00’s

Scuzz Sundays: Papa Roach – ‘Between Angels and Insects’

May 1, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Infest’ (LP/Album) (Released on April 25th, 2000) (via DreamWorks/NPG Studios)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to pay a visit to one of the ghosts of Pop-Punk’s past with a new weekly edition of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on the blog, given how it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! In the past few weeks, we’ve tied our weekly throwbacks into some form of current affairs, such as this autumn’s re-union gig for Hard-Fi or the almost exact 20th anniversary of The Caesar’s ‘Love For The Streets’ album, and we’re continuing the same trend today. The Vacaville-formed Alternative Metal band Papa Roach released their eleventh studio album, ‘Ego Trip’, on April 8th to a fairly positive reception from critics. Therefore, we’re going to remind ourselves of one of their classic tracks today to fit the theme of ‘Scuzz Sundays’. Released in 2000 as the third single taken from their Triple Platinum-certified second LP ‘Infest’, ‘Between Angels and Insects’ reached #17 on the UK Singles Charts and it enjoyed a nice run on the radio airplay circuit in late Spring of 2001 after the music video had released. The album itself ventured into the buzz of the Nu-Metal and Rap-Rock genre elements of the time, and it debuted at #5 on the US Billboard 200 chart, additionally earning Papa Roach a Grammy Awards nomination for ‘Best New Artist’ to reflect this success. Find the Joseph Khan-directed video for ‘Between Angels and Insects’ below.

In a SongFacts interview with Papa Roach’s Tobin Esperance, it was revealed how the track took inspiration from ‘Fight Club’, as he noted, “The lyric in the bridge section was taken from the conversation that Brad Pitt was having with Edward Norton on the airplane“, in the piece. ‘Between Angels and Insects’ remains a live favourite for Papa Roach too, as Esperance also told SongFacts it was “Definitely still a really fun song to play live. That song definitely goes off“, in 2011 as well. The title of ‘Between Angels and Insects’ doesn’t appear lyrically, but there’s an implication that human morality sits between angel and insect – the divine and the primitive – in other words. Lyrics like “There’s no money, there’s no possession, only obsession” and “You can find a conclusion, lifestyle and obsession/Diamond rings get you nothing but a life long lesson” are centered around greed, implying that money just can’t solve your deeper psychological issues, with the verses and the chorus commenting on how the base desires like possessions bring us further from angels and closer to insects. The steady drums, the Rap-Rock rhythms of the vocals and the thunderous guitar riffs, with a heavy but largely melodic Pop-Punk skew, feel rather typical of the time and the instrumentation does not feel different to many of the Grunge-inflicted rock songs of the album’s era, but it feels quite nostalgic twenty years later and it can remind you of how your life may have been at the time. While the chords feel rather unoriginal, there is still some decently thought through commentary here on how we value our possessions and how striving for things we feel are positive can lead to negative impacts like addiction, and these themes never really overstay their welcome despite seeming quite universal. The band’s accompanying melodies for the lead vocals push the metaphorical boat into stormier seas, while the main bulk of the instrumentation adds just enough differentiation from other Papa Roach tracks such as ‘Last Resort’ or ‘…To Be Loved’ without affecting the formula that has been laid out for it. Overall, I don’t feel this is a masterpiece, as the lyrics and progression feel a little bland and generic, but there are elements of greatness here. The songwriting works well, and the instrumentation is solid. This is probably not a Last Resort for your Papa Roach fix.

Pictured: Papa Roach performing ‘Last Resort’ at the Reading & Leeds Music Festival (2014) (Photo via BBC Music)

You can check out some of my previously published Papa Roach-related posts below:

‘Last Resort’ (2020) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/07/26/scuzz-sundays-papa-roach-last-resort/

‘…To Be Loved‘ (2021) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2021/11/21/scuzz-sundays-papa-roach-to-be-loved/

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘The Paramour Sessions’ (LP) (Released on September 12th, 2006) (via Geffen Records)

That brings us to the end of the page for another day! Thank you for joining me, and we’ll be kicking off a new week’s worth of posts as well as the new month’s worth of posts – you lucky reader. It begins with a fun and chilled summer-themed new single by a Norwegian singer-songwriter who has released eight studio albums and created his self-titled full-length record, released in 2011, in a short yet intense time period of three weeks. The single in question features the talents of Japanese Pop project CHAI.

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Scuzz Sundays: The Caesars – ‘Jerk It Out’

April 24, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Love for The Streets’ (LP) (Released on April 22nd, 2002) (via Virgin Records/Dolores)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to pay a visit to one of the old ghosts of Pop-Punk’s past with a new addition to our ‘Scuzz Sundays’ library, given that it’s always been my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! ‘Love For The Streets’ was released on April 22nd, 2002 via Virgin/Dolores as the third full-length LP effort for the Indie Rock band The Caesars, as they are most widely known, who were formed in Stockholm, Sweden in 1995. Therefore, as of this week, the record has just celebrated its 20th anniversary. It makes for a really great opportunity for us to remember ‘Jerk It Out’ – the band’s most well-known track – that was taken as a single from the album. Following one re-issue in 2003 and another, more wider, re-release in 2005 – ‘Jerk It Out’ became an international success as it reached #8 in the UK Singles Chart and #70 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart. It is definitely one of those tracks that you have heard many times before, but you most probably have not heard it in ages or did not know who performed it because, admittedly, the group did not have much more impact on popular culture outside of their domestic market in the years after. The Caesars are also known by two other names, as they were originally known as Caesars Palace natively. However, they changed their name to The Caesars to avoid confusion with the famous Las Vegas-based hotel of the same name and, likely due to copyright, they are known as Twelve Caesars in Scandinavia. My head is spinning with confusion, so please do me a merciful favour and press ‘Play’ on the ‘Jerk It Out’ music video below.

