Tag Archives: its

#656: The Streets – It’s Too Late

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Mike Skinner wrote two great break-up/end of relationship songs, that I know of, in the early 2000s. One that everyone knows is ‘Dry Your Eyes’, a track that almost every man can relate to – so much so that it reached number one in the UK charts 15 years ago. The other one that people might not know so well is ‘It’s Too Late’, an album cut from The Streets’ debut Original Pirate Material in 2002. Both contain the use of strings to add some emotional weight though I’m sure that’s all coincidental.

‘Too Late’ is from the perspective of a guy who had numerous warnings that this break-up was going to occur. All right there in the first verse the situation’s explained. His girl asks him to meet him somewhere. Narrator instead goes to meet mates and smoke some weed and as a result is late to the meet-up location. The girl has told him before that one day she would leave if he messed up again. He didn’t take the threat too seriously. Ignorance is bliss and all that. The second verse seems to show the narrator trying to make up for this by trying to show up on time in one last chance sort of thing. In the final verse though, he asks her to meet him. She doesn’t arrive. It’s safe to assume that it’s too late to make amends.

I can’t remember when it was that I listened to this song and thought “wow, this is actually great I’m going to add it to my phone so I can hear it all the time”. Mike Skinner’s voice may not be for everyone. His delivery is unapologetically British. I myself don’t mind it. Well…. the way he tries to rhyme ‘there’ and ‘beer’ around one minute and twenty seconds in is…. not too great. The female vocal in the chorus is okay, not too much to my likin’. But even if you don’t vibe with the vocals so much, just listen to those strings. There’s a great sadness and sense of reminiscence to them. They loop and play the same melody throughout the entire thing, bar some points where the dissonant ambient tones come in, but they never get tiresome which is always a good thing. Most definitely the emotional centrepiece of the entire album.

#655: R.E.M. – It’s the End of the World as We Know It (And I Feel Fine)

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If I were to take a guess, I think I sing this song the same way that the majority of people who know it do. The first three lines are easy as pie, then every verse that follows is just a lot of words smushed up together into a one note melody which is then followed by the very memorable chorus.

‘It’s the End of the World’ is one of R.E.M.’s most well known tracks, one of their most played too – to the point that it may be overplayed for some people. But I only started properly listening to R.E.M. last year. I had heard the song maybe two… three times before? I’ll say five at most. And that was when its video was shown on TV. And in Chicken Little. Actually listening to it with headphones was a very different experience.

‘End of the World’ is the sixth track on R.E.M.’s fifth album, Document, released in 1987. It is not my favourite album of the group’s but this song right here is one of its highlights. The uploaded video above takes all the weight out of the audio quality though which is a shame. When those thunderous drum rolls come in at the beginning, the energy never dips from there. It’s four minutes of relentless, driving momentum. And though I never succeed in enunciating every syllable in the quickfire verses, it’s always fun to try. As said earlier, it doesn’t really matter because it has a hell of a chorus that’s not related to what goes on in those verses in any way.

Going through R.E.M.’s discography (which I had to when I found out they were actually very good) there were a few things I picked up on, especially in their earlier albums. They had a knack for great melodies. And the triple vocal harmonies of Michael Stipe, Mike Mills and Bill Berry added a layer that made the band’s songs even better when they were utilised. Melodies and harmonies are present on this track… a few countermelodies too. There’s always something new to pick up on in this track every time I hear it. It’s such a thrill. It’s quite disappointing when it starts to fade out at the end, wish it could go on for ages.

#654: The Beatles – It’s Only Love

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‘It’s Only Love’ was written by John Lennon sometime during 1965 and ended up on the Beatles’ first album to be released that year – Help!. He went on to claim that he thoroughly disliked this song calling it ‘lousy’ and particularly taking umbrage with its ‘abysmal’ lyrics. Lennon said he hated a lot of Beatles songs during his lifetime…. though it can be agreed that he definitely wrote a better set of lyrics than those on display here.

“I get high when I see you go by, my oh my, when you sigh my my inside just flies, butterflies” are the words of the first verse. Laughable to those who take lyricism very seriously. But I don’t think ‘It’s Only Love’ is supposed to be a totally serious song. That’s probably what saves it from being disgraceful in the end. Plus Lennon delivers them with such a wilting energy to them that they pale in comparison when that fantastic chorus comes in.

There’s not much to say here. It’s a short, mainly acoustic number that lasts for just under two minutes. Due to the retro mixing of the 60s, it’s quite hard to pick out what each instrument is doing. The emphasis is on George Harrison’s descending guitar riff at the beginning and end of the track. So, to recap, Lennon’s vocal performance and that guitar are the best parts of it all. I still like this song quite a bit though. Not the best track on the album but it does the job.

#653: Klaxons – It’s Not Over Yet

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Klaxons were a big thing in UK music in 2007. They, alongside other British acts like Late of the Pier, New Young Pony Club and Hadouken!, were part of the ‘new rave’ craze that died quite quickly before it gained major traction. In those few years though Klaxons were seen as the major representatives of that movement. At least by the NME which a twelve-year-old me was really into at the time. A lot of those groups do sound dated today… even Klaxons themselves. But this cover of Grace’s dance hit from 1995 I could listen to a lot of the time without being reminded of my first year in secondary school.

‘It’s Not Over Yet’ appears on Klaxons’ debut album Myths of the Near Future and was released as the penultimate single from it in 2007. The group stay quite true to the original 90s cut. The vocal melody stays the same, the chord changes and all that jazz. They change one note out of the main four note synthesizer refrain though. Really, the main thing they change is the arrangement – giving the track a rockier edge with some heavy drumming and thick bass.

Is it the greatest cover ever? Probably not. But they succeed in taking what was great about the original whilst still making it their own thing. That’s what all the best covers do. And I like it. Hence why this post exists.

#652: They Might Be Giants – It’s Not My Birthday

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‘It’s Not My Birthday’ is a well-loved song among the most dedicated of TMBG fans. Originally released as a B-Side on the ‘They’ll Need a Crane’ single in 1989 – it was given wider circulation in 1991, placed as the seventh track on the band’s compilation Miscellaneous T.

I heard it for the first time….. think in early 2011 when I was studying for my GCSEs. I had been a major follower of They for years up until then, but it was around that time that I actually got to listening to their albums in full. Those were good times…. But anyway – got around to listening to Miscellaneous T and although these were all B-Sides they nevertheless had the same authentic quality of any track that made it onto their ‘official’ albums. Some would say this track in particular should have been on Lincoln. That’s just the way things go sometimes, I guess.

It’s less than two minutes in duration but is packed with so much that you at least feel satisfied when it’s over. There’s a briskness to it, led by a bouncy rhythm and general upbeat vibe in the music. However, it’s another one of the group’s that has an looming hint of sadness to it. Mainly in the lyrics. I’ve always had that feeling towards it though I’ve never known why. They’re quite hard to fully interpret. But I think it’s about a person who is just going through life without any real purpose and is just waiting for an end with each day. Though that’s just me.