"Grubby Stories" may be the Patrik Fitzgerald album I have the greater emotional attachment to, but this one is easily his best. Boy are the lyrics depressing. Banality never sounded more painful than this.Songs about subliminal alienation, living just above the poverty line, fading love affairs, unattainable dreams,the creeping apathetic acceptance that makes up normality,......all the fun stuff that are given facts of life. I'm sure somewhere Patrik is saying that it doesn't have to be like this,but the realist that he most certainly is knows that it IS like that and nothing's gonna change.
Parenthood and dysfunctional families are one of his most frequently used themes, and this album is no exception,as touched upon in the title track....How's this for a poem?.....
"Dear mother. Dear father
Can you answer some questions
They're stealing my friends
Like they broke all my toys
Taking my freedom. Crushing my hope
I asked for some string
And they gave me some rope
And now I'm drifting towards violence
Drifting towards violence again
Dear mother. Dear father
Can you answer some questions
I've tried to find freedom
And I've tried to find truth
But I cannot see reason
I cannot see logic
And I cannot break away
From the turmoil of my youth
And now I'm drifting towards violence
Drifting towards violence again
Dear mother. Dear father
Many thanks for your present
Though I couldn't but resent
When I removed the wrapping
It wasn't what I wanted
Though he worked
For a short time
To take my mind away
From the production line
Dear mother. Dear father
Can you answer some questions
I've tried to find reason
And I've tried to find truth
But I cannot see reason
I cannot see logic
And I cannot break away
From the turmoil of my youth
And now I'm
Drifting towards violence
Drifting towards violence again"
Fun Stuff?
Tracklist:
A1 Smile
A2 In This World
A3 Family Outing
A4 Domestication
A5 Working Hu-Mans Casino
A6 We Seemed So Suited
B1 My Perfect World
B2 Scattered Villages
B3 A Life Sentence
B4 Down
B5 Drifting Towards Violence
B6 Mystery
B7 My Perfect World (Part 2)
Tracklist:
A1 Smile
A2 In This World
A3 Family Outing
A4 Domestication
A5 Working Hu-Mans Casino
A6 We Seemed So Suited
B1 My Perfect World
B2 Scattered Villages
B3 A Life Sentence
B4 Down
B5 Drifting Towards Violence
B6 Mystery
B7 My Perfect World (Part 2)
2 comments:
Yes, it's a fantastic album (although my favourite is "Gifts & Telegrams"). Some songs like "Down" are not easy to listen to. I am not a musician but I always wondered what strange chords Patrik used for these songs and how one would explain what he musically does here.
Imho this album contains the one song that is his absolute best: "We Seemed So Suited". The depth of these lyrics are unmatched and brought me to tears more than once. It contains *everything* there is to say about the concept of romantic love:
I was in love once
It wasn't important
We had our share of smiles
And sunny days
We seemed so suited
We seemed so incredibly alike
No one could touch us.
I was in love once
I vaguely remember
It wasn't so long ago
A few short moments
Since we were alone
In the dark of a room
In the heat of the summer
Making plans for today
What shall we do?
Making plans for today
What shall we do?
I was in love once
I still can remember
Your face on the pillow
All covered with tears
We seemed so suited
We seemed so incredibly alike
No one could touch us
Making plans for today
What shall we do?
Making plans for tomorrow.
Excuse me, must get myself some tissues.
Yes i agree, "we Seemed So Suited" has been used by me to explain to a former Girlfriend why it didn't work. Very concise,and saves full and uncomfortable analysis. Spotify is the new fax machine when it comes to dumping someone.
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