Bittersweet by Rachel Croft
Rachel's most upbeat song ever is out today!
Bittersweet has pace, there's no doubt. It's a fast chugging driving song. When Rachel claims it is her most upbeat song, you have to understand that everything is relative. She's not known for happy songs. Many of them are dark neon cinema soundtracks in smoky bars. They're brilliant.
"Bittersweet" is the most complete expression yet of Rachel Croft's style. It is upbeat, quick, loud, catchy and free. She's one of the most complete indie rock musicians working today.
Previously Rachel has sung about kissing hurricanes... she is no stranger to nostalgia either. One of her most-streamed tracks is Time Waits For No Man. In the tragic This Was Never Love she sings of rubble and dust, of ice and glass. In Roots, we hear about dark clouds and storms. So she's not wrong, Bittersweet is more upbeat, although Rose Tinted, my personal favourite, runs it close. Nostalgia again.
There are textures, flavours, of Don Henley's Boys of Summer, no more than that. Bittersweet is a summer song, a convertible-driving song, a California song. It's all of that and more.
I took a ride to the edge of town
Took a look at your house that they tore down
There’s nothing left but rubble now
But you were there in the eye of my mind
Stood at the door of a life I left behind
I think about you all the time
Is this Nottingham, or York? It doesn't really matter, it could be Los Angeles or El Salvador too. The idea is a simple one: that you can return to a place, but not a time or a memory. A few years ago, I found my childhood street looked shorter and narrower than it did when I was last there, in 1988. The house looked smaller. Why had I never returned? There was no point. I walked quickly past and did not look back.
To go back in time and place we lost
Put back the pieces
When nothing really mattered
And hopes and dreams weren’t shattered
Back into a past
We knew could never last
Not staring at the ceiling
Drowning in the feeling
Cos the world was at your feet
I’m not bitter it’s just bittersweet
One of my favourite things of all in music is the quick, upbeat tune paired with darker, reflective lyrics. This is a great example. Rachel is such a down-to-earth, friendly and funny person, but this song has a lot of lyrics. She has anger to resolve, I'm sure. Bittersweet really will be great with a full band, live.
Rachel is so great live and there are still a couple of tickets available for what promises to be a show for the ages, at Oslo, Hackney on 16th May. She is available everywhere you listen to music, including Bandcamp and YouTube and on her own website which includes merch and tour tickets.
Paul Dettmann
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