Francesca Baker
Not content with providing our favourite quote of It’s All Happening’s Great Escape preview zine, Leonard, frontman of Brother also treated us to a stellar soundbite during the inter-song soundbite that stuck in the mind and caused some musings. Having firmly lowered the eyebrows of even the most sceptical industry bods, with his guitar gripped tightly, glint in the eye, sweat glimmering, he ended the ‘million selling smash hit single’ ‘Darling Buds of May’ with the words ‘Some people say that song doesn’t mean anything. But it’s fucking good isn’t it.’
Firstly, I didn’t put a question mark cos it’s pretty clear that this was a rhetorical statement. Brash, bolshy and confident, a lad band to the max, Brother aren’t waiting around for anyone’s approval.
Secondly, I take issue with this statement, or at least the first half. It is fucking good. But not being about anything…it’s about that feeling, the feeling of love and bliss, adoration of the perfect person. ‘Her birthday’s in May!’ Well so what says anyone else, but to you, that’s amazing, because it’s her. ‘And when you walk, and when you walk, I feel better now.’ I don’t think that it’s because the subject the song has a particularly spectacular style of walking, traversing on their hands balancing food parcels on their toes to deliver to third world countries and sprinkling fairy dust in their wake. It’s because it’s her, and he loves her, and everyone in love knows that the love of their life does walk better, laugh better, sleep better, sit better than anyone else, and that they are the. Best. Person. In. The. World. Fact. And thus by association you do feel better.
In this line of work, being able to articulate a sentiment or a notion clearly in words is crucial. You may want to reserve judgement on that one. In a musician’s line of work it’s all about articulating that same sentiment through the medium of the note. ‘Darling Buds of Bay’ perfectly encapsulates that heady and heart throbbing, solid and safe see saw that is love. That’s a pretty good meaning. It is what it is. And it’s fucking good.