‘Love For The Streets’ has actually been certified as Gold in sales in their native country of Sweden, and you may also remember their hit ‘Jerk It Out’ from a global advertising campaign for the old iPod models and the, now rather obsolete, iPad Mini products designed by the corporate tech giant Apple. An easy track to write about due to it being so straightforward, ‘Jerk It Out’ dives headfirst into the 00’s Garage-Rock revival trends with an outrageously catchy Keyboard/Synth hook that twists and turns ferociously, as the sharp yet undemanding Drums kick in and the spaced-out effects on the keyboard gives the track the swirling, dizzying vibe that has made it feel so memorable. The lyrics are incredibly laid back and clear cut, as hooks like “Wind me up, put me down, start me off and watch me go/I’ll be running circles around you sooner than you know” and “Because it’s easy once you know how it’s done/You can’t stop now, it’s already begun” convey the themes of perseverance and finding reward out of taking risks very evidently. A distorted organ sample and a gentle guitar solo, towards the end of the track, keep the mid-60’s Garage Pop quality from becoming too predictable, and the catchy lyrics are married to the unique Synth style fairly well. That is all there really is to write about the track because it is just a fun, but simple, piece of music that feels like it could have been recorded in 1966 by a Garage band in Ohio. It equally sounds like a rather basic band manifesto in writing a three-minute pop gem designed to be a hit in the charts, which doesn’t usually sit very well with me, but I give The Caesars the benefit of the doubt on ‘Jerk It Out’ because the track is well-produced in being filled with so many simple, but catchy, segments. While being pretty much the definition of a one-hit wonder, ‘Jerk it Out’ is still just good fun.

Pictured: Joakim Åhlund (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), César Vidal (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar), David Lindqvist (Bass Guitar/Occasional Backing Vocals) and Nini Keller (Drums/Percussion) (2003) (Photo via ACharts.co)

I think I’ve ‘Jerked’ out however much I can handle (No, I do not mean it like that, Rude) musically on the blog today, but thank you for continuing to support the site every day. I’ll be back tomorrow as we begin the final week of April with the diverse voice of a Los-Angeles based vocalist and violinist currently signed to Stones Throw Records known for her electric blending of African music and futuristic R&B. Earlier in the year, she headlined the Stones Throw showcase live event at South By Southwest.

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Way Back Wednesdays: The Knife – ‘Silent Shout’

April 20, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Karin Dreijer (Lead Vocals/Keyboard) and Olof Dreijer (Splicing/Effects/Bass) (2006) (via NPR; press shoot)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to go retro with a striking piece that will tell you a story of fairly recent history with another entry of ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on One Track At A Time, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Ever an elusive and dynamic duo, cult Swedish electronic music duo The Knife (Comprised of siblings Karin and Olof Dreijer) were never afraid to, somewhat uninentionally, capture the attention of the mainstream with their dark-leaning blend of Dubstep, EDM, Art-Pop and Psychedelia, also including some slower and darker strains of Hip-Hop and R&B, throughout the years to create music that, although Pop, was more far-reaching and progressive. First gaining an international following through their 2003 album ‘Deep Cuts’, the duo managed their own record company – Rabid Records – throughout their years of activity between 1999 and 2014. They were known for donning their Venetian masks to hide their faces in many public appearances, and they have won a number of Swedish Grammis awards despite refusing to attend the ceremonies. Although the duo decided to call it a day and disband in 2014, Karin started her own solo project Fever Ray in 2009, while Olof performs as a DJ under the monikers of DJ Coolof and Oni Ayhun. Last year, The Knife celebrated their 20th anniversary by announcing a range of re-issues on Vinyl and concert streams including BTS footage of their various album’s development. ‘Silent Shout’ – their third LP and arguably most well-received release – was among the works being featured. Let’s remember the title single below.

‘Silent Shout’ spawned four singles and the music video for the title track, along with some of the promo photos doing the rounds of the album’s press campaign, were equally inspired by the works of German-American animator Oskar Fischinger and the ‘Black Hole’ series of comic books created by the American cartoonist Charles Burns. This was also a highly influential release – with fellow artists like Lykke Li, Niki and The Dove, Tove Lo and Denmark’s MØ picking up on The Knife’s Dubstep-influenced blend of Dark Electronica and subversive Dance music rather noticeably in the years following its release in 2006. ‘Silent Shout’ – the title track – is an amalgamation of the record’s club-driven musicality and rewarding lyricism, as the deep House-leaning anthem starts off with a drawing set of Synths that evoke a Sci-Fi aesthetic as they waver along to a chilling, unearthly electronic backdrop of multi-tracked Keys and brooding Drums. A barely audible vocal comes in shortly, which also evokes a ghostly – not to mention a slightly haunting – atmosphere at times as the processed vocals are crashed through the ringer of digital manipulation. The severe distortions of Karin’s lyrics create a daring and jarring presence that pulsates from the mid-tempo opening to the early 90’s Techno and Trance qualities of the slowly bubbling outroduction, telling a narrative of a life gone awry that feels tense and high-octane while suiting the template of unpredictable Pop that shapes the rest of the full-length album. The lyrics give the tempo a slightly melodic uplift with their robotic feel, but the rich electronic backdrop incorporates a wide-ranging series of Lo-Fi Hip Hop and Dark Ambient elements, especially in how the reverb keeps the Drums and Synths feeling grounded, without overstating their direct influences. Overall, ‘Silent Shout’ represents some of The Knife’s most consistent and layered work, both in terms of the heightened production and the forward-thinking concept, from their golden years. The stunning title track marries elastic vocals and cosmopolitan instrumentation to a perfectionist level and there’s clearly a valid reason why it is remembered very fondly.

