Anything that gives out serious “Into My Arms” vibes is obviously a song worth spending a bit of time getting to know. I’m not saying that “Scars” is sonically mimicking or trying to emulate; this is the sound of Jonny Black, not Nick Cave, but they do seem to come from the same place – achingly romantic, brilliantly understated, and unquestionably a cut above the competition.
Black, a London alt-folker has delivered a song that reminds us that you don’t need to overload a song with sound and instruments, that the right few creative touches – here a deftly employed acoustic guitar, a voice that speaks gently to the soul, and a few other sonic washes – and you have enough…more than enough.
This is music that, rather than making an impact through mere sound, although that is impressive and indeed impressively understated in itself, instead is a vehicle for a sentiment, a message, the sound of love and redemption, of longing and the realities of relationships, what they actually mean, and the bottomless well of feeling that they can, and indeed should be.
The world is awash with love songs, but they are mainly written by impetuous kids who know nothing of life, or saccharine sentimentalists who want to rhyme Moon with June and consider their job done.
I think Jonny Black would be comfortable with me saying he has been around the block a time or two, and that is the song’s strength. How can you understand, appreciate, and let yourself be consumed by love if you have not also been scarred by it?
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