Stranger than Fiction, Larger Than Life: the Finn Brothers song-by-song discussion thread

You cannot be serious? Do people seriously want their favourite artists to write songs to meet fans expectations and not follow their own creative vision ? And think the artist selfish for not pumping out rewrites of classic Crowded House songs? I expect that of people like Paul McCartney and Elton John but not Neil Finn.

 

I don’t think artists are really capable of doing that anyway unless they are, like, talented hacks like Diane Warren or Robert “Mutt” Lange or somebody.

 

Better than TV: Random thought: the title always reminds me of the excellent Talking Heads song, “Found a Job”.

Regardless of or maybe because of those reviled opening lyrics, I find this song a little sexy. Although I agree, if it was on another (better) album it may not have stood out as much.

The subject matter resonates too. My firstborn graduates from high school in a few weeks. Louis CK says in one of his standups that his kids ate his dreams. It is supposed to be funny but that has always stuck with me. Obviously no regrets AT ALL but there is a tradeoff.

I like how this song is addressing the next chapter: kids are grown; instead of a biological clock there is a different kind of clock running down.

3.5/5

 

Better than TV - I'm with @drewrclv9 in hearing a salsa beat here (maybe it's the bongos!). But kind of a wistful salsa if that makes sense. Because as others have noted the song is a kind of sad commentary on the addiction to watching TV and maybe not reaching out to do other things. (Not that I'm judging those that binge watch! I personally would rather do other things though).

I like the repetitive piano line, in fact I think it adds to the "story" of the song, which is endlessly repeating the same actions and again it's a nice part of the general groove/salsa. The strings are excellent - the right accent for the song.

I'm not bothered by the details of the lyrics and personally I don't have a problem with dance and chance. I mean, songs tend to be a reflection of our lives and frankly when asking people to dance you are taking a chance (to start or develop a relationship). Why wouldn't you use those two words? And frankly they are easier for the crowd to sing along to . I'll agree with @HitAndRun that having the second line puts a bit more context for the phrase.
I often find lyrics are a bit naff if you want to judge them by poetry standards. Not the fault of the lyric but the constraint on songwriting is that you need to fit it within the rhythm of the song, make it catchy (or I guess not depending on the artist), and make the meaning slightly obscure so it appeals to everyone. That's a pretty tall order! I will say, though, that obviously some songwriters do hit the jackpot (NF included) of producing some lyrics that I'd be quite happy to read as poetry.
(Sorry for the digression there)

In any case "Better than TV" is very definitely better than TV. A good song to listen to and dance to.
4/5

 

Well, appreciation of lyrics is entirely subjective. So, there we go

 

I should perhaps clarify that I meant selfish of me. Any confusion on that score is my fault, so apologies. And no, I don't want them to write songs to meet fan expectation, but I also want them to write songs I like. It all comes down to the outcome: McCartney has a happy knack of taking that experimentation and applying it to something that is still melodic and enjoyable. This points to a conflict between, on the one hand, my explicit understanding and acceptance that an artist wants to push themselves and try new things and, on the other, my desire to invest my money and time in a record I enjoy listening to. And while I can appreciate the artistic merit of an album or song that doesn't work for me, at the end of the day, I'm here to be entertained so if I'm not, I'm going to feel disappointed.

Perhaps I didn't put enough focus on the specific word in my comments that is key: sometimes. I'll expand.

I'm more than happy for Neil to experiment, try things out and push himself. But when I'm paying good money to hear these experiments and more often than not they don't float my boat it is hard sometimes to not wish he'd have put his efforts into writing something more akin to the music that brought me to him in the first place. That's a passing thought that competes with my acceptance of his desire to do otherwise.

But I think it's a wider point worthy of debate: where do we draw the line between artist and entertainer?

 

Better than Tv, 3.5/ 5. "Don't leave the best designs buried in your dreams" has more than once inspired me to make something, finish it and release it.
Interesting to read that perhaps the idea was to inspire Sharon to be brave enough to pick up music.

 

Neil's vocal on Better Than TV is supposed to be impassioned, but it sounds to me like he's trying too hard and doesn't really believe the words he's singing. The urgency that this song needs to have musically comes off as contrived. That's really unfortunate because the point of the lyrics is one that I wholeheartedly agree with (and I work in TV). And I really like the lyrics.

Again, I prefer the acoustic version played live, there's something contradictory about an over-arranged and over-produced song whose point is to experience life instead of becoming a couch potato.

3.5/5

I might have a different opinion tomorrow. We're getting a new roof today, so with all of the pounding it's like there's a whole new rhythm track to the song. Best to leave the "Dizzy Heights" of roof replacement to the professionals and not go anywhere near a ladder.

.

 

Back to Better Than TV: television has brought us a great many benefits and can be infinitely informing and entertaining. But there is also now a 24-hour culture of filling time with garbage because the old test card (arcane UK reference) is no longer acceptable. And that encourages physical and social lethargy. I recall there being a kids' TV programme back in the 1970s/early 1980s called Why Don't You. The title was expanded in the programme's theme/mantra: "why don't you just switch off your television set and go out and doing something less boring instead?". I'm all for television that engages and educates but it's "passive television" - the "I'm just watching it because it's on" attitude that really irks me. So I'm right behind Neil on this one. Go out and find something new to do, something interesting and engaging. Something that is better than TV.

