100 Greatest songs of the 20’s So Far #56 Real Estate – Water Underground

arcticreviewsblog

Released: 2024

Why change? It’s a world comprised entirely of distractions now, and in an effort to keep drawing our attention the temptation to scrub things clean and start again is one that needs some consideration.

If such thoughts ever crossed the minds of New Jersey’s Real Estate the evidence is hard to find. In thrall to The Byrds and R.E.M., their 2011 released second album Days was a masterclass in parochial, picket fence rock, it’s apex Green Aisles impossibly beautiful.

To make some kind of effort they gave their sixth a name in Daniel, but it’s contents showed that any urge to change course had been left to shape the margins only. Water Underground was an archetype, singer Martin Courtney reflecting on the inexorable patterns of making music, “A song about writing songs” as he described it. Everything else duly flowed around him, with pretty chords and wisps of melody in pastel shades. Why change? Why indeed.

Unknown's avatar

Published by arcticreviewsblog

Hi, my name is Andy & I live in Leeds, in northern England. I've been writing about music for more than ten years. My work outside of this blog is featured on Live4ever and Contact Music.