- This is interesting. 'Stop' is a bit eighties RnB, a little 'Word Up' by Cameo even: vocodered vocals, a big catchy bass part, the whole bit. Except it's more starry-eyed, like you'd expect from Mathew Jonson. And because the track is pop music, the lyrics feel more important than usual, not least because Jonson has processed them through a Peter Frampton talkbox thing which means you have to strain to understand them. The vocals on this track are very mysterious, maybe the best thing here.
So for the sake of good journalism, I did something I hardly ever do, which is listen closely to the lyrics. Like a teenager would do. I even listened to the record over and over until I felt like I had a good grasp of what 'Stop' was all about. Here's the result: poor old Mathew was having very acute girl trouble when he wrote this song. I don't really want to say more than that because actually it's none of my business, but it was seriously fun snooping around in someone's personal life. I could relate.
Anyway, I'm glad he's decided to put a stop to it all.
The B-side is called 'Real Dreams', which has more upfront vocals and so the brooding is more in your face. Unfortunately the effect is a bit TMI. The A-side works because you have to make an effort as a listener to pry, which is of course more enjoyable, but when someone's singing quite openly about their problems, there's nothing to discover. Besides, the bassline is not nearly as tight as the A, which is what really counts.
Word up, Mathew: "No romance, no romance, no romance..."
トラックリストA Stop
B Real Dreams