I'm playing the album again as I type and was wondering why I hadn't given this song a full 5 when I listened to the next three songs. Oh yeah, now I remember

 

The most intelligent comment of the whole thread

 

So the swelling is gone and I can bend my toe just fine, no pain or anything. Nail is still grotesquely discolored so far from all better, but completely fine and a marked improvement from yesterday.

Copy ---> Paste and you have my review of "Better Than TV." It's a frustrating song - I really like the music and singing and the cadence, but lyrically it just doesn't resolve into anything meaningful for me - if the same song had different words, I think it could easily be a favorite.

3.2/5

Wait... so.... is "Tell Me What You Want" about learning to play bass? This changes EVERYTHING!

 

Excellent. Some good news. Nearly five weeks in and my elbow is still swollen. I think I damaged something soft rather badly. Still can't straighten it or put pressure on that arm (although I can carry things happily).

 

I hope you have seen, or are going to see, a doctor. 5 weeks and still swollen needs medical attention.

 

"Better Than TV" should have been titled "Better Than 'Divebomber'". I like this one musically, although I don't think that the bridge is as strong as the rest of the song. I'm not enamored with the lyrics for some of the reasons that others have already pointed out. Interesting choice to put the strings in the left channel and the piano in the right.

3.4/5

 

I think you're misreading what Paul was saying. I read it as him saying that it's selfish of him to demand Neil to only write in the style that he has proven a master at.

For me, I think it's laudable for artists to push themselves and to try different things. However, I'm not sure that all of those experiments warrant release. My view is that, if you put it out for your fans to spend money on, you should believe that it deserves comparison to your past work. In that light, I feel like it's completely fair to say when the new work represents either a successful attempt to expand your sound or a failure to capture past heights.

It's only when an artist actively tries to piss off fans by deliberately doing something that is counter to their expectations that I have problems. I don't view that motivation very charitably.

 

I've stopped watching TV (including streaming shows) over the last 10 years or so. My music collection is so enormous that, between music listening and working through my library of unread books, there's just no time in my life for watching television. I try to stay up on the best movies (generally the Oscar contenders and critically acclaimed foreign films), but that's about it. Movies are at least over in 2-3 hours and don't require the time sink that series do. I do a lot of outdoor stuff as well (it's a requirement when you move to Colorado - weekend shaming is a thing here).

 

OK, that's the expression of the thread right there! I can see how that may be a competitive sport in CO!

 

I spoke to a GP last week - they insist on phone consultations. She was happy for me to just keep exercising the joint. Thing is, I'm pretty sure I've got bursitis. I rang today but the best they can do is another telephone consultation at the beginning of June. I'll be ringing tomorrow and calling it an emergency.

 

It's that look people give you when you come into work on a Monday morning and you're asked "what'd you get up to this weekend?", and your response is "nothing much....watched some TV". The judgment hangs thick in the air. Skiing, hiking, rock climbing, running a half-marathon, river rafting, etc. are all acceptable responses, however.

It's not a bad thing though, and I suppose it's a big reason that Colorado is usually ranked as the "fittest" of the US states (which is probably a low bar by international standards).

(For the record, I did an 11 mile hike yesterday.)

 

I stopped for 17 years (stopped watching in Denver, natch) but now I watch about an hour a night. I hate it but it's something I can share with my wife, but I really hate it.

People are ridiculously active in Czech, it's much like Colorado in that, and other, respects. One of my students took a 70 km walk the weekend before last! I know a doctor who jogs 25 kms to work and back every day. And so on...

My wife runs about 20-30 kms on a day off, I do (a lot) less. But we try to walk together for about 10-15 kms if the weather is nice. Or go cycling or something.

 

That's magnificent!

I've got a boat load of unread books and music to listen to (Shostakovich complete recordings) and a bedroom turned into a home recording studio. I have simply lost my enthusiasm for anything...zero motivation or interest. It's very frustrating and hopefully just a temporary blip caused by the current situation.

 

The best parts of "Better Than TV" are the middle-8 and Victoria Kelly's string arrangements. Other than that it just repeats a pleasant (but nothing special by Neil's standards) melody over and over.

3/5

 

Better than TV" is a relief after "Dive-bomber," but it's serviceable rather than brilliant. I don't think it stands up to close scrutiny. 3.5/5

 

"Better Than TV" sounds like it was intended to have a dance music club groove, but the energy seems very forced and there's not much a melody here. And even though I've heard the song many times before today and now several times today, I'm still wondering what the chorus was. To my ears it just feels like the song consisted of one long verse which ultimately doesn't go anywhere. I do like the strings though and I think if it had been just vocals and strings it would have been a more interesting song. As it is, this song is somewhere between B side track and an okay album filler.
2,4/5

 

Which is why I can never live in Colorado - I spend my weekends cooking, baking and eating, which is the opposite end of the caloric burn!