SOMETHING OLD
Fleetwood Mac - Why
1973
On his second and final Fleetwood Mac album, guitarist Bob Weston brings what, in my heart, is the Paris, Texas sound. The introduction of this final tune is a weeping slide guitar reminiscent of that dry, spacious sound Ry Cooder creates on the Paris, Texas film score. That film, of course, wouldn't come out for another decade. This is a sound defined by the blues. Which is fitting, as this is the post-Peter Green blues era of Fleetwood Mac and the pre-Buckingham Nicks era: the seldom talked about Bob Welch era from 1971 to 1974.
After the slide guitar intro, we transition to simple strums and the repeated, single resonant bang on the floor tom. After that, all ears are on Christine McVie. With her piano, her voice, and the song she wrote, Why begins to come to life.
Fleetwood Mac - Why
1973
On his second and final Fleetwood Mac album, guitarist Bob Weston brings what, in my heart, is the Paris, Texas sound. The introduction of this final tune is a weeping slide guitar reminiscent of that dry, spacious sound Ry Cooder creates on the Paris, Texas film score. That film, of course, wouldn't come out for another decade. This is a sound defined by the blues. Which is fitting, as this is the post-Peter Green blues era of Fleetwood Mac and the pre-Buckingham Nicks era: the seldom talked about Bob Welch era from 1971 to 1974.
After the slide guitar intro, we transition to simple strums and the repeated, single resonant bang on the floor tom. After that, all ears are on Christine McVie. With her piano, her voice, and the song she wrote, Why begins to come to life.
This song conveys the kind of heartache that is constantly betwixt and between sadness and anger, best represented by two of the final lines that conclude the album:
Why don't you love me?
Why won't you just be strong?
The first comes across as a desperate plea for love, while the other seems to carry more pent up frustration about something deeper behind this lack of love.
The lyrics also explore that non-linear readiness to move on, considering the bulk of the song is about knowing it "won't always be this way" and that her hurt "will simply melt away," but those aforementioned final lines tell a different story.
There's a 1976 live version of this song where Buckingham & Nicks contribute, but it doesn't do it for me. This original version with McVie shining with that short-lived lineup is something truly special.
Why don't you love me?
Why won't you just be strong?
The first comes across as a desperate plea for love, while the other seems to carry more pent up frustration about something deeper behind this lack of love.
The lyrics also explore that non-linear readiness to move on, considering the bulk of the song is about knowing it "won't always be this way" and that her hurt "will simply melt away," but those aforementioned final lines tell a different story.
There's a 1976 live version of this song where Buckingham & Nicks contribute, but it doesn't do it for me. This original version with McVie shining with that short-lived lineup is something truly special.
SOMETHING NEW
The Enthusiast - Ants On The Walls, The Floor, The Desk
January 8th, 2026
The Enthusiast - Ants On The Walls, The Floor, The Desk
January 8th, 2026
I admittedly spend way too much time on the Geese subreddit, but sometimes it's a productive use of my time. For instance, a member of The Enthusiast, a new group hailing from Sydney, Australia, posted one of their songs there and cited Geese's 3D Country record as a big inspiration. The Enthusiast is Harry Bartlett, Ollie Wackett, and Andy Santone.
I ended up listening to the whole album (Funny Things), which was inventive and fun. I almost featured the song that was posted, Raving Rabbids, which indeed did employ some of the same indie rock chaos as Geese, but was ultimately turned off by one of the lyrics. So here we are with a milder tune, albeit with much more of a mouthful as the title: Ants On The Walls, The Floor, The Desk.
This is a beautiful song with a memorable melody. The words "beautiful" and "mild" do come to mind somewhat deceptively, though, as there is a brief foray into a heavily distorted instrumental solo at 2:18. That's a very interesting musical choice, as it immediately resumes to acoustic guitar, but listening to a song whose next move is unexpected is a sign of something quite fresh and good. The song then concludes with a lovely saxophone part.
There's not a ton of information about The Enthusiast out there yet, but keep your eye on them. Their 2025 single Antiques Roadshow, which is excellent, has already amassed nearly 40k Spotify streams.
I ended up listening to the whole album (Funny Things), which was inventive and fun. I almost featured the song that was posted, Raving Rabbids, which indeed did employ some of the same indie rock chaos as Geese, but was ultimately turned off by one of the lyrics. So here we are with a milder tune, albeit with much more of a mouthful as the title: Ants On The Walls, The Floor, The Desk.
This is a beautiful song with a memorable melody. The words "beautiful" and "mild" do come to mind somewhat deceptively, though, as there is a brief foray into a heavily distorted instrumental solo at 2:18. That's a very interesting musical choice, as it immediately resumes to acoustic guitar, but listening to a song whose next move is unexpected is a sign of something quite fresh and good. The song then concludes with a lovely saxophone part.