Pictured: Vinyl bundle of ‘Deep Cuts’ (Released on January 17th, 2003) (via Rabid Records)

Thank you for checking out my latest blog post and supporting my creativity, as you have no idea how much that it means to me to see some love being registered for the site. I’ll be back tomorrow, as always, to do ‘Thursday’ with a cheerful dance track by a Los Angeles-based Alternative Soul duo with a confusing name who, originally formed in Chicago, met in 2012. Their debut LP is out now via Nettwerk Music Group.

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Scuzz Sundays: Hard Fi – ‘Hard To Beat’

April 17, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Stars Of CCTV’ (LP) (Released on July 4th, 2005) (via Necessary Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and I’m wishing you a good Easter Sunday with my latest installment of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on the blog, given how it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! To be 100% transparent, I barely thought about ‘Easter’ this year and since ‘Easter Music’ isn’t really a thing, and it is not inclusive for all cultures and relgions anyway, I thought that I’d simply cover a band who have been in the news lately this week. The band in question is Hard-Fi, who released three albums between the years of 2004 and 2011 which all did decent business, spawning well-remembered hit singles like ‘Cash Machine’ and ‘Living For The Weekend’ in the process, before going on hiatus in 2014. The band received one Mercury Prize and two BRIT Awards nominations for their work, as well as a #1 album in 2007 and a 2x platinum certification for the sales of their debut album. They also dipped their toes into podcasting with their series ‘Hard-Fi: Rockin’ The City’ that was widely available in 2007 and even got nominated for ‘Best Podcast’ at the Digital Music Awards that year. I think that ‘Hard To Beat’ must be their best-known single as it did the rounds on the soundtracks of ‘FIFA 06’ and ‘MLB 06: The Show’ shortly following release and it reached #9 on the UK Singles Chart as well as #34 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks Chart in the US too. If you’ve been following Hard Fi-related news lately – and you would be forgiven if you haven’t honestly due to them not being around for such a long time – they have been teasing a rare fifteenth anniversary show for ‘Stars Of CCTV’ with posters spotted on the London Underground that features a date pointing to a gig in mid-October. Just don’t shout ‘Hard-Fi’ if you see it next to your fellow passengers because they would probably take you for some kind of a mental lunatic. Let’s revisit ‘Hard To Beat’ below.

A series of social media posts relating to ‘Stars Of CCTV’ have been posted gradually by Hard-Fi elsewhere and they have not performed live together since 2014. In April 2020, Richard Archer – the frontman of the Staines-Upon-Thames formed indie rock outfit – told NME that Hard-Fi were considering a return to the stage to mark their unforgotten first album’s 15-year milestone, saying, “That album has defined people’s lives and when they were growing up. We’ll definitely do it at some point, but with new music too so we’re not just trading on past glories”, in an interview. ‘Hard To Beat’ takes obvious cues from Daft Punk’s ironically overplayed 2002 hit track ‘One More Time’ with filtered disco guitar sounds mixing with a more urban twist created by the lightly distorted Synths and Grunge-driven Bass melodies. Lyrics like “You in a short skirt/Shining eyes of deep brown/You had a dirty hook, you caught me on your hook” feel rhythmic and have a catchy twang to them, but the light darkness of the sexually aroused emotions consummates the rather evident marriage between the LCD Soundystem-influenced House genre explorations and the more “ladd-ish” feel of the ruthlessly driving mid-00’s lead guitar riffs. A hint of paranoia comes through, with lyrics like “I said come on, let’s dance/We’ve got to take our chance/You whispered in my ear/You wanna get out of here?” that talk about living in an environment like London, even though the band are much closer to Cornwall. Some obvious shots of Franz Ferdinand and The Clash are in here too, with the danceable Synths drawing out the vocals at the end and gruff Drum melodies riffing against the slightly more expansive electronic effects that create the Disco vibe most vibrantly. There is a light political commentary on surveillance and urban decay within their songwriting in the grander scheme of things beyond ‘Hard To Beat’ as a standalone single, but Archer doesn’t quite have the sharp-pointed vocal dexterity of Maximo Park’s Paul Smith or the socially observational abilities of Arctic Monkeys’ Alex Turner – two comparable indie rock bands that also found fame in a similar timeframe – but there’s an admirable attempt to ground the material in a sense of place that isn’t just tied to London in here, nevertheless. The Disco vibe is damn infectious too, but the lyricism works better when they’re smoothly trying to pick up love interests instead of reciting pains of urban dilapidation. That said, the track is a fun and melodic single that wears it’s influences on it’s sleeves and it simply feels very catchy. It felt a little disposable for the time but, admittedly, it still gets a fair amount of airplay today. It has stood the test of time because it is so memorable and pretty dynamic, if nothing very special. It goes to show that sometimes a simple throwback is, well, hard to beat.

