New music from Sam Fender is always a treat. His little bits of soundtrack work here or there have been the crumbs falling into our lap while we wait for his third album. The timing could not be better. A couple of warm-up shows, another few crumbs in the form of People Watching, a new bit of material which seems to be set for inclusion on the third album. Seventeen Going Under is a monumental experience and while it has served Fender extraordinarily well on his rise through the ranks, it is time for some new sounds. People Watching is a refreshing bit of work, a reminder of his instrumental talent and all the joys of homeland rock continue. An official release should not be too far off. But then some of us have been waiting years for Proceed to the Route from Jarvis Cocker to be dumped out.
There is no greater pastime in a train station or coffee shop than people watching. Where this may be lost on People Watching, the newest bit of work from Fender, it sticks in the back of the mind. There is a similarity between the lives we create for those passing by as we scratch away the minutes in the public transport limbo and the moments heard on this track. Fender has got the style down to a tee. He knows what momentum this music carries, what it needs and where it slots in. Saxophone sections and the echo of a quality guitar tune are carried once more, almost expectedly so, on its percussion. But this is no problem for People Watching, which can hang its hat not just on consistent musical candour but lyrical joys.
It is no secret that Fender utilises his upbringing and hometown, how it has evolved in his three decades in and out of the city, as a backdrop to his emotive and often charming lyrics. People Watching is no exception and has the usual rises and falls, but he does it well and with a consistency few in the genre have. Head back home if you have a place worth returning to. For those born and raised in the shadow of those bigger cities, skip out on it, but give People Watching a listen anyway. Wait for a proper release, perhaps, but these excellent lyrics are in place. An envy held close to the chest for those with their own problems, unknown to the parasocial relationship we briefly deploy on them to pass the time.
Fender hits on all the expected notes but has maintained an evolution to his sound. He must. It is the difference between stagnation and pure joy. People Watching is an eventful and earnest piece – these are the consistent tropes of the Fender sound. There is grief running through this song not just for the individual locked in location but for the “crippled island” that many of us, like Fender, call home. He has called out the state of the place, and the limited joy in seeing it devolve and gradually decline. It was such a core point of the latter stages of the Seventeen Going Under release cycle and its involvement in the new material, like People Watching, is a welcome experience. An essential bit of work from Fender, who is no doubt confident of this new material, and rightly so.
Discover more from Cult Following
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
