We live at a time when more and more artists are using their music to protest against the state of the world. After all, it seems that, day by day, there is increasingly more to protest about. And whilst I wouldn’t say that “The Man’s Always Getting Me Down” isn’t exactly a protest song in the more traditional sense, not a rabble-rousing call to arms against the powers that be, it is undoubtedly a recognisable commentary on the world around us as seen by Ben Aubergine.
Written more than 25 years ago, as Ben was first getting to grips with the adult world and particularly the fiscal hoops we all have to jump through, it is not only timeless in its sentiment, it also looks further back for its sonic references, perhaps to late sixties west coast singer-songwriters and early 70’s british folkies.
That’s not to say that it doesn’t fit perfectly with today’s vibe, a lilting slice of indie-folk, cascades of guitar shot through with lovely additional motifs, slowly rising into more rock and roll realms as it goes, and a reminder than not only is music made in this sweet spot between folk finesse and rock drive and pop accessibilty and indie cool, always a winner, now matter what fad or fashion might suggest.
It is also a reminder that, since the dawn of civilization, someone has always been demanding their cut of our hard-earned wages.
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