Degler – Things Are Looking Up
Ordinary things shouldn’t happen to extraordinary people, or, at the very least, they ought to remember never to admit to those things. Artists, in particular, are a bunch who don’t thrive under regular circumstances. And, even if they did, what would they be able to say when the documentary about their great album, movie, or painting gets made? That every day was flowing smoothly, just like every other one.
That’s exactly the reason why some musicians become addicted to the bad times. Because terrible events leave such a powerful impression on them, they may start to think that it’s only those who can inspire brilliant work. The list of great rock n’ roll myths surrounding misery and despair is a mile long. But who just wants to invite that kind of chaos into one’s life all the time?
Degler has been dusting off his classic pop-rock radio collection for “Things Are Looking Up” and it has gotten the artist wanting to smell the roses for a change. Just like Joe Walsh, Degler admits to still complaining from time to time despite there being no need for it. “Things Are Looking Up” moves like “Bennie and the Jets” and is shocking in how uncynically the musician cheers for the good times. Nice! Who wants to hunt trouble everywhere?
You can listen to the song here.
New Driver – Heavy Things
It’s terrible how spoiled many of us have become. And it’s even more terrible that we have come to rely on movies and songs to tell us what we ought to appreciate every day. Can you imagine that? It’s people from an environment famously populated by egomaniacs driven by the pursuit of success who are the ones we depend on to tell us to stop and smell the roses.
But they’re right. What would you do if you only had one record to listen to for the rest of your life and nothing else? Would you listen to it constantly or bemoan that you have no other sounds that you can use to amuse you? You’d likely learn every single note off that record and train your ears to fake surprise each time that you heard it. You’d learn to passionately love its very existence, and you’d feel grateful for it.
Yeah, sometimes music is the quickest way to appreciate out daily lives. Sometimes, it’s the best wake-up call to get us to enjoy our daily pleasures. In many ways, this is what New Driver’s “Heavy Things” is all about. This is a pop-rock number with a strong beat, pleasant vocals and a call back to the good days or, at the very least, an appreciation for the good days.
