Photo credit: Joseph Elliott
Specialise Subject signings Don’t Worry – a duo made up of Ronan Van Kehoe and Samuel Watson – offer their take on the foibles of modern life on their new album ‘Remorseless Swing’.
Opening with the jangly Wave Pictures-esque indie pop of ‘Head’s Chocka’, the album finds the duo in a hopelessly romantic and nostalgic mood as they sing about holding on to moments (‘I’m tongue tied over you’) and ‘waiting for that feeling’. This is swiftly followed by ‘Do That Thing’, a melodic emo-tinged tune full of regret as the band work their way through the mundanity of modern life: ‘Why don’t you come over? I’ll make you a cup of tea or coffee’. ‘Crushing Weight’ is full of more fuzzy and woozy riffs but the lyrics are heartbreaking: ‘Inside, I want to know who I am’; ‘Inside, I kind of want to die’. ‘Boredom Abound’ has more of a swaying feel with talk about seasons changing and the effect this can have on mental health.
‘Got, Need’ looks back on a favorite pastime of swaping stickers in the playground while the brutally titled ‘The Scythe’s Remorseless Swing’ has melodies reminiscent of early Into It. Over It. as the band look for support and try to move on: ‘I’ve been losing all my marbles, maybe you can help me find them?’; ‘I’m done, I’ve had enough of feeling like this’. ‘Beans’ has some Britpop-era Coxon guitar work backing up lyrics about favorite foods and a pep talk – ‘You can cook anything you want, you can do anything’ – while ‘Progress with Denise’ is more reflective and steeped in sadness and self-reflection: ‘Is it just me that hates me? Definitely maybe’.
‘What’s in a Name’ has bursts of scattergun guitar and appears to be about finding some form of direction – ‘Are we calling it burnout?’ – while the waltzy and closing ‘DST’ features a guest appearance from Soot Sprite as Don’t Worry explain: ‘I feel so strange and I don’t know why time and time again’. ‘Remorseless Swing’ is an emotional record that finds Don’t Worry expressing themselves perfectly.