Pictured: Richard Archer (Lead Vocals/Lead Guitar), Kai Stephens (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals), Steve Kemp (Drums/Backing Vocals) and Ross Phillips (Rhythm Guitar/Synths/Backing Vocals) (2006) (Photo via Getty Images)

Thank you for checking out my latest post because your support is absolutely valued every time, and I will be here kicking off the brand new week’s worth of music posts tomorrow with a review for a recent release by an Atlanta-based Hip-Hop duo who are also founding members of the Spillave Village collective. Their well-received second studio album, ‘Ghetto Gods’, was released in February via Dreamville Records.

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Scuzz Sundays: The Darkness – ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’

March 27, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Permission To Land’ (LP/Album) (Released on July 7th, 2003) (via Atlantic Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us folk to spread the love to our elders for Mother’s Day with a ‘Scuzz Sundays’ anthem that vaguely resembles the theme in some way with yet another daily track on the blog, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Justin Hawkins – the frontman of Mercury Prize-nominated British Glam-Rock band The Darkness – has recently made a few appearances on television screens in the UK, first mentoring one of the teams of pensioner rock stars on BBC Two’s ‘Rock Till You Drop’, and appearing in a Karaoke segment for ITV 1’s ‘Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway’ to sing ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ for likely the three billionth time in his life, and so we’re going to remember his band’s arguably most well-known track – as I’d argue that ‘Christmas Time (Don’t Let The Bells End)’ may also take the cake for that title – for this week’s entry of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ as it is just a simple song about love that will resonate with many over the course of this Mother’s Day. In their time, The Darkness have headlined Download Festival in 2011 and the Isle Of Wight Festival in 2012 and, despite some of the original members splitting off to pursue seperate projects and Hawkins indulging his fancy in a few side projects over the years, they are still active today, having released a new album – ‘Motorheart’ – last year. ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ saw Hawkins’ band rise to prominence in 2000 because it reached #2 in the UK Singles Chart, beaten to the punch only by the similarly erm… lovely…. classic of ‘Where Is The Love?’ by The Black Eyed Peas. I bet you haven’t seen the video for a few years, so let’s get nostalgic with the piece below.

‘Permission To Land’ – the album that ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ was taken from as a single – is widely considered to be the catalyst for The Darness’ Brit Award-winning and Hammersmith-performing success, as it topped the UK Album’s Chart and it reached the top 40 of the Billboard 200 in the US. The memorable hook of “My heart’s in overdrive and you’re behind the steering wheel” was also reportedly inspired by the love of cars that Hawkins’ Dad has, according to Duncan Haskell of Songwriting Magazine. The rest of the track is crowd-pleasing and anthemic stuff, with catchy hooks like “I wanna kiss you every minute, every hour, every day/You’ve got me in a spin but everything is a-okay” and “There’s a chance we can make it now/We’ll be rocking till’ the sun goes down” that are straightforward and communicate the brash romanticism of the track in the clearest way possible. The bass and the drums are upbeat, while the vocals and the costumes scream 90’s Glam Rock with a hint of more progressive styles when the bulky, arena-sized guitar solo kicks in. You get a sense that the track was designed to build the solo’s as much as the repetitous chorus, and it was also designed to have the guitar breaks in it. Hawkins’ presence is a very charismatic one, although his screeching breaks could get a little tiresome for some. I also think it helps to complement the visual presentation too, where we’re getting traditional Glam Rock turned right up to eleven. Overall, ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ isn’t necessarily a track that I’m a particularly huge fan of due to its repetition and simple design, but it is a fun crowd pleaser that doesn’t take itself very seriously and it’s definitely more like “a stick it on at a wedding and everybody knows it” hit rather than anything complicated. They all played it straight.

Pictured: Justin Hawkins (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Keyboard), Dan Hawkins (Lead Guitar/Backing Vocals), Frankie Poullain (Bass Guitar/Backing Vocals) & Rufus Tiger Taylor (Drums/Vocals) (2019) (Photo by Neill Barston)

That’s all of the love that I could muster up on the blog today! Once again, a happy Mother’s Day to all readers that it applies to, and thank you for supporting myself and independent creatives by following the site. It’s back to the daily grind tomorrow as we start off another week’s worth of posts by taking a more soulful route. We’re going to be listening to a recent single by a London-born R&B and Gospel singer who has earned national support from BBC Radio 1. He has toured with James Bay, Chance The Rapper and Allen Stone. His debut full-length studio LP, ‘Untidy Soul’, is out now.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Roots Manuva – ‘Witness (1 Hope)’

