I like this blog not just being about gay issues and what not, coz im very keen on music and i enjoy giving my opinions on it, and discussing it as well.
Luckily, this is a combination of both xD
It's about British band, The Feeling, who (if you live outside of Britain) probably havent of and if you live in Britain, probably haven't heard of in a few years.
The reason for posting about The Feeling is this article on Pink News about lead singer Dan Gillespie Sells (what does he sell?) - http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2011/03/07/interview-dan-gillespie-sells-on-music-cricket-and-helicopters/
I've heard a few of The Feeling's songs before and thought they were ok, but until i read this article i did not know he was gay.
This newly acquired knowledge pushed me to find them on Spotify, as well as the fact i'd never listened to them properly. Also, i love songs that i can relate to and thought this would be a great opportunity - gay lyricist, gay meanings in songs, indentification for me! Yay xD
Well, i have to say The Feeling are great...
lyrically.
It is such a shame their music doesn't quite live upto it coz if it did, i swear, they would be one of my favourite bands. They are really a pop band, and im much more into rock but i find a few of their songs pretty decent, particularly off their first album. Their second album... not so much.
But yes, t'is a shame that i love their lyrics and not really the actual music. I look for it in a lot of bands, but overall id say the music is more important. Great lyrics, for me, just make the song better (obviously) but if the song itself sounds good and i enjoy it then the lyrics tend to take a backseat.
The Feeling are the reverse however. Great lyrics, average pop songs.
Im not saying i could write better than them but it's nice to have lyrics i can identify with, which is why i love Queen so much as i do. Freddie, gay --> gay meanings in songs --> identification, along with great music.
It's weird with The Beatles tho, coz most of their songs are about girls (or a great number of them are) but there's just an example of liking the band more for the actual songs than the lyrics - although Within You Without You has lyrics you could live your life by xD
Anyway, im sure you get the point. I just thought id talk about how The Feeling let me down a little. I got quite excited after i found them on Spotify. One last point about them: the guitarist is really under used. Some songs he shows off some pretty impressive skills and that also annoys me in a band. For example, The Killers. Their guitarist displays little bits of awesome that im sure if the lead songwriter incorporated more, would make for better songs, and it's the same with The Feeling.
Guess it's a case of LSD however - Lead Singer's Disease.
The Feeling have their new album out soon so i guess i'll give it a chance but it'll be the last :P
For the time being, here is one of their better songs. It's a very bitter sweet tune - it's quite chilled and happy, but lyrically, deals with the subject of the lead singer's problem in falling for straight guys, and really just having to act like this person is simply a friend to them.
The line, "I can't be your friend, unless i pretend" being the stand-out line.
Yep, i know where you're coming from there, Danny boy.
Rowan <3
Give me the song and I'll sing it like I mean it
Give me the words and I'll say them like I mean it
'Cos you got my heart in a headlock
You stopped the blood, made my head soft
And god knows
You got me sewn
Nah nah nah
Danny boy, don't be afraid, to shake that ass, and misbehave
Danny boy, I know you got time, but what are you waiting for,
Anyway the dust may just blow away, if you wait for a windy day
But you may find the chance has passed you by
I can't do the walk
I can't do the talk
I can't be your friend
Unless I pretend
So give me the song and I'll sing it like I mean it
So give me the words and I'll say them like I mean it
Cos you got my heart in a headlock
You stopped the blood, made my head soft
And god knows
You've got me sewn
Nah nah nah
Danny boy, don't be a fool
Take upon to break the rule
Danny boy your lookin so low
You lookin like the dead grown old
Anyway the blues just may wash away, if you wait for a rainy day
But you may find, the chance had past you by
I can't do the walk
I can't do the talk
I can't be your friend
Unless I pretend
So give me the song and I'll sing it like I mean it
Give me the words and I'll say them like I mean it
Cos you got my heart in a headlock
You stopped the blood and made my head soft
You've got my heart in a headlock
You stopped the blood and made my head soft
made my head soft
made my head soft
made my head soft
made my head soft
Yeah, yeah, yeah
oh Yeah, yeah, yeah.
juiceboys *2524
1 week ago
Well cool post...and good music!
