Dry Your Nookie Mate

The Streets – Dry Your Eyes Mate

Alright, it’s no secret that on any given night I’d snuggle up to Mike Skinner in our cozy double bed from behind and whisper sweet nothings into his ear about how perfect he is as an artist. About how his deadpan accent drenched delivery backed by UK drum and bass/house/hip hop beats makes my ‘Bobby Segar’ (get it? get it?) on a consistent basis. I’d explain how his quirky and intelligent word-play made household North American ‘Rap-Pop-Stars’ seem like some inside joke that I didn’t get, like Snuggies or Smart Cars.

How the shit does this work Mr. Skinner? You just talk, semi on beat, or awkwardly semi sing a chorus about cell phone issues, taking too many pills, the legalization of weed, not “mugging yourself” and misunderstood Facebook updates. But it does work. Like some sort of calm White Squall, a perfect paradox of pop music and UK flavor. Of hip hop and rave culture. It’s like Jesus made a mash-up.

Which brings me to Skinners 2004 “Dry Your Eyes Mate”, maybe the most honest and perfect heartbreak song written in the last 10 years from a man’s perspective.

The acoustic guitar is dead my friends; it’s been beaten to death by endless shitty acoustic covers and the perception that putting words over some generic acoustic strumming makes the song more “meaningful”. Please, nursery rhymes sound “meaningful” when sung over Fleetwood Mac’s ‘Landslide’. That being said, an acoustic guitar, a simple slow drum beat, and a Chris Martin chorus (yes that fucking Chris Martin (and no Martin’s sins do not devalue this song)) somehow both makes tender love to my eardrums and forces me to ponder those times when I was on the wrong side of an infatuation.

The thing that should make The Streets fail is the exact thing that makes them succeed. The awkwardly delivered lyrics. Without being overly concerned about rhyme and measure Skinner can delivery in a way that no other artist can, he can just explain it to you, clearly and cleverly.

As Skinner himself stated “You say that everything sounds the same, then you go buy them, there’s no excuse my friends, let’s push things forward”. BTW WTF is an ‘artful dodger’?

Denise Williams - Let’s Hear It Tor The Boy

Ugh, I can’t believe I’m writing this down. But I fucking love this jam. I do. I hate myself for it, but I do. It reminds me of roller-skating, crimped hair and the beat is about as head-bobby as you can get. It’s a perfect white guy dancing track, possibly only trumped by Bruce Springsteen’s “Dancing in the Dark”. But there was always something more to it, something underlying that I was attached to, that I just couldn’t figure out. But then, one day, it clicked. This song is about getting nookie.

The entire song this chick complains about how her man doesn’t talk sweet, doesn’t dress nice (but she doesn’t mind), he has no money and he’s a terrible singer. But when he pulls her close, watch the F out, cause he’s her loving one man show (whoa whoa whoa whooooooooa). Denise Williams basically wrote NIN’s ‘Closer’ in 1984.

Kudos Miss Williams, kudos. (Sidenote: this video is WICKED offside if my theory is correct, which of course it is)