March 23, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Roots Manuva in promotional artwork for ‘4everrevolution’ (2011) (Photo via MusicRadar.com)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and if you haven’t had your breakfast yet, it’s time to get your fill as we go retro with a 00’s British Dub/Hip-Hop classic as we go retro for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’ on the blog, where we revisit some of the seminal sounds of the past, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Widely considered to be a reference to ‘Doctor Who’ with the intentionally similar melody to the sci-fi phenomenon’s main theme track, ‘Witness (1 Hope)’, released in 2001 by the Stockwell-born rapper and producer Roots Manuva, is a quintessential tribute to British cultural roots that was a stark contrast to the influences of Hip-Hop from the US that was prominent in most other UK hip-hop releases at that point. Infusing the track with Dancehall and Psych-Funk elements, Manuva garnered widespread acclaim for his diverse production and amusing lyricism with the UK Top 45 track. Manuva has since been described as “one of the most influential artists in British music history” by Vice as recently as 2016, having produced several well-acclaimed albums like 2008’s ‘Slime & Reason’, 2002’s ‘Dub Come Save Me’ and, in the case of today’s track, 2001’s ‘Run Come Save Me’. He has also collaborated with an extensive list of other artists including Charli 2na, Gorillaz, Fun Lovin’ Criminals, Beth Orton, DJ Shadow, Jamie Cullum, Leftfield, Nightmares On Wax and The Cinematic Orchestra throughout the years. Released on Big Dada in 2001, Manuva’s album breakthrough ‘Run Come Save Me’ earned him a MOBO Award for ‘Best Hip Hop Act’ of that same year. Q also listed the record as one of the best 50 albums of 2001, as Manuva was showered with praise from critics for his individual approach to contemporary Hip-Hop at the time and the uniquely British edge to his songwriting. These days, Roots Manuva is still fairly active. His latest album release was 2015’s ‘Bleeds’ and he headlined the Lounge On The Farm festival in Canterbury, Kent in 2019. Let’s remember the video for ‘Witness (One Hope)’ below.

The Mat Kirby-directed music video that you have just seen – which features Roots Manuva taking part in a sports day at his previous primary school that he truly attended in real life – is a bizzare piece, but it also gained similar acclaim from critics for it’s humorous scenes and original plot. Sports Day is also something that may mean nothing to schools from other countries, and so it really fits the vibe of his track’s point, in a weirdly fitting way. The track starts off with the aforementioned bass line that squelches and crackles to the tune of self-aware lyrics like “I sit here contented with this cheese on toast” and “We drown ten pints of bitter” that reference unquestionably British themes. The low-fidelity bassline has a downbeat, low-end pummeling quality and pulsating, throbbing rhythms that has a low-budget, DIY sense of production to it. On the Reggae front, there’s a fusion of organic Funk and heavy Dancehall going on here, with rickety and makeshift Dub sounds that Manuva claims was composed in protest to the poor quality of the sound systems being used in British night-clubs in the early 00’s, and the deliberate mimicry of the ‘Doctor Who’ theme track is another audacious jab at British popular culture while complementing the Spoken Word delivery of his half-rapped vocals. On the lyrical front, he uses sharp refrains like “I feel the pain of a third world famine, We count them blessings and keep jamming” to draw from diverse imagery of his Jamaican roots, and he’s never afraid to anglicize these ideas for wider accessibility while seeming self-conscious about it. Ultimately, ‘Witness (1 Hope)’ still holds up today as a wonderfully bizzare take on British-Jamaican male experiences and seeking identity in a multi-cultural environment, where the Dub influences feel as sharp as they are lovingly unsullied by the idea of perfection. The lyrics are still unique and innovative, while the track and video still pack an effective punch because of how amusing and engaging they both feel. It was wildly different to anything else at the time and it’s a track that, while holds an influence other modern DIY-style Hip-Hop tracks, also feels impossible to truly duplicate in the same way again. The most relatable element is how we all had to just survive Sports Day. Brilliant, and only he could get away with it.

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Run Come Save Me’ (LP/Album) (Released on August 13, 2001) (via Big Dada Records)

That brings me to the end of another throwback post and, as always, thank you very much for supporting the site today. I’ll be back tomorrow, as we head across the shores to the US to review a recent single by a Brooklyn-based indie rock trio who will be performing at The Junction in Cambridge on March 30th. They have supported names like Pixies, Wolf Alice and Cherry Glazerr and they have released material on labels like Fat Possum Records and Mom + Pop Music. They gained the attention of critics with their sets at South By Southwest & CMJ Music Marathon in the mid-2010’s.

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Scuzz Sundays: Maximo Park – ‘Our Velocity’

March 20, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Paul Smith (Lead Vocals/Keyboard/Producer/Rhythm Guitar), Duncan Lloyd (Lead Guitar/Bass Guitar/Occasional Backing Vocals) and Tom English (Drums/Percussion) (2020) (Photo via readdork.com)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and the time has come for us to revisit one of the more ‘Scuzzy’ indie anthems of the mid-00’s as we remember the ghosts of Pop-Punk’s past for ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on the blog, which ties in to my goal of writing up about a different piece of music every day! Released in 2007, ‘Our Velocity’ is a ferocious Pop/Rock single coming from Newcastle Upon Tyne’s Maximo Park, led by their excellent and really energetic frontman Paul Smith. They seem to have been pigeon-holed a little into the ‘Indie Landfill’ of the 00’s where there were heaps upon heaps of other bands following some similar ideas musically, but Maximo Park have stood the test of time as they are still recording today. In fact, they gained a rather kind amount of praise for ‘Nature Always Wins’ – their latest full-length album record – an architecturally designed set list of tracks that became something of an unlikely comeback to the UK’s rock mainstream for the band, as a surprising campaign was led to help it score the UK’s number one album spot. It ended up reaching #2 – I like to think that some of the love was aided by my support on the site – with just a few hundred sales separating it from Architects ‘For Those That Wish To Exist’ at the #1 spot – at the time of it’s first week of release in February, 2021. At the time that ‘Our Velocity’ was being issued alongside its crafty music video, the band were following up on their Mercury Prize-nominated debut LP with ‘Our Earthly Pleasures’ in 2007. Suprisingly, their first album was actually released on the legendary experimental label Warp Records – the home of IDM pioneers such as Aphex Twin, Plaid, Boards Of Canada and Squarepusher. ‘Our Velocity’ was produced by Gil Norton, and it reached Silver sales certification status in the UK. Let’s remind ourselves of the hit track below.