ReplyDeleteThanks, I love discovering new stuff, and you young guys tend to be the ones finding music I'd never heard of and likely never would have found on my own.
Peace <3
Jay
Rowan
ReplyDeleteWas reading in RB and got snared into the web of JJ etc. Read a bunch of your blogs since. It all kind of takes my breath away. I hate to see anonymous people make you angry. I hate to see your good intentions get so misused. You seem brilliant to me and I hope continue to be. I truely hope you find the people who will appreciate and love you, there so many mindless twits out there, I hope you can avoid them. Thanks for sharing a slice of your life.
-Danknee
An interesting song. Too bad the group's work isn't really appealing to you, but that's how it goes. We don't always like to work of people we want to like.
ReplyDeleteI wonder if you're familiar with The Smiths, a group from the 1980's. I just found out about them a few months ago. The lyrics are often interesting, and I find the music okay. If I understood correctly, the way it usually worked was the lead guitarist would write some music and then the singer would put words to it.
Before the Beatles, there wasn't the idea that a band needed to write its own material. Some people wrote songs, and other people performed them. You got some good songs out of it, and some good performances (think Elvis Presley) but you didn't get the heartfelt personal statements of R.E.M. or The Smiths, or The Feeling.
If you're not familiar with Kitchens of Distinction, check them out! Seeing as you love Muse, I think you might dig them. Lead singer/bassist Patrick Fitzgerald is openly gay and there are plenty of gay-themed subjects in their songs. Here's the vid for one of my faves: "4 Men".
ReplyDeleteThey split in the early 90s, and since then Fitzgerald has released stuff (all great) under the names Fruit, Stephen Hero, and Stephenhero.
Hey Rowan.
ReplyDeleteInteresting song. Like you, not a big fan of the music, but the lyrics are good. I hate when that happens. No matter how good the lyrics are, I just can't suffer through when the music sucks. It's not as bad the other way around, but still hard.
I hope you're doing well, and aren't being drug down by all the school related crap.
Take care!
143
_Kevin
Hmmn. Yeah, OK - they are very boppy and commercial and sing-along and SUCCESSFUL AT EARNING MONEY - but you have to be right about the words being worth listening to.
ReplyDeleteInteresting little article on Pink News - thanks, I almost missed it. Nice of him to show with his comments that he doesn't quite live in a bubble isolated from the gay world in which the rest of us live.
I'll look out for the third album though. You realise they've done live stuff on Radio Two don't you? And don't ask me how I know.
Wow Rowan!!!
ReplyDeleteGREAT post!!! :-)
I stopped over at Amazon.com and listened to some samples of The Feeling.
They sound like a decent pop band...the music is well mixed and balanced, the female lead singer has a nice voice (but I *still* prefer Adele Adkins!)
They seem to do a lot of covers, so I'm not sure which tunes are originals.
And like you, I much prefer the instrumental portion of a song to the lyrics...(although as I grew/grow older I more appreciate the symbiosis of music and lyrics, and I suppose you will, too, as you get older.)
But the Feeling are good...I'm feeling The Feeling! lol!
(And thanks for the article...I learned what "threw a wobbly" means!)
Of course, I grew up listening to the Beatles, had all their American Capital label albums, learned my guitar chords from "The Beatles Songbook" (it was much smaller in 1966!)
And the Beatles started out doing lots of covers of R&B tunes, Motown, etc., as well as their originals.
John and George were the "deepest" lyricists; Sir Paul just writes silly love songs...(and what's wrong with that? :-) )
Oh, and thanks for turning me on to The Killers...I *love* their song,
"Andy, You're A Star."
rofl!
-Andy