Songs of Trouble for Gen X dudes started to develop as theme when a group of songs came together. They had a voice of characters, and they reflected on an idea of what is masculinity for Generation X in the current culture.
Stick to the Program was the first song that came to life in this process. A guitar hook and a melody that continued to come to life. And from it a story about growing up into being the man you are needed to be, rather than the fun party guy you used to be.
Sports feels like it is impossible to escape. We are drawn into it’s stories and drama. And it somehow becomes a part of us. The story of how a team becomes our favourite slips into our DNA and we cannot abandon it. Now add sports gambling and you are caught in some pavlovian cycle of self defeat. ugh.
I had written down Sex Date as a theme to take on as a song. I had been thinking about John Prine’s “In Spite of Ourselves” as such great songwriting. A friend recommended giving Blaze Foley a listen to. I listened to his songs between Halifax and Miramichi and wrote the song while visiting my mother. I always knew it works better as a duet and my friend Gillian Austin had the perfect voice.
The hook for Russian Girls came out when I was warming up to jam with some friends. And the words jumped right out with it. We are always being scammed now, the grift has become constant and automated. All we want is to be seen, accepted and loved. So easy to prey upon.
I recorded a version of this song during the pandemic. Rough and imperfect, but the feelings were there. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o30pWxIoe00 I was looking for a 6th song to complete the EP but the other songs I had were not quite landing the theme. Rerecording with a twang and shuffle made it a perfect fit for Songs of Trouble.
I told my friends I wanted to write a fighting & drinking song for the all night sessions playing Goldeneye on the Nintendo 64. I wanted it to feel like it was from The Pogues’ If I Should Fall From the Grace of God. A raucous singalong about a bygone era.