I don’t have a deep connection to this one as I do to the others on A Certain Trigger, I gotta say. The other tracks I’ve talked about that are also from that album I came to know through seeing their music videos multiple on the television. ‘Now I’m All Over the Shop’ I had to come to grips with straight from audio, and it was maybe that second or third listen of it that it got that hold on me that songs can usually do for a lotta people. It comes near the end of the record, and when you come to that point in any album you start to think that the energy might give out a little or the song’s might start to decline in quality. But it isn’t this case, with this track proving the point. It’s a short, sharp burst of energy.
To be ‘all over the shop’ is a British way of saying ‘confused’, ‘disorganised, or ‘in a state of disarray’ if you want to get fancy with it. Lyricist and singer Paul Smith, or at least the narrator within this track, is left in this state it seems after the end of a relationship where nothing seemed to be going right anyway. He tried to be polite and tolerate the other person’s ways through gritted teeth, but ultimately realises that this way of dealing with things isn’t fooling anyone, especially not himself. In fact, judging by the lyrics throughout, he’s quite disgusted with the whole situation.
What really gets the gears going is the instrumentation throughout. It begins with this really tinny-sounding guitar line, then joined in by Smith on vocals and these strange out of key runs on a piano. It’s deceiving at first, but then the pre-chorus starts with a proper explosion of guitars and cymbals. From then on it’s an energetic and bustling composition. Instruments drop out and in again alongside emphatic strikes on the drums, scales climb and descend, drum rolls occur all over this thing. It’s one of those tracks to pogo to and not do much dancing to. Mainly thrashing around and flailing your arms in random directions. Again, it may not be considered to be one of the noteworthy tracks on here. I’ve got no evidence to support that statement. That’s just me assuming. But it’s a favourite of mine, so really that’s all that matters.