I love this song, and find it a perfect (albeit puzzling) coda to the Black Sheep Boy saga. I'm going to post a bit of the Pitchfork review of this, in the hopes of shedding some light...
"He repeats the lyrics from "Missing Children", but in a different context-- not merely with a faster tempo, but also with a more foreboding gravity that has accrued meaning and significance over these seven songs. This recurrence completes a small cycle that begins with "Missing Children", as well as a larger cycle that encompasses the entire Black Sheep Boy project, one that laments the loss of possibilities as lambs become lost rams and children become "numb" adults. Okkervil River end "Last Love Song for Now" singing "over and over and over and over" until Sheff declares, "It's over." Whether that's the band's victory cry or an admission of defeat is undeterminable."
I only disagree with the last sentence - I think the "over and over" repetition is triumphant; the death of the BSB cathartic. We've left the things that keep us crying, and faced away from the self-destruction and nihilism. The missing children have become found adults.
I love this song, and find it a perfect (albeit puzzling) coda to the Black Sheep Boy saga. I'm going to post a bit of the Pitchfork review of this, in the hopes of shedding some light...
"He repeats the lyrics from "Missing Children", but in a different context-- not merely with a faster tempo, but also with a more foreboding gravity that has accrued meaning and significance over these seven songs. This recurrence completes a small cycle that begins with "Missing Children", as well as a larger cycle that encompasses the entire Black Sheep Boy project, one that laments the loss of possibilities as lambs become lost rams and children become "numb" adults. Okkervil River end "Last Love Song for Now" singing "over and over and over and over" until Sheff declares, "It's over." Whether that's the band's victory cry or an admission of defeat is undeterminable."
I only disagree with the last sentence - I think the "over and over" repetition is triumphant; the death of the BSB cathartic. We've left the things that keep us crying, and faced away from the self-destruction and nihilism. The missing children have become found adults.