Nuovo disco per i Go-Betweens e ancora una volta la band australiana non delude le attese confezionando un disco perfetto, incentrato su una miscela esplosiva di ritmi coinvolgenti e melodie accattivanti.
Il disco è la diretta conseguenza di ciò che Forster e Mclennan hanno prodotto dopo la loro riunione, ma è più incisivo e vigoroso, rispetto ai suoi due precedenti: quello della perfezione acustica-pop di The Friends Of Rachel Worth e quello del tenue e delizioso rock di Bright Yellow Bright Orange.
Elemento comune dei tre lavori, che è diventata anche la caratteristica portante dei nuovi Go-Betweens, è quest'ingannevole leggerezza che aleggia tra i solchi dei loro dischi, che proietta lo spettatore dinnanzi ad immagini degne del miglior Aki Kaurismaky.
Il tema principale di questo nuovo disco è il viaggio, il movimento, e ogni senso o prospettiva viene sviscerato ed analizzato, grazie a delle composizioni veramente eccezionali.
Lo stesso disco è una finestra aperta sui paesaggi, sentimenti, emozioni, stati d'animo, ricordi raccontati da Forster e da Mclennan, così durante l'ascolto passano in rassegna le città e i compagni di viaggio, gente che legge Dostoevskij e che sembra Dostoevskij (Here Comes a City), fantasmi che fluttuano come canzoni (Finding You), cavalieri erranti (Boundary Rider) e una lunga serie d'altri strani personaggi e situazioni che ci portano alla fine del viaggio (The Mountains Near Dellray). La figura che emerge più di tutte in queste 10 canzoni è quella dell'assenza, un'assenza incombente, misteriosa che dona all'intero disco una luce inaspettata ed inconsueta... e poi di nuovo a bordo un altro treno è in partenza.
Elenco tracce e testi
01 People Say (03:31)
You've got to improve Your walk hardly moves Your holy sailors with their harbour smells Feed from your broken shells So that's how it feels It's a cruel God that steals The things you love, the things you hold That are priceless but still sold People say I'm mad to want you People say I'm mad to need you People say I'm mad to love you babe The jobs you cannot hold The stereo that you sold You can't have milk and drink it too Your kitchen never had any food People say I'm mad to want you People say I'm mad to need you People say I'm mad to love you babe The clouds lie on their backs And rain on everyone But you always stay dry You've got your own private sun Listen to the doctor�s advice Nobody's ever been saved twice So pack your bags, your saxophone I'm gonna take you to Rome People say I'm mad to want you People say I'm mad to need you People say I'm mad to love you babe
03 The Wrong Road (05:17)
A trader in furs living in exile
Boy what a kook
Look at that passport
Stale bread and paper without privilege
If you live here learn the language
When the rain hit the roof
With the sound of a finished kiss
Like when a lip lifts from a lip
I took the Wrong Road round
A room in a lighthouse
Near the park
The ghosts in the next room hear you cough
Time drags on Sundays spent in Mayfair
With all your riches, why aren't you there?
The wind acts like a magnet
And pulls the leaf from the tree
And the town's lost its breath
I took the Wrong Road round
Handsome is good, pretty is better
What was that phrase
Grace under pressure?
Blind by the light bulb
Blood to the bank
Lost all yours letters when the ship sank
In the disjointed breaking light
The soft blue approach of the water
Makes a sound you won't forget
I took the Wrong Road round
Stranded at low-tide where the river bends
Wouldn't you know it, that's how life ends
Lucky at cards, that's an old lie
Lucky in love, that's how life ends
Well the turncoats turned around
When they heard the sound of the bell
Dropped their coins into the well
I took the Wrong Road round
Started out Oliver, ended up Fagin
Don't you worry, it's my problem
What's my name, what's my number?
I'm the lonely one
It's just at the end of the day
When the light makes its slow move away
That I know all I can say is
I took the Wrong Road round
Gambled with risk
Paid you back with risk
So now you know who your friends are
They'll steel your shadow when your back's turned
Bouquets of flowers
Lesson's over
When the rain hit the roof
With the sound of a finished kiss
Like when a lip lifts from a lip
I took the Wrong Road round
04 Bye Bye Pride (04:54)
A white moon appears
Like a hole in the sky,
The mangroves go quiet.
In la Brisa de la Palma
A teenage Rasputin
Takes the sting from a gin,
"When a woman learns to walk
She's not dependent anymore
A line front her letter May 24
And out on the bay
The current is strong
A boat can go lost.
But I didn't know someone
Could be so lonesome
Didn't know a heart
Could be tied up
And held for ransom.
Until you take your shoes
And go outside, stride over stride.
Walk to that tide because
The door is open wide.
Turned the fan off
And went for a walk
By the lights down on Shield Street.
The birds in the trees
Open their wings ...
He goes home again.
He dreams resistance,
They talk commitment,
Things change over long distance.
Took the shirt off his back
The eyes from his head
And left him for dead.
But I didn't know someone
Could be so lonesome
Didn't know a heart
Could be tied up
And held for ransom.
Until you take your shoes
And go outside, stride over stride,
Walk to that tide because
The door is open wide.
Little lies, they'll take your pride.
Until you take your shoes
And go outside. stride over stride,
Walk to that tide because
The door is open wide.
Stride over stride
Walk to that tide.
Bye, Bye Pride.
Because the door is open wide.
The door is always open wide.
The door is always open wide.
06 Streets of Your Town (03:36)
Chorus
Round and round, up and down
Through the streets of your town
Everyday I make my way
Through the streets of your town
Don't the sun look good today?
But the rain is on its way
Watch the butcher shine his knives
And this town is full of battered wives.
Chorus
I ride your river under the bridge
I take your boat out to the reach
Cos I love that engine roar
But I still don't know what I'm here for.
Chorus
They shut it down
They closed it down
They shut it down
They pulled it down.
Chorus
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