Teletext’s Planet Sound music page named ‘Our Velocity’ as the best single of 2007, and it was also used in Channel 4’s ‘Hollyoaks’ TV series, as well as video games like ‘Guitar Hero: On Tour – Modern Hits’ and ‘Project Gotham Racing 4’ shortly following its release. Written by guitarist Duncan Lloyd and lyricist Paul Smith, the track was written as a response to the international conflicts that the UK was involved in at the time, mostly being the middle eastern wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. ‘Our Velocity’ starts off with a blend of 8-Bit synth effects that wouldn’t sound too out of place in a ‘Super Mario’ video game title, before the squelching guitar riffs and the tight Drum section introduces us to the next part of the track, where Smith recites dramatic yet poetic lyrics like “I’m not a man, I’m a machine/Chisel me down until I am clean” and “There is a poison in the air/A mix of chemicals and fear” that hit quite hard when you know about the influences behind the songwriting, and they are accentuated brilliantly by the vibrant mix of rock ‘n’ roll and electronic production. The rest of Smith’s lyrics come across like a ramble that comes from a stream of consciousness, with aggressive quips like “I’ve got no one to call in the middle of the night anymore/I am just alone with these thoughts” flowing out in contrast to more politically charged lines like “You’re asking for commitment/When I’m somewhere in-between” that pack a more socio-economic punch. True, if outspoken, lyrics like “If everyone became so sensitive/I wouldn’t have to be so sensitive” set the scene up too. The guitar riffs wind through the breakneck stages of being faster and faster each time, while the bass is frenzied and the pace briefly pulls away for a few minutes as Smith delivers the pre-chorus refrain, before the dizzying drums and the fizzy guitar riffs of a gently camp abandon separates the structure up a little to resemble a more radio-friendly sound. ‘Our Velocity’ is packed with a precise amount of lyrics and references, with plenty of ideas in terms of the instrumentation too, although it may come across to me as just a tad bit over-ambitious at times due to the chaotic nature of the layout. Paul Smith was bang on the money as the front-man of the piece however, and the execution of the music video is faultless. A superb showing that packs a lot into a concise run time.

Pictured: Maximo Park in a promotional photoshoot for ‘Nature Always Wins’ (2020) (Photo Credit: Em Cole)

Underrated no longer, you can check out some of Maximo Park’s most recent stuff here:

‘Baby, Sleep’ (2020) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2020/11/30/todays-track-maximo-park-baby-sleep/

‘All Of Me’ (2021) – https://onetrackatatime.home.blog/2021/02/27/todays-track-maximo-park-all-of-me/

Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Nature Always Wins’ (LP) (Released on February 26th, 2021) (via Prolifica Inc.)

That’s all for now! Thank you for taking a little share of your time from your day to check out what’s been going on today right here at One Track At A Time, and your support is very highly appreciated by me. I’ll be back tomorrow to start the new week’s worth of music posts with a review of a recent single by a wonderfully proficient Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter who has just released her debut solo album – ‘Under The New Light’ – via Last Gang Records. You may know her for her foremost roles in other bands and musical projects such as Dirty Projectors and Coco.

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Way Back Wednesdays: Gossip – ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’

March 16, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Beth Ditto (Vocals/Piano), Nathan Howdeshell (Bass/Keyboard) & Hannah Billie (Drums) (2019) (via PR)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time for us to start spreading the word on the street (or the internet) that there is another daily track on the blog in town as we go retro for ‘Way Back Wednesdays’, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! Formerly known as ‘The Gossip’ – Gossip were a Beth Ditto-led punk rock band from Arkansas who were originally active between 1999 and 2016 who were another name in a fairly familiar string of Garage Rock Revival sub-genre bands like The Yeah Yeah Yeah’s and The Hives who were also popular in the contemporary mainstream of the time. Exploring a mixture of indie rock, post-punk revival and dance-rock influences, they gained some breakthrough in radio charts popularity with their 2006 track ‘Standing In The Control’, a glitzy Pop-Punk number that reached the top ten of the UK Singles Chart and it has appeared on decade-end lists like NME’s ‘150 Best Tracks Of The Past 15 Years’ at the #34 rank on the list in 2011 and at #429 on Pitchfork’s ‘Top 500 Greatest Tracks Of The 2000’s’ list in late 2009. It was the lead single of Gossip’s third studio album of the same name released in 2006, which reached #1 on the UK’s Indie Chart and it has reached Gold status in the territory. Produced by Ryan Hadlock and Guy Picciotto, it was Gossip’s first album to feature new drummer Hannah Billie, of Seattle’s Chromatics fame. If you used to watch the British TV drama ‘Skins’ on E4, you would also know the track as it was proclaimed to be the ‘unofficial’ theme track of the programme as it featured heavily in promotional materials and it would be played on the DVD main menu’s of the series’ home release. Let’s remember it below.

