Theme Tunes - Part 1

This post is slightly different to my normal ones in the way that I will be talking about songs I have heard on TV programmes instead of profiles on artists. These songs are often, not always, but often by relatively unknown artists yet somehow the songs themselves are pretty famous and heard of.

As I write this, I wonder how long exactly this post will be, and I think it will be too long, so I'll split it up into different posts/parts consisting of a maximum of three songs in each post.


1)
The first is a song by Paul Weller that features in the BBC series Lead Balloon, and the song is called One Way Road. I have just looked up the song, and I'm pretty surprised to discover that Oasis wrote the original and the version that features on Lead Ballon Paul Weller's cover version. Although my loyalty lies with Oasis, I must say that I prefer Weller's version - it somehow really fits in to the programme itself. Here are both versions down below.

2)
The second on the list is from the popular series Skins, and the artist is Fat Segal. He is really really unknown and I haven't been able to find him on Spotify. It seems as though the little recognition he has is all generated from the theme tune of Skins. I have found that the theme tune for each series gets worse as Skins progresses - the first theme tune was the best and since then they've gradually gone downhill. Somehow they become even more electric as they go on. This doesn't take away from the feeling you get when you first hear the music and the opening video comes on and its just a great way to get into the next forty minutes or however long each episode is without adverts - I forget. When you have watched all six series, and heard all the theme tunes for each series, there is a great feeling of nostalgia once you hear the first theme tune after a long time, I suppose that's why I appear to have been slightly biased towards it and perhaps a bit too harsh about the rest. I shall leave both the full version of the song and a compilation of each theme song of the (so far) 6 series of Skins.

3)
The next one is also from a series I'm sure many British teenagers will be familiar with - The Inbetweeners. I won't go into as much depth on this one, but I reckon along with Flagpole Sitter by Harvey Danger (that song will be on the next part of this small series of posts) its perhaps my favourite song out of all the songs on this post, and perhaps also the one I have listened to most outside of television. Its just a really good song in general, and I know that's a poor analysis and pretty unoriginal but its just a get up and go song which I like a lot. For those of you who didn't already know, it is called Gone Up in Flames by Morning Runner.

This is not the end, but merely the beginning, there will be a couple more posts like this one coming soon.

Future Posts

Although I would really prefer not to do this, and instead give my full thoughts on an artist, I think I might do it occasionally. I am referring to the situation I find myself in when I hear one song I really like by an artist that is just really good, but when I listen to their other songs they are completely different and worse. Or sometimes it might just be because they haven't got many other songs to listen to (as I have found with an artist named PolarBear, who literally has about three songs you can find on the internet).

This will not however, be a regular thing, and I will do my best to provide you with full overviews on artists. But actually I'm not sure what the reader would prefer, I know there are some who like one or two songs and aren't really interested in the artist or about them, and I know there are others who feel differently, it would help if you would let me know, and from there I can slightly adjust the layout of each post, or rather make a few concessions.

Alt-J (∆)

Alt-J are a Cambridge bred band, and although they formed in 2007, they didn't come into contact with exposure until earlier this year (2012).

∆ were properly heard by many when their album came out in around May 2012, and were almost an immediate success. So many people had heard Breezeblocks or Matilda thinking they were the first and had discovered a great new band, but now their novelty has worn off some of us. The band reminds me a bit of The xx although I know they have a different sound, I just think they are headed down the same route as The xx were. To clear it up, lots of people had heard songs like Crystalised or VCR and they were played to death by some radio stations, similar to the way that Breezeblocks and Tessellate have been played a lot. In the same way that the novelty of The xx had worn out by the release of their second album, I predict the same will happen to Alt-J, but perhaps I may be wrong, however I do not have very high expectations for their second album and don't expect it to quite live up to their first.

So far it seems as though I rather dislike Alt-J, I don't, in fact I went through a phase where I really did like them (but as I have said earlier, the novelty has sort of worn off now). What I first noticed about AlT-J was the singer's voice, unique as far as I know, and I think that's the best aspect of the band, or rather the aspect that makes them stand out from any other, I may even go as far to say that its the reason for their recent success. But when he does sing, and especially in Matilda, it just really flows and fits together so well.

Contrary to a few people, Matilda is my favourite ∆ song, but here are three of perhaps their most well known songs off the album An Awesome Wave.

Yuck

Yuck are a surprisingly good band, unlike most new bands today. They come from London and two of the members used to go to my school...

Anyway,

I really like them because like Oasis, their guitars have that rough sound that makes it seem raw and more pure, but they also have some really catchy solos. "Get Away", probably their most famous one is also my favourite they are really good considering how young they are and I think they have done well for themselves.

Please bear in mind that this was written a long time ago, and with retrospect I can see what rubbish this is (my writing, not the music), and I promise there are better things to come.

Eels

Mark Everett - the mastermind of Eels also known simply as E - has had a spectacularly sad life, but at least music comes easily for him, and appears to make the most of it. Both his parents died of cancer when he was still young and then after this, his sister committed suicide, a series of depressing events that would have a life changing effect on anyone, and maybe this reflects in the melancholic and mellow music he produces.

