we are the sparks that never fade

maybe i do like girls after all

there's some things in life you've got to laugh at otherwise you'd cry. the sort of things like how tragically sly and petty some people are; poorly made decisions which a child could've judged better; the daily happenings in the life of a depressed, borderline ocd riddled bipolar 23 year old gay man. to tune it all out, there's always music. so today, after a never-ending shift, i ended up falling asleep on the bus and taking a great big fucking tour around bristol subconsciously listening to, yes you guessed it, gabrielle aplin.

"what the fuck is that song?" and "what the fuck is that like?"

good headwear choice

we did this a few days ago and i wanted to follow it up before i found something else to talk about because as time goes on, aplin gets better. her second EP, "never fade", was self-released on her label (aptly titled "never fade") and it was bigger and better than her debut. i'm here today to tell you about those four songs which concreted my love for this little south-western dreamboat. let's pick up where we left off. it's mitch cole's guide to:

"why gabrielle aplin is wonderful"

never fade

outline: there's acoustic guitar and some kind of accordian or something but it's quite nice. a bit parisian and who's against that? drums kick in as the lyrics tell us about growing up, finding yourself and being happy.

salient point: about 2:30 when it, quite literally, all goes silent and then crashes back into sheer joy a few seconds later. proof that this EP is building on her strengths. 

best lyric: "we'll let lanterns off at midnight looking for that cinematic view." 

lying to the mirror

outline: AMAZING SONG ALERT. this is ticking the box for having a "sort of self loathing yet empowering look at insecurities and paranoia" song on the sophomore effort. for an overdone area, it's actually quite refreshing and lovely. bittersweet. 

salient point: half way through with the rainmaker and "who you are is what you are and what you are is beautiful" good on you gabrielle. taking a leaf from our xtina.  

best lyric: all of them but the one which i am definitely getting tattooed on my skin one day is "it is the beauty of our flaws that will define us." 

panic cord

outline: i remember talking to the songwriter herself about this track just before she played it live. it's about a sort of creepy ex-boyfriend who kept all of her things and was far too into the "relationship" than she was. it looks at the little things that happened and why it all went to shit. 

salient point: when she pipes up "MAYBE you were just too nice to me" or the fact she manages to get do re mi fa so la ti do into a song and make it not sound fucking abysmal.

best lyric: "holding onto memories of you and me: we didn't last a year. we're just a box of souvenirs."

puzzle piece

outline: another one about finding your place in the world and taking note of all the people around you. fair play to gabby, she is quite the petite girl and planet earth is actually quite big so i can see where she's coming from. she's got a big interest in the significance of her life and i think that her target market (i.e everyone) probably thinks about that a lot too. 

salient point: the second chorus sneaks in some funky bass and it's quite poppy against the backdrop of her folky acoustic songs. as the song goes on, the flashes of genius production are subtle but effective.

best lyric: "these thoughts will weigh me down until i can't breathe. i'll slot myself back in the puzzle, where i should be." 

"never fade" is here and here and it's better than her acoustic EP which was very impressive in its own right. you can really start to get a feel for aplin's personality through these four songs and you'll start to see where she's going with her signature sound. next time it's her "home" era which is pretty much flawless so look forward to that one in a few days time xo