The yellow, black and red graffiti-style cover artwork for the physical single release was designed by none other than Kim Gordon, the bassist of Sonic Youth. Meanwhile, the track itself was written as a response to the Federal Marriage Amendment, a highly controversial code of law that would have outlawed gay marriage across the US. With this theme in mind, the impassioned instrumentation and the reasonably soft, yet minimal and pulsating, lead vocals by Beth Ditto hit harder as a battle cry for empowered liberation than anybody who has ever felt constrained or marginalized may have expected from Gossip. Bursting out of the gate energetically with the unforgettable refrain of “Your back’s against the wall/There’s no one home to call/You’re forgetting who to call/You can’t stop crying” that boasts the core sentiment of denying the authorities’ will to make same sex marriage illegal, a process that feels alien today, which paves the way for Billie to hit her metronomic hi-hat snares and four-on-the-floor bass kicks with her ragged Punk-infused Drum parts, while guitarist Brace Paine contributes some vigorous bass lines and high-energy guitar riffs, that chug along to the distortion-drenched production of the thin and treble-enhanced range of melodies, to the equation. Ditto’s vocals earn a distinction among the wealth of other talents in the Garage-Rock revival business of the mid-00’s as they feel rather Bluesy, yet propulsive, with a smoky delivery on mid-chorus hooks like “You’ll live your life/Survive the only way that you know” and a commanding presence above the instrumentation that recalls the vintage Motown acts of the 70’s like Diana Ross and Ann Wilson in her wailing notes and her lengthily sustained filler phrases. The track also fits squarely into the DIY ethics of an underground Punk feminist movement of the 1990’s called the ‘Riot grrrl’ era in the way that Ditto’s band combine Punk music with Politics on this, probably, best-known single from them. ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ feels like a natural blend between the two styles, and it creates a noticeable Disco edge too, as it feels impossible not to mindlessly nod your head along to the groove. It was unapologetically brash, and Ditto’s band were transformed from a clan of Dance-Punk disruptors to Pop phenomena in the process.

Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Standing In The Way Of Control’ (LP/Album) (Released on January 24th, 2006) (via Back Yard Recordings/Kill Rock Stars)

That brings me to the end of another nostalgic throwback post on One Track At A Time, and I hope that you have a pleasant day, and thank you for showing your support for the site today. I’ll be diverting your attention back to brand new music tomorrow, as we review the latest single by a Grime-meets-Punk duo based in East London who have toured with hardcore rapper Nascar Aloe, supported Gallows at their comeback gig at House Of Vans in 2019 and were featured in a guest appearance on a BBC Radio 1 session by Frank Carter & The Rattlesnakes presented by Annie Mac.

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Scuzz Sundays: Nickelback – ‘How You Remind Me’

March 6, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Artwork for ‘Silver Side Up’ (LP) (Released on September 11th, 2001) (via Roadrunner Records)

Good Morning to you! This is Jacob Braybrooke, and it’s time to don some dodgy eye mascara as we revisit the music that we used to tolerate during our younger and most questionable emo phases of life for ‘Scuzz Sundays’ as we re-evaluate their quality or value in the present day, because it’s always my day-to-day pleasure to write up about a different piece of music every day! When you review the history of rock music, particularly throughout the 2000’s, the Canadian rock group of Nickelback provide a fairly interesting case. They were a punching bag for music enthusiasts, garnering almost unanimously negative reviews for their recycling of ideas and their continued relevancy in the mainstream, but they were still one of the most successful rock bands of the time when you really think about it. Their list of achievements includes enormous sales figures of over 50 million albums worldwide, five SOCAN International Achievement Awards, and a whole host of hit singles across multiple territories including ‘Rockstar’, ‘Far Away’ and ‘Photograph’ among a few others. They are also pretty active today, as they are currently working on their upcoming tenth studio album to finally follow up on 2017’s ‘Feed The Machine’. They have recently celebrated the 20th Anniversary of their fame-propelling third studio LP – 2001’s ‘Silver Side Up’ – which has been certified as Platinum eight times in Canada. The record included, arguably, their biggest hit of all – ‘How You Remind Me’ – which is a Karaoke favourite of my mother’s choice. The single’s commercial success led to their first arena tour of the UK, and, in 2009, Billboard ranked it as their best selling rock single overall. You know it already, but you can hear it for the first time in ages below.

Chad Kroeger – the lead vocalist of Nickelback – wrote ‘How You Remind Me’ as a response to a conflict with his then-girlfriend at an airport in Vancouver, where she set up shop in his basement and improvised the lyrics loudly in the hopes that she would hear him and catch the drift that he was, well, pretty angry. It makes sense considering how the guitar riffs have a nice grit to them and the pacing of ‘How You Remind Me’ has a harsher energy to it than some of Nickelback’s more melodramatic ballad work explored on the likes of ‘Far Away’ during the 00’s. The single starts off with the familiar lyric of “Never made it as a wise man/I couldn’t cut it as a poor man stealing” that Kroeger delivers in a husky voice as the laidback and casual sound of the mid-range guitars, in terms of tone and reverb, wind on up to a slightly more dissonant and aggressive style, although the instrumentation never becomes truly harsh, for lack of a more suitable term. The chorus has a rougher edge too, with rhythmic lines like “This is how you remind me, of who I really am” and “It’s not like you to say sorry/I was waiting on a different story” bordering between a spoken and a chanted delivery. The guitar riffs don’t progress a great deal, but the drums and the bass is more prominent in the chorus and increases the speed of the core melodies. There are elements of Punk and Grunge here, but they are measured and the violence of their mood is kept at a radio-friendly level. It also explores love-sickness lyrically, with fun sequences like “I’ve been wrong, I’ve been down” and “This time, I’m mistaken/For handing you a heart worth breaking” that sound assertive, but not completely outside of the realm of forgiveness or reconciliation for the dwindling relationship that Kroeger is referencing. As one of the most snobbish music critics out there – which my parents would probably tell you, believe me – I don’t mind ‘How You Remind Me’ very much. I’ll admit that the guitar riffs are a little bland, but it is a fun track that is a fun time and has it’s catchy moments. It’s not a masterpiece, but it is melodic enough and it established a few selling points for Nickelback that admittedly got recycled a little too frequently over the years, but there’s a reason why the tune was successful and I can see why Kroeger’s band would go down to the well for it as a point of reference for later work. A solid standalone single that still sounds fine today.

