Sam Fender has, with the singles leading up to People Watching, proven the guitar joys of his preceding albums are not just a flash in the pan. The emotive consciousness, the colloquial liberation which bridges the gap between longing nostalgia and escapism, can be found in his work still. Patches of the past are forming the future for Fender, whose continuation of the Seventeen Going Under theme, the pride and reflections, affect the present. Remember My Name is a bold choice for a single, and bolder still are the changes made throughout. Where there is a worry of Fender becoming a pastiche of his sound, a man reliant on the saxophone-shaped jigsaw puzzle, Remember My Name is a defiant and refreshing new moment from Fender. A track oozing with sincerity, with love for his late grandparents, a touching and mature flourish.
Remember My Name is nothing short of staggering. This is a single where the conviction of Fender’s voice carries it as a tease of a wider picture. It feels like a slice of something else, a song backed by brass and orchestral efforts which feels as though it draws from a preceding song and moves into a following track. We are given a trim cutting and what an experience it is. Isolated from the rest of the album, Remember My Name marks an entirely new and unique experience from Fender. It is one of his very best. Dead Boys may spring to mind, but that has nothing on the moving, stripped-down experience heard here. Gut-wrenching lyrical points and a well-deserved spotlighting of Fender’s vocals – a chance to hear his voice without the backing of a roaring electric guitar or some saxophone spots. This is as raw as Fender has gotten ahead of People Watching, and it is a welcome, open-hearted effort.
A leftfield entry into his discography, that’s for sure. Fender has accepted that crucial next step as an artist. He is not reliant, as we may have thought, on those guitar riffs and heady, steady sounds. Bold pushes both instrumentally and lyrically are made. He still holds firm with reflections on the past but those teary-eyed moments, the memories held with loved ones now lost, are inevitably relatable. But it is how an artist uses these tones, whether they manipulate a listener further, that defines the song. Fender opts not to, the piercing heartbreak and longing for another encounter with someone no longer here is more than enough. There is a sense throughout Remember My Name of unpacking the grief we compartmentalised when we were too young to understand it. Moving it on, prodding at it once more, brings on one of Fender’s most beautiful songs.
Crucial to a song of this tender style is the blend. That fine line between emotional clarity and reflection. Fender has paired these themes time and again, but Remember My Name may be his best. In place of someone to hold it becomes a song of true care. An emotive reaction to this one feels inevitable. This is not the feelgood blur Seventeen Going Under embedded in its harsher songs like Spit of You, but a complete dedication to a talented vocalist who is often buried under slick rock efforts. Remember My Name is a charmer, a stunning piece which could, understandably, fall to those heartstring-tugging moments. But the genuineness, the absolute clarity in the face of ongoing grief, is mesmerising, something we all can learn from.
Discover more from Cult Following
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
