eight significant songs by Feeder & more

Feeder are a very big inspiration of mine and were the most significant band in even getting me into music with guitars and the music that has now become an intrigual part of my life. They were also the band that made me want to be a songwriter and start a band myself, therefore I feel it's only right that I credit them here on my music portfolio. Listening to Feeder has given me the confidence to be myself and realise who I am. No other band had that overall affect on me (at the time). The following songs are, in my opinion, some of the best and most important stuff they ever put out. In this list I've tried to pick the most band defining songs - the real golden stuff, and I've written a short description of my own take on each song.

These are the songs which I believe should - and deserve to - stand the test of time, so don't expect to find the mainstream ones here in this list... sorry, 'Buck Rogers' and 'Just a Day'! I believe the following songs have a strong degree of importance, whether they were done by Feeder or any band really. So here they are, and in order of album release:

Shade - the awesome underrated song for what Feeder could have been. Quick and witty, and with a melody that will not leave your skull!
From mini-album 'Swim' (1996).

High - the song that defined Feeder from the rest, "I'm going out for a while so I can get high with my friends". It's about breaking free from the comfort of your parents arms when you're at that age when you want to go explore life for yourself. In this case it's about having a good time down town.
From debut album 'Polythene' (1997).

You Are My Evergreen - a true gem of a song with some very poetic songwriting, "'cos today, it all looks black and white wish it would change, we can't keep painting colours when it's grey". It's about being good to yourself by moving forward, not dwelling in the bitter past otherwise you will regret it, "don't hesitate 'cos you will bleed, a thousand tears won't wash it clean, don't hesitate 'cos you can free yourself".
From 'Yesterday Went Too Soon' (1999).

Hole in My Head - another classic with a more punk-pop edge, it's about feeling vulnerable/exploited to the outside world, "got a hole in my head and it's making me sad, got a hole in my head and the world keeps looking in". What I love about this song is its great rocking melody, full of energy, and the lyrics are very memorable and catchy. To me for some reason, this is a better, more real take on Just a Day.
From 'Yesterday Went Too Soon' (1999).

Child in You - the sombre tone of this song creates a nostalgic image of the times you were an innocent, naive child when nothing in the world really mattered and you were truly free. Now that you're older you reminisce in those feelings again, "close your eyes and drift away to some place new, where the skies are blue brings back the child in you". You somehow get tangled up in bitter, angry thoughts, "cry about it, shout about it, you feel that there's no sense in going on" but you're older and wiser now and realise it's not worth stressing about as you look back to the child in you with a reassuring, "it's alright, it's ok" followed by the bridge, "nothing was stopping you". This song has a special place in my heart and is one of my all time favourite Feeder songs.
From 'Comfort in Sound' (2003).

Quick Fade - an almost drunken sounding guitar melody opens this masterful song followed by lyrics which suggest emptiness and loneliness. Once the chorus kicks in, the drunk effect is removed but the sorrow is much still there, "I miss you more than words can say, a part of me has torn away, these china hearts will always break". This song is a farewell to a dear friend. The 'china hearts' are depicted as fragile china plates breaking easy from losing someone so close, but the real heart always stays strong. In the second verse, you're put under a false state of delusion, "try to get high, jump so you can feel it, you're living inside a dream as waterfall surround" but there is hope yet in the chorus, "things are gonna heal again, eyes once blind will see again". This, like Child in You is another work of art where the words and music perfectly contemplate each other.
From 'Comfort in Sound' (2003).

Love Pollution - this love letter of a song has some of the most sincere vocals singer/songwriter Grant Nicholas has ever done. It's a song about feeling broken and preoccupied, "got your head so full of traffic" and needing love to carry on, "been calling out for days as emptiness invades". There's also a longing to go back to good times but then hushing at the thought of it,  "but hey, hey, hey" because that's in the past now, what's done is done, and life must move on.
From 'Comfort in Sound' (2003).

Feel it Again - the most feel-good, reassuring song Feeder ever put out! "It only takes one word to bring you round and nothing can last forever" before Grant belts out the chorus, "it's getting better all the time now, I can feeel it agaaain!!". This song is just bursting at the seams with life and good positive energy and could've easily been a single, but instead it was made a b-side in good typical Feeder fashion. A lot of the best of Feeder's catalogue are actually b-sides. Only adds to the magic and mystery which surrounds the band I guess!
From b-side compilation album 'Picture of Perfect Youth' (2007).

So there you go, I hope I may have enlightened anyone with the brilliance of these songs from such a great, underrated band. Even now, they're still going - with seventh studio album 'Renegades' soon to be released in July. Original and founding member Grant Nicholas, and Taka Hirose who's been bassist for Feeder from the very start, and from drummer Jon Lee (R.I.P. that legend!), to Mark Richardson, to current Karl Brazil. Like these guys, I hope to live through an incredible journey of my own someday and have many stories to tell. I certainly have the drive, of that I can assure you. So 'tell all your friends'. ;)


posted 22/03/10
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