, Soon or Heat Above. The first two and a half minutes are a tantalizing slow burn, as guitarist Jake Kiszka works an acoustic melody and eases audiences back into their sonic world. Lead singer Josh Kiszka’s vocals are expectedly great, and drummer Daniel Wagner propels the song to a heavier place as it nears its end. Bassist Sam Kiszka provides a reliable low end, and though the track is softer at times, it never comes across as unfulfilling or dull. Somewhere between Jethro Tull’s Reasons For Waiting, Paul Kantner’s Have You Seen The Stars Tonite, and Heart’s Love Alive, the acoustics are deep-rooted yet in constant, powerful motion. “I have known no other master, he has been the only one,” Josh sings.
As for who the ‘master’ is, listeners are starkly split. Some theorize the track delves into religion, and the master is none other than God; others point to the band’s ongoing lyrical storytelling, and conclude that the world described in the song is more idyllic than literal. There are lengthy threads of fans ranting about the band somehow admitting their involvement in the illuminati, while others argue about which religion fits best with the lyrics. The band explained in a recent Instagram post: “In the voice of a devout believer … the song details the love these fervent followers have for their teacher, and their firm belief in his vision.” Being able to interpret the message is the whole point. This is the same discourse that surrounds Led Zeppelin’s Stairway To Heaven, or Eagles’ Hotel California; the not knowing, the vagueness, the metaphors wrapped in fictional parallels to reality, is part of the intrigue.
“In the master’s chambers they gathered for the feast,” Eagles vocalist and drummer Don Henley sings in the latter. “They stab it with their steely knives, but they just can’t kill the beast.” To me, the beast in Hotel California is the addiction and excess brought on by fame. It’s being surrounded by people who assure you, as Henley sings, “We are programmed to receive,” because they’re embroiled in a loop of indulgence, and desperately need to believe it won’t kill them. “Pink champagne on ice” details alcoholism, while the character described as “Tiffany-twisted” is jaded by the lap of luxury. If you’re knee-deep in any pleasure for long enough, it will start to fail to feel good. Hotel California is the purgatory you’re left circling while you come to grips with the fact that the high you’re chasing will never come. Everyone you meet there, then, are “mirrors on the ceiling” – inescapable reflections of you.
It’s a show of Greta Van Fleet’s smarts as lyricists that they’ve managed to write a song that stirs up so much controversy without so much as one actually controversial lyric. It’s esoteric to the nth degree, perhaps only meant to be understood by the band themselves, yet it leaves room for listeners to assign their own significance, much like the intense debate associated with rock’s more mystical hits. When Josh vocalizes that it’s his “time to go home,” ‘home’ could be heaven, a feeling, a person, or the highest version of himself. Of course, the band has every right to narrow down what the song actually means. But in the case that clarification never comes, if you want it to be about God, it’s about God. If you want it to be about the universe, it’s about the universe. And if you want to overlook the lyrics altogether, the instrumentals are attention-grabbing enough to do so. One user took to the band’s Instagram post promoting the song to share their theory: “It’s all allegorical… storytelling with a modicum of truth intertwined.”
There’s much to be said about the level of passion Greta Van Fleet fans, lovingly coined the Peaceful Army, have for the band, and for each other. They travel the world donning layers of silk, velvet, chiffon and lace, exchanging film photos and roses in their very own Summer of Love. In the years since their first reaching worldwide virality, many fans have made the trek to the band’s Michigan hometown, where they can purchase T-shirts, vinyl, CD’s and more, and learn more about the rock group’s roots as they explore. Simply put, they fill a vacancy in music. They’re a safe space for classic rock fans who thought they’d never again experience the inception of a modern band that thrilled them, and for a younger generation of listeners who are blown away by their comprehensive visuals and arresting sound. Meeting The Master is an impressive return, and an exciting peek into the expanse of the Starcatcher era.
Listen to “Meeting The Master” by Greta Van Fleet below.
VIDEO BY PAIGE SARA STUDIO