There's not a ton of information about The Enthusiast out there yet, but keep your eye on them. Their 2025 single Antiques Roadshow, which is excellent, has already amassed nearly 40k Spotify streams.
SOMETHING BORROWED
Siouxsie and the Banshees - She Cracked (The Modern Lovers)
1987
Lately, I've seen nonstop nostalgia for 2016. I don't get it. I recall being inundated with tons of sad, notable deaths and presidential election campaigning ad nauseam.
What I do remember, though, is finding a whole lot of interesting music that largely shaped the taste I have today. I remember being wildly obsessed with both the original and cover versions of the Jonathan Richman-penned She Cracked. I remember, embarrassingly, somehow incorporating the She'd self destroy, necessary to self enjoy / I self develop, necessary to self help lyrics into a 9th grade English class essay. I'm not sure if I copied it word for word, but I vividly remember my teacher reading the essay aloud with me and not missing a beat while reading it while my eyes widened nervously. She, of course, did not catch my obscure 70s proto-punk lyrical plagiarism.
Siouxsie and the Banshees - She Cracked (The Modern Lovers)
1987
Lately, I've seen nonstop nostalgia for 2016. I don't get it. I recall being inundated with tons of sad, notable deaths and presidential election campaigning ad nauseam.
What I do remember, though, is finding a whole lot of interesting music that largely shaped the taste I have today. I remember being wildly obsessed with both the original and cover versions of the Jonathan Richman-penned She Cracked. I remember, embarrassingly, somehow incorporating the She'd self destroy, necessary to self enjoy / I self develop, necessary to self help lyrics into a 9th grade English class essay. I'm not sure if I copied it word for word, but I vividly remember my teacher reading the essay aloud with me and not missing a beat while reading it while my eyes widened nervously. She, of course, did not catch my obscure 70s proto-punk lyrical plagiarism.
I would normally associate this style and era of music with a sense of lyrical male self-loathing, which is almost certainly always somewhere under the surface with The Modern Lovers, but on the top it's actually usually a bold declaration of superiority from Jonathan Richman. Here, he's devoted to making sure you know he's doing much better than his ex-girlfriend, similar to how he leaves a hell of a voicemail on I'm Straight to let his love interest to know that he's not stoned in the way guys like "hippie Johnny" are.
I've always sensed a layer of irony in these egoistic lyrics, though a comment on songmeanings.com about this song that suggested "sometimes I get the impression that Jonathan Richman isn't the biggest fan of women" made me laugh out loud. That certainly could be it, which is all the more reason to check out Siouxsie's version, a raw goth-esque take on the song. It may just be Richman's voice that make his songs feel less than earnest, but there's a tonal difference with the Banshees, who make make it sound more serious. This version was released as a 1987 B-Side to the group's cover of This Wheel's on Fire by Bob Dylan and The Band. Pretty cool.
SOMETHING... BLACK AND WHITE
The dB's - Black and White
1981
The dB's - Black and White
1981
Remember guitarist Bob Weston from the Fleetwood Mac song? What if I told you a totally different Bob Weston was responsible for the 2024 remastering of this 1981 song from The dB's?
It's weird, but true. The power pop group's out-of-print debut Stands for deciBels album was remastered recently, with the rest of their records potentially all getting the same treatment ~40 years later.
Black and White is the album's punchy opener, with direct (one might say... black and white) storytelling about the clear end of a relationship. Coming across as someone very fed up after giving their all, it reminds me lyrically of The Left Banke's I've Got Something On My Mind, where the narrator finally lays down his cold, hard truth about how badly he's been treated. Both songs feature a man at his wit's end, but The dB's take the cake for being as blunt as possible:
I don't enjoy you anymore
The lyrics also have hints of passive aggression with lines like love is the answer to the question / but thanks for, oh, the suggestion and yeah, I know I don't know anything at all. If the song weren't so catchy and energetic, I think I'd feel tense putting myself in the shoes of this disaster of a relationship.
It's weird, but true. The power pop group's out-of-print debut Stands for deciBels album was remastered recently, with the rest of their records potentially all getting the same treatment ~40 years later.
Black and White is the album's punchy opener, with direct (one might say... black and white) storytelling about the clear end of a relationship. Coming across as someone very fed up after giving their all, it reminds me lyrically of The Left Banke's I've Got Something On My Mind, where the narrator finally lays down his cold, hard truth about how badly he's been treated. Both songs feature a man at his wit's end, but The dB's take the cake for being as blunt as possible:
I don't enjoy you anymore
The lyrics also have hints of passive aggression with lines like love is the answer to the question / but thanks for, oh, the suggestion and yeah, I know I don't know anything at all. If the song weren't so catchy and energetic, I think I'd feel tense putting myself in the shoes of this disaster of a relationship.