For a song to be described as anthemic, it has to be more than just loud. It needs to have unmissable hooks, a real sense of presence and purpose, the sort of dynamic lift and soaring qualities that grab the listener and drag them skywards via searing crescendos. It has to ooze grandeur and feel epic. In short, it has to do all of the things, be all the things, and embrace all the things that “Not Today” does—and does effortlessly.
The superbly named Urban Walrus has built something rather brilliant here; this is indie music writ large, about as large as it gets. But that is because “Not Today” goes beyond the usual indie swagger and bravado to create its sonic world. It uses rock and roll weight and drive to push one way, pop infectiousness to power the other and ebbs and flows between these two sonic states through an ever-shifting dynamic.
An anthem has to have a purpose, and this song’s purpose is to remind us that there are some days when you shouldn’t have bothered getting out of bed in the first place. They happen; we all have such days. Now, perhaps for the first time, we have an anthem for those days when our senses tell us to say, “No thanks, not today,” turn over in our warm bed, and go back to sleep.
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