Some say that they jumps from "50's garage rock, roadhouse blues and swampy distortion", I just love the sad sound to all their music, and how the lyrics touch on depression, love, and sometimes glimpses of hope amongst despair.

One of my favourite songs by the Eels is 'I need some Sleep', this song sums up everything I like about the Eels, a soft tune that immediately soothes you before the lyrics kick in and then your heart turns heavy as his voice almost croaks. The lyrics suggest he has a problem so deeply inflicted on him that he can't sleep to the point where he tries 'counting sheep' but then he says 'there's one I always miss', and everyone is telling him to leave it and 'let it go' but it obviously means a lot to him if he simply can't.

Another great song is 'That look you give that Guy' another classic song by them, there's just something about these sorts of songs by them that always make me stop and suddenly become immersed in the simple, ponderful, forlorn lyrics that make me want to just cry... Anyway, if you just listen to the lyrics they really leave a mark on you. If that was too cringe worthy, then to be quite honest, this time I don't care because this band are really special.

Here are the two songs:

Radiohead

Radiohead have that kind of solemn and melancholic sound to their music that I love, because I find that it is usually the sad songs that have more substance and are just generally better. When Thom Yorke sings songs like No Surprises and Fake Plastic Trees his voice just sort of creeps out smoothly and beautifully, and believe it or not he had few friends and got regularly picked on by his peers during his rather unsatisfactory childhood which may have a large part to play in the result of their music. I sometimes wonder that if the way he sang were to be described as a picture, then it would be like a lonely, scared timid figure surrounded by darkness and when he opens his mouth to sing, a white light drifts and droops out and just expands into the darkness. Anyway enough weird imagery about Thom Yorke's voice.

Radiohead released their first album Pablo Honey (which wasn't great in my opinion except for Creep obviously) in 1993 and their earliest influences are said to have been Queen, Elvis Costello and post-punk acts of surrealism (much like the style of music Radiohead often produce) such as Joy Division, and now that I think about it they have a very similar atmosphere to some of their music. They incorporated computer-generated and hip-hop style production into their recording methods, a relatively new idea in that Brit-Pop era, and a style they have continued to use since. The members of Radiohead have said in the past that they are not influenced by one or two artists, but are constantly finding new inspiration from many different artist, but whatever it is that influences them, if anything influences them, is bound to be incredible, if they have been going for roughly twenty years, and recognized as one of the most prolific and successful British bands to date.

None other than Fake Plastic Trees and No Surprises, also just because of the sheer sadness and desperation - Creep.

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Thank you

Kasabian

Hailed at one point as "Britain's hottest band" Kasabian are and always have been one of my favourites. Partly because they are one of the better British bands, but also because they remind me of a modern day Oasis - they're from Manchester, they like football, they both appear to be arrogant twats, they have the same sort of sound to their music, they're amazing.

In my opinion Oasis's albums have got worse as the years progressed with an odd exception, but there is no doubt thatDig Out Your Soul is an absolute pile of crap compared to Definitely Maybe whereas with Kasabian, its sort of the opposite... I think their most recent album - Velociraptor is incredible and has some of my favourite songs. La Fee Verte is brilliant, and I genuinely hope they continue to create more songs with that almost melancholic and dreary tone that they manage to pull of so well, and then at the complete opposite end of the spectrum comes Switchblade Smiles which has a taunting start and you can just 'feel it coming' which I love hearing just before the heavy drum beat and Serge's screaming voice followed by the penetrating bass line. 

Anyway... as long as Kasabian keep making songs close to the likes of Club Foot, and La Fee Verte, then I'll be happy.

Here they are:

Ed Sheeran and Devlin

Devlin is probably one of the very few exceptions of where I like rap, though I really hate his first albums, I think his new one "Bud, Sweat, and Beers", is pretty good. My top song being "Let it Go", there's just something about it that seems really good, it could be the instruments, the chorus, the lyrics, or I don't know but something about it just seems really good, probably the chorus actually (I say this as I'm listening to it).

I heard about Devlin through Ed Sheeran (who is also incredible), and when they perform together its amazing. But their lyrics are pretty good as well, especially "Community Outcast" by Devlin and "A-Team" by Ed Sheeran. I started out talking about Devlin and now I'm onto Ed Sheeran, because he is that great, but still somehow hasn't got a proper album out yet. Anyway... please listen to them and follow me please.. also comment if you want me to change anything or if you have any suggestions on who I should talk about.

I wrote this a while ago, and since then Ed Sheeran has indeed got an album out, and my opinion of him has spiralled downwards. I don't know if its just me and as soon as someone who I like who is relatively unknown becomes known makes me lose respect for them, if that makes sense... I suppose when you know something great that no one else does, and then suddenly lots of people know him and start hyping about him and can't stop talking about him, it takes something away from the original quality and makes them seem no different to anyone else. Shame really. I still like Devlin though.