i have to disagree with what many people said. i really don’t think this song is meant for commercial success. i think miranda proved herself as a very good writer who wouldn’t kill a song’s meaning to make it more radio friendly.

i love everything about this song. i love how it barely has a melody. i love the lyrics. this “dullness” is what makes the song amazing.

i think she’s currently the best female solo in the country scene. i love miranda!

I am excited for this album I think there is going to be something on there that will break the mold and get her a song of the year, or female of the year at some awards show.

Dudley, for clarification’s sake, I didn’t mean to adversely refer to your rooting for the song in my explanation for why I don’t. I just wanted to put my thought process out there. Actually, a part of me still roots for the song, despite me not wanting to, for the reason you do. Because I like Miranda so much, it’s hard for me to apply the typical reaction as I described above to her. Plus, I couldn’t give up on Miranda so soon, anyway. I mean, I held onto my faith in Keith Urban for quite awhile and I think I’ve been a bigger Lambert fan in general.

That makes sense, Leeann. But just by way of explaining, I’ll be rooting for this song because I would much prefer to see a genuinely interesting, artful song that I don’t like do well because it would suggest an opening at country radio for some such thing. I think of it like some do brussels sprouts. I think that “Dead Flowers” has nutritional value for country radio, even if it is not to my taste.

I don’t think Miranda Lambert will be consulting me for any help with similes anytime soon. ;) Nor should she.

“I’m inclined to feel that the melodic structure matches the song’s emotion so well that I don’t mind that it doesn’t have the zip or the zing of some of her other material.”

Also a good point, Blake — I’ve rationalized the vocal melody and the general loudness of the chorus to myself, but that merely takes me to a place where I admire the song without liking or connecting to it (beyond the lyrics, I mean). I just don’t think it makes sense to yell “Dead flowers!” and the instrumentation seems too orderly to depict a storm.

Jonathan, although I disagree with you on the effectiveness of the arrangement and of Miranda’s vocal on this song, I thought of Coldplay’s “Yellow,” too. That association is a big part of why I’m feeling the disconnect on this song. I, too, am interested in seeing how/whether this song’s motifs get picked up on the rest of Miranda’s upcoming album.

Good point. Perhaps there’s a context that this fits better into. She is more of an albums artist anyway.

I don’t think her first two albums were best introduced by their lead singles either. Interestingly, it was the album openers instead that drove up sales, even though they were released later.

Now, I will.

No.

But those are all qualities that would make for a great album track; I just don’t know that I’m 100% sold on “Dead Flowers” as a stand-alone single.

I’m with the general consensus here. I think the song never really gets off the ground. I like Miranda, and I’m still anxious to hear her new album, but I hope this isn’t one of the stronger tracks.