Mrs. Stadler

"**Mrs. Stadler**" is a song by Mars Argo. It is featured as the third track on their debut album *Technology Is a Dead Bird*.

## Background

Being one of the first songs written for the album, the lyric "I come in peace to drink your wine and find myself in photographs" was referenced in the descriptions of early Grocerybag YouTube uploads in early 2009 such as "Our First Video" and "Art School". An unfinished demo of the song was also previewed in the promotional video "Playing in a Cemetery with Mars Argo", which was released on October 22nd, 2009.

The song is widely assumed to be based on an important person or possible mentor to Mars Argo or Titanic Sinclair, characterized as "Mrs. Stadler", who metaphorically taught them to paint. The lyrics suggest that the mentor is battling cancer or a similar disease, and the narrator quickly notices the changes in her appearance from this. The music video is theorized to take place after she has already died, likely during the funeral reception, where the other guests are too self-indulged to pay their respects to the deceased woman.

In 2023, Sinclair spoke of the song's chord progression, saying "Mrs. Stadler" made "no sense whatsoever". He listed the albums *Low* by David Bowie, *Rubber Soul* by the Beatles, and *Hissing Fauna, Are You the Destroyer?* by of Montreal, as influences behind the track, and explained he originally intended to "put as many chords in a song as [he] could, and get it to make sense in a way". He also mentioned the song "Starman" by David Bowie as what he was "kind of mimicking" during "Mrs. Stadler"'s composition, as he thought its chords "shouldn't work, but they do".

Sinclair referred to the "bum, bum" section of the song as "standard", and said it has "been in millions of songs". He later added it was "like a puzzle for [him]", as he originally did not know how to create a melody over the track's chords. Sinclair also explained the meaning behind the lyrics "I come in peace to drink your wine and find myself in photographs", saying they were "quite literal", and that he was "a stoner" at the time of the song's writing. He concluded by referring to the lyrics "we're all crossing the starting line / It hurts my back to think of it / I wanna leave this place and time" as "dark".

## Lyrics

Mrs. Stadler, won't you teach me how to paint

To paint, today?

Mrs. Stadler, won't you teach me how?

Mrs. Stadler, your hair is turning gray

I heard about your cells today

I didn't want to leave that way, oh, oh, oh

If you see me again, will you still be my friend?

Why must we grow older, older?

And when we meet again, just after freedom ends

When the world is almost over, over

Will everything still be the same?

(Bum, bum, bum...)

I come in peace

To drink your wine

And find myself in photographs

We're all crossing

The starting line

It hurts my back to think of it

I wanna leave

This place and time

Mrs. Stadler taught me to paint

She taught me to live my own way

I've got a feeling, it's so hard to say

But your life will happen anyway, oh, oh

Mrs. Stadler taught me to paint

She taught me to live my own way

I've got a feeling, it's so hard to say

But your life will happen anyway, oh, oh

## Official versions

* Album version – 3:26
	+ Instrumental – 3:26
* Demo version – Unknown
	+ "Playing in a Cemetery with Mars Argo" snippet – 0:38

## **"Mrs. Stadler"**Music video by Mars Argo

### **Length**

3:33

The song's music video was filmed on June 26th, 2010, and uploaded to the Grocerybag YouTube channel on November 11th, 2010, making it the final song from the album to have a music video released. It was directed by Matthew Franklin and Tony Katai, with production handled by Argo and Titanic Sinclair.

Photos from the video were later used to promote the *Linden Place* EP in 2011, one in particular becoming the re-release and "Love in Black and White" cover artworks.

### Synopsis

The video begins with Argo looking through the window of a dollhouse, before posing and singing in darkened rooms of her family home as the song begins. A prominent scene throughout the video depicts Argo attending a dinner with her family, as well as Sinclair, whom she is later seen undressing in one of the bedrooms. A deleted scene of the video shows Sinclair walking around Saginaw in a brown coat, which has only been discovered through promotional images released by Katai.

### Media use

"*Love in Black and White*" (single cover)"*Linden Place*" (EP cover)
## Trivia

* "Mrs. Stadler" features a 1970's Fender Stratocaster and a Squier Jazz Bass in its instrumental.
* In 2023, Sinclair said the song was "nowhere near hit territory", as he was originally not attempting for the track to become a hit during its writing and composition.

## References

1. ↑ "Grocerybag.tv Videos Description". *Tumblr*. Retrieved October 3, 2022.
2. ↑ grocerybagdottv (March 13, 2009). "Art School". *YouTube*. Archived from the original on April 9, 2010. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
3. ↑ grocerybagdottv (October 22, 2009). "Playing in a Cemetery with Mars Argo". *YouTube*. Archived from the original on January 23, 2010. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
4. ↑ DietMtnDewpression (January 12, 2017). "Why Mrs. Stadler is My Favorite Song/Analysis". *Reddit*. Retrieved February 7, 2017.
5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 Titanic Sinclair (September 8, 2023). "'This is Stadler' Titanic Talks Ep. 32". *YouTube*. Retrieved September 15, 2023.
6. ↑ GROCERYBAGDOTTV (June 7, 2010). "@mattyfranklin music video shoot. June 26.". *Twitter*. Archived from the original on June 19, 2010. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
7. ↑ grocerybagdottv (November 11, 2010). "Mars Argo - Mrs. Stadler (Official)". *YouTube*. Archived from the original on February 2, 2014. Retrieved April 22, 2022.

## Navigation

 Non-album