Pictured: Chad Kroeger (Lead Vocals/Rhythm Guitar/Chief Songwriter), Ryan Peake (Lead Guitar/Keyboard/Backing Vocals), Mike Kroeger (Bass Guitar) and Daniel Adair (Drums/Backing Vocals) (2021) (Photo Credit: Paul Bergen)

That brings us to the bottom of the page for another day! I’m going to be swiftly off now as I’m planning to see my family for two days running, but I’ll be back tomorrow to guide you through some gorgeous new experimental electronic music from an Enfield-based IDM producer who reached the top three of my ‘Best Albums Of 2021’ list with her Hyperdub-signed hit ‘Reflection’ that was also loved by Tom Ravenscroft.

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Scuzz Sundays: Avenged Sevenfold – ‘Afterlife’

February 20, 2022 — Leave a comment
Pictured: Cover Art for ‘Avenged Sevenfold’ (Self-Titled LP) (Released on October 30, 2007) (via Hopeless Records)

Good Morning to you! You’re tuned into the text of Jacob Braybrooke, as we pay a visit (Rather literally, in the case of this track’s title) to one of the ghosts of Pop-Punk past for another weekly iteration of ‘Scuzz Sundays’ on One Track At A Time, the blog where I simply write up about a different piece of music every day! Known for their eclectic Nu-Metal sound and the theatrical imagery of their promotional artwork, one heavy rock band who were hard to miss during the 2000’s and 2010’s was Avenged Sevenfold, a band who were formed in Huntington Beach, California in 1999. Still recording new material regularly today, the band have released seven studio albums of which they have sold over 8 million units worldwide, and they have even created four original tracks for the soundtracks of the ‘Call Of Duty: Black Ops’ series – for any video game lovers out there. They were also ranked as #47 on Loudwire’s list of their Top 50 Metal Bands Of All-Time in 2018. Released in 2007, ‘Afterlife’ was taken from Avenged Sevenfold’s self-titled album – that was actually their fourth studio LP – and it was their last album to feature the solid drummer ‘The Rev’ before he sadly passed away two years later during the production of 2010’s ‘Nightmare’. Give it a spin below.

The album debuted at #4 on the US Billboard 200 Album Chart and it was later included in Kerrang’s list of their “666 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die” as well as winning the Kerrang! award for Best Album in 2008. Meanwhile, the single – ‘Afterlife’ – was released with a music video that was directed by Wayne Isham, who had previously shot videos for Bon Jovi and Judas Priest. You can hear it on the ‘NHL 09’ video game soundtrack and it was voted as the best song of the new album on the band’s homepage upon its release, and so there’s absolutely no pressure for ‘Afterlife’ to hold up to quality and value in the present day, of course. It becomes clear that the lyrics are all about a man who dies at an early time and goes to heaven, but realizes that he has unfinished business to finish on Earth before his soul passes away, and we are essentially getting a soundtrack for that journey. The uptempo guitar riffs open the track immediately, with the lead guitar paving the way for the narrative to shine through ahead of a fantastic guitar solo in the final act of the structure. The lead vocals have a gear-switching flair with some sequences diving between a feeling of innocence and vengeance, and some harsher sequences that contrast the warmer lyrics with a punchy and energetic feeling. The lead-in to the chorus raises the tempo again after a mildly subdued stretch of instrumentation, where the tone of the vocals were a little more somber and pained, with some brief backing vocals and a bridge towards the main guitar solo that lays out the pacing neatly. The solo is 80’s schlock, but it’s done with a technical competence and it works well because of the track’s fast-paced nature. The more theatrical conclusion to the final act introduces some short Violin sections to the track, as the Strings signal the arrival of our protagonist to the gates of heaven and his subsequent departure to the living world as there’s still much for him to do there. It’s great that we follow a narrative of-sorts with the track, and I have to say that I rather enjoyed it. The vocals are a little cheesy at points where we cycle past the questionable accents and it veers slightly towards a 00’s radio rock commercial appeal, but I felt the guitar solo was very enjoyable and it was nice to hear Avenged Sevenfold moving away from their imitations of influences like Iron Maiden and going for a more individual direction with the story in the process. A little on-the-nose, but this was perfectly enjoyable and it has a couple of progressive ideas.

Pictured: M. Shadows (Lead Vocals/Piano/Percussion), Zacky Vengeance (Rhythm Guitar/Backing Vocals), Johnny Christ (Bass Guitar), Synster Gates (Lead Guitar) & Brooks Wackerman (Drums) (2016) (Photo by WikiCommons.org)

That’s all that I’ve got lined up for you with today’s edition of ‘Scuzz Sundays’, and I thank you very much for continuing to support the blog every day because it really means a lot to me. Normal service will be resuming again tomorrow as we kick off the new week with some brand new music from a Cheshire-based female indie rock trio who I have actually spoken to in the flesh when they supported The Orielles at The Sugar Mill in Stoke-On-Trent in early 2020. Their debut LP is set to get released in May.

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