I was keeping an ear out for what you were talking about when I listened to the song this morning, but I didn't detect anything unusual (streaming from Apple Music). Tbh I couldn't remember where exactly it was supposed to be so I may have missed it.
I didn’t notice any volume fluctuations but it does sound like his vocals at the beginning have been put through some kind of filter effect.
Open Road Another winner from Dave and Russ, once the vocal shenanigans at the start end. Sound like a vocal harmony duet in parts. Good riffage and I'd be worried if Dave didn't bring the government in somewhere.
Open Road I played this for the second time ever yesterday while I was in the car on the way back from an appointment in Manhattan. Heading back to Long Island, before lunchtime, there was no traffic. It's a good driving song. I could use the open road today, after being cooped up in the office, occasionally doom scrolling the news, lol. The lyrics seem pretty apt today. It's a good basic rocking song, to take my mind off things.
Although there were links for the first two tracks that were viewable in the UK, I can't find anything on YouTube for the remaining tracks on the album.
Open Road This one is such a good groove. It's got a pretty abrupt start though, right into it. The riff gets stuck in my head. The song shifts to and from different feels over the riff. The electric guitar lead licks that chime in here and there are a nice touch. Then the distorted guitar part. The acoustic breakdown is really well executed too. Not much more to say. I really like it!!
Found a very interesting interview with Dave done in 2017 at the time of the release of Open Road. I encourage everyone to read this one. He says some very direct things about Ray I’m not sure I’ve heard him say before in this way and I think he’s spot on and agree 100%. This interview thankfully doesn’t really cover the same old ground but offers some different questions, answers, and angles with some insight on this new album as well. Again, recommended. Dave Davies: Astral Warrior and Proto Punk on ‘Open Road’
Open Road This track took a few listens for me to "get" but now I really like it. The riffy groove could fit into a contemporary dance track and here it gives the track a very fresh rock feel. If one just reads the lyrics, it comes across as a bit of typical "young man wanting to avoid responsibilites and commitments and wanting to take to the road to be wild and free", but with the music and Dave's and Russ's vocal harmonies the song has a more reflective mood. To my ears, that blend makes the song something different, more about the challenge to stay true to oneself and not stagnate, to stay curious and keep an open mind to new persons and new music and new impressions. It's a very strong track on the album.
Wow, that's tough on Avory. It may very well be true that having professional drummers (Graham, then Cattini) helped them find their first "sound". And the drums on YGM make the song almost as much as the guitar tone and the riff. But in the end that early sound is what made the Kinks famous, not what made them irreplaceable. What made them irreplaceable is the songwriting, Ray's mostly, but also Dave's, as it developped from 1966 onwards. The words, the stories, and the musicality. And to me, Avory, with all his approximations, plays an essential part in this musicality. Ray may have said that the band broke up when Pete left, but he always includes Mick in his memories of the historical band. I'm not saying that noone could have done it better. Fake Ray from X-Ray pretends that Mitch Mitchell was considered, and even auditionned for the part after Mick tried to behead Dave on stage with a cymbal. A Mitchell-powered Kinks might very well have been raised to incredible heights.
Don't Wanna Grow Up. When I'm with you The feeling's other world Soon as you're with me Like a flash you're gone Watch the sun rise You're by my side Little whispers [?] You're in my thoughts again It's been a while, my old school friend Old school friend Closing time is near Let's have a drink, my old school friend Old school friend Don't be a stranger, my old friend [?] Life's too short, you know, so don't look back In the future when all is gone But we'll raise a glass to good we've done It's that time of the year I'm back again with my old school friends Old school friends As closing time is near Have one more drink, my old school friends La la la la, la la la la la la La la la la, la la la la la la La la la la, la la la la la la La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up You're in my thoughts again It's been a while, my old school friend Old school friend Closing time is near Let's have a drink, my old school friend Old school friend La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up La la la la, I don't wanna grow up Written by: Dave Davies and Russ Davies Published by: Dave Davies/Carlin Music and Russell Davies PRS/MCPS Here Dave reflects on his old school friends, and having a beer down the pub with them. The opening seems like Dave is going to be singing about a girl, or his partner, but the reflection is on his old school friend/s When he hangs out with them it feels like another world.... but it seems to be over too soon. and I get that. I imagine that his school friends aren't likely to treat him as Dave the rock star. They've known him since he was doing shady stuff in school, and although rock star Dave is a real person, these school friends know a certain core part of who Dave was... before. Really, that's essentially the song, and the tag is that he doesn't want to grow up... he likes feeling like the school kid again, and just chilling with his school friends. My biggest beef with all these latter day Dave albums is the mixing. This is much better than the last album, but again, it has mixing choices that distract me. They make the songs seem like demos and not quite finished, but on this album, from what I can tell, this isn't that kind of album..... Sure Dave is not really a polish it til it shines guy, but he clearly actually put these songs together and arranged them properly. Anyway, this is a really nice little ode to drinking with the friends of your youth, and dreaming of a certain period of time where you aren't too old, and you aren't too young, and life seems to be in your hands. The la la la bridge/chorus? is pretty cool, and the la la's seem to have a child's voice singing them, as though the child comes back alive in the presence of the old school friends, and it also has a sort of "I defy the idea of growing up" Not earth shattering, but an enjoyable little song.
