There hasn’t really been a precedent set on how recent these Obsessong things need to be, although so far I’ve made a habit of writing about songs that were recorded far before my time. However, I’d say that finding a brand new song that you instantly fall in love with can be just as, if not even more exciting than discovering an old tune that’s worth obsessing over. Also, I just feel way more compelled to write about this one song than any album that’s come out in the last few months.
Song: “Is This How You Feel?” by The Preatures
Album: Is This How You Feel? EP
Year: 2013
Written By: Isabella Manfredi, Luke Davison, Thomas Champion and Jack Moffitt
My Relationship With This Song
Look, I try to go out of my way to find other means of discovering new music besides the indie snob mecca that is Pitchfork.com, but you know, it’s hard. Especially when Pitchfork does such a good job of covering the bigger tentpole indie artists as well as up-and-comers like Sydney’s The Preatures. Much like Pitchfork, about all I’ve been able to uncover about The Preatures is that they’ve released an album and a couple EP’s in their native Australia, but none of it has been nearly as irresistible as their most recent single, “Is This How You Feel?”. Unfortunately the band doesn’t plan on releasing a full-on album until next year, and the EP that bears the song’s name isn’t even available in the U.S. yet. Which should probably bum me out, but this song is so ridiculously infectious that I hardly even give a damn.
Reasons Why I Love This Song
“Googa-chicka-googa-chicka-googa-chicka”: I believe I’ve already stated my affinity for nonsensical rhythmic rock words, and though this nonsensical intro is only a small piece of the pop-savvy puzzle that is this song, it’s still an important one. I’ve already had moments where I’ve been going about my day, and then all of the sudden start spouting out “googa-chicka-googa-chicka”, and then ask myself why the fuck I’m making the kinds of sounds a creepy caveman would make. And then of course I realize I have this song to thank for that.
There’s A Little Bit Of Darkness, Just A Little Bit: “Is This How You Feel?” is an undeniably peppy song, which probably explains why The Preatures have been compared to another ’70s sunshine-inspired band on the rise, Haim. The Preatures, however are a lot more intriguing to me because unlike Haim, they don’t pile the sugary sweetness on too thick. It’s more subtle, and there’s a definite darkness somewhere in there that has also earned the band comparisons to Fleetwood Mac, a group that similarly combined pop perkiness with a dash of anguish lurking underneath.
The Chorus, and How It Begs To Know How I Feel: Of course, when trying to make the argument that there’s darkness inside this song, all bets are off once The Preatures tear in to that chorus. It’s a chorus that’s not precocious enough to demand any sort of anthemic status, as it has this weird distinction of seeming kind of casual, but somehow exuding a sense of urgency at the same time. Also, the phrase “Is This How You Feel?” is a pretty perfect match for the way the song grooves itself through a series of hip-shaking rhythms that you can’t help but “feel”.
“I Could Keep On With The Same Mistakes, Or I Could Make Them With You”: I don’t think this is intended to be a song where you pay attention to the lyrics, but this line stuck out to me. You’d think with all the romantic fuck-ups that populate rock music as well as the songs written by these fuck-ups, that someone would’ve written a line like this at some point. But I guess that’s what makes songs like this one special: Just when you think everything about popular music has already been done to death, you’re reminded that there are always new ways of reconfiguring pop’s parameters.
Why I Will Continue To Love This Song
Honestly, I don’t know that I will necessarily. However, there’s a good chance I’ll continue to enjoy this song if it gets thrown on to whatever The Preatures’ next album will be, assuming that the album lives up to this song’s potential. But if not, I can still look back on “Is This How You Feel?” as one of the unsung Summer Jams of 2013.