Waking Life is named after the Richard Linklater film, which is apt because I just watched his first movie, Slacker, last night. Another film made up of vignettes where people discuss various philosophical talking points.
It's an odd track, truth be told. When the introductory vocals came in singing "What is this, this waking life?", my gut reaction was that this was not really a song for me. There's a tone to the singing, a cleanness, that rubs against my own sensibilities and preferences the wrong way. Nicholas is clearly a very good singer, and he really belts out the lines as the track progresses, but the production is that bit too clean, it almost sounds likes a Eurovision song contest entry.
So with that out of the way, I do still think there are things to like here. The chord progression is great. After the intro, this arpeggiated synth comes in and it's really emotional and pretty. This is met with a spoken word section that only works to elevate what's already there. That's my favourite bit of the song, really.
Also, the chorus is HUGE. I'm legitimately impressed at how big the production is. And the way that arpeggiated synth comes back in after the climax, with some incidental drum machines, it ties it together quite nicely.
For me, I just wish it was a bit less clean. The power of the vocals is slightly lost when it's autotuned and compressed within an inch of its life, and that's a shame. It's the kind of song I'd love to hear the demo version of because I bet it would resonate with me a bit harder.