That's not the one you're looking for, is it ? Of course not ! This third track is no Path Is Long, but it's still very nice. And I really enjoy Dave doing nice things even though I understand that his weirdo musical (and lyrical!) persona is what makes (made?) him so special. But this is a different project, just like the Aschere project was different. On this record so far, it's almost impossible to say "as usual…" which we've said so many times when we were discussing a lot of Dave's previous releases. There's no "as usual" stuff on this song but it's still 100% Dave, especially when he sings in this high voice of his, like he used to, but in a more touching, subdued way. I said 100% Dave, but it's closer to 50%, as Russ seems to be an important driving force here, too. I like the feel of this, the acoustic arpeggios, the distant echoey keyboard lines, sounding like an unnatural spectral harpsichord, the elegant piano touches, the bizarre almost whispered and dissonant vocal "responses" by Russ, even the rudimentary drums, it all makes for a very cool song that indeed has nothing to do with that Tom Waits track above, except for its title. But I hope you'll all appreciate this "bonkers" video nonetheless, I couldn't resist.
I can imagine Mitch would have been particularly great on much of the Kinks material circa 1967-'68 with his story punctuation marks!
The whole album with time stamps: 0:00 Path Is Long 4:36 Open Road 9:37 Don't Wanna Grow Up 14:08 King Of Diamonds 18:12 Forgiveness 23:00 Sleep On It 26:17 Slow Down 30:46 Love Has Rules Of Its Own 34:32 Chemtrails I'll catch up reading later after running and starting real work.
Don't Wanna Grow Up More Dave understatement and gentility of his latter day period as Dave has a different way of singing about his "Walter" And there's no big judgement or disgrace of any old school friends as Dave doesn't demonstrably display Ray's restless rampant ruminations. Something here reminds me of Ian Curtis and Joy Division and the soft longing in Love Will Tear US Apart and some of its musical counterpoint.
I note tomorrow is the release date for The Rolling Stones Hackney Diamonds LP and tomorrow's Dave song is King Of Diamonds, surely someone's taking the Mick!
Don’t Wanna Grow Up - This one does have a demo-ish quality but that’s also part of its charm. It’s unassuming and just kind of pleasantly drifts along. The great article that @Michael Streett shared with us gives us a little more insight into where Dave is at this time. Looking back at youth and our old mates. Some are gone and some might as well be, but we have that nostalgia and hopefully a little more wisdom, understanding and empathy. And thanks to Michael for pointing out that those are real drums on Open Road, I thought they were but you never can tell! @Fortuleo - One of my favorite Waits tracks and in my top three Waits albums. I had never seen the video. What a treat! Perfect for Halloween.
I have always found Tom Waits to be a very brave artist not least as he has a lyrical vocabulary that at times seems to expand beyond English.
"Don't Wanna Grow Up" Again, this is really nice and a very good production. Dave's higher register actually recovers some of his 60s/70s sound here - yes you can hear there are some effects on it but it's still great to hear him rolling back the years. A beautiful song that's completely devoid of all the excesses that may put some people off of his solo material, and just sounds like a normal song - with Dave Davies singing it!
Thank you! This is the song it was reminding me of. I never would have come up with it on my own. I don’t own any Joy Division, and hadn’t heard this song in many years.
Don't Wanna Grow Up On first listen I thought this was a letdown after the great first two songs, but it has since grown on me. The simple steady groove and Dave's vocals are very easy on the ears and I love singing that chorus because I don't want to grow up either. I get the echoes of Love Will tear Us Apart though think the melody is closer to that in the chorus of The Girl Who Wanted to be God off the Manic Street Preachers' 1996 album Everything Must Go. In fact, I wonder if the same melody has been used in lots of songs: it has a comforting familiarity.
