It’s always great when a piece of music’s feel matches the song’s themes, as if the artist is creating a complete and complementary sonic world in which to tell their story. Sure, opposites attract, but there is something sweet and seductive about lyrics and music that fit together this effortlessly, especially when the result is also this sweet and seductive.
Exploring the idea that the world is never black and white, that it is filled with many shades of gray and more than that, further colored by nuance, perspective, and context, not to mention the worldview of others, ‘Villains’ is about the idea that while, naturally, you are the hero of your own story, you are probably the villain in someone else’s narrative…perhaps even the antagonist in more than one. There is no good versus evil; this isn’t Star Wars or a pantomime, and as a wise man once said, “Just ‘cause you’re the good guy, don’t mean you gonna win them all.” Well, quite!
And these feelings and ideas, this duality, are echoed in the music: dark yet buoyant, soulful and seductive, understated yet infectious, its groovy bass line and propulsive beat, gentle and graceful, reflective and restless, the soundtrack to both the noir villain unexpectedly winning the day and also the guy in the white suit, having got the girl, riding off into the sunset.
I might not know where this fits in the musical landscape, but it is the perfect piece of mood music for reassessing your perception of where you fit in the world, remembering that everyone’s view of you is different… and being totally okay with it.
