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Adrian Whitehead: Nerd From The Suburbs

by Popboomerang

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1.
Folie a Deux 04:29
I traded my life for a ride on a merry-go-round Riding through the fairground Once you taste the sugar floss You wish this ride would never stop But the clowns hide behind their hair Painted up faces laughing like psychos Not everyone is fair at the fair ground you know Not everyone is who they claim to be That’s the trouble with us You give in and so I give up Why I fell for you I’ll never know It’s crazy hanging on this folie a deux You see things that I will never see But don’t let that stop you And if my vision starts to end Maybe I could just pretend? To keep the truth from ruining This fairytale of facts and figurines Messed up like a bad dream I couldn’t believe it but its true The TV talks to you Tells you all there is to know That’s the trouble with us You give in and so I give up Why I fell for you I’ll never know It’s crazy hanging on this folie a deux Try to get you out of my head Try to get you out I know I’m in there somewhere…
2.
Adam and Eve didn’t need any leaves They could do no wrong till the snake came along A hiss in the ear and a fumble of fruit The dirty old snake left his mark on the two Adam blamed Eve and Eve blamed the snake What else could they do with the fruit on their face? God was pissed and they needed a case But blaming the snake’s got a use by date Blaming the snake’s got a use by date And this one’s come along just a moment too late Well me I’ve got this wandering mind Illogical leaps through space and time I sift through the ages looking for culprits Was it the sandpit or down from the pulpit? Lost in a soup of nature and nurture these Yellow meals won’t last forever Yeah I ate an apple and I swallowed a grape But blaming the snake’s got a use by date So how will you try and improve your fate? Put your trouble in a bottle and drink it away How you gonna straighten this mortal coil? Make a valley in the sand so your blood don’t boil Dot your eyes and paint your lips Be a fake be a fraud be a counterfeit Get on your knees its never too late But blaming the snake’s got a use by date Blaming the snake’s got a use by date And this one’s come along just a moment too late
3.
Say something, anything, everything will be analysed Sigmund says if you don’t try you didn’t try much when you were a child Hiding in the garden, sugar trees and make believe Almost forgotten, pushed to the antipodes Flash back to a photograph where everything seemed real Do something, anything, everything is a compromise Sigmund says if you’re depressed your mother cried when you were a child Perfectly ordered, but somehow avoiding The elephant in the corner that we don’t like to talk about Shout it down and dance around the room but the elephant knows the truth If you forgive then I’ll forgive too These strings are vibrating all the way to Africa She went sailing to stick it up Sigmund Freud A wind blows from the inland to throw the sailors over board Paralysed and sea sick and telling lies to find a cure Swimming round in circles and dangerous seas You make it look so easy but the sharks know the truth If you forgive then I’ll forgive too It’s just like you told me A broken chicken lays a broken egg A little shame a little sugar This cake’s baked just the way you said So that’s the way it goes We pull each other down like dominos Over and over and over and over again… Plastic black backed soldiers lining up forever never stepping out of line each one with white dots familiar skin topple over and bring the next one down and so it goes over and over again… This recurring dream, I’m lost in a garden Pulling up flowers when a little black spider says Where do we go from here? A spinner’s work is never over Don’t the spider know the truth, and so it goes…
4.
Now days I see the light A checkered past of black and white So the day turns into night Try to move pieces to the other side I’m working on shades of grey Opinions flip and turn around The earth is flat the earth is round Glasses empty glasses fill When I’m drunk I want you still I’m working on shades of grey I’m working on a place to slip into the water Come out the other side Those bright coloured clothes washed by the river tide The waves rough and tumble the inks fade and dry The long night is over The darkness swirls onto shades of grey
5.
It was good to see you I guess before you went away I see you still worry about the everyday You smile politely with a dagger in your teeth Just like they taught you in those schools in the east Fashion mistakes what a waste You know there’s an app for than now Social faux pas is a thing of the past thank the lord By the way that’s French don’t you know? Anyway I think its called first world solutions for third-rate problems Overstated looks of overly concerned Be bashful and blushing shy and reserved I won’t be angry any more I’ve learnt It used to get on my nerves But now I find its just easier to drift away God help us I used to pray What were we thinking anyway? No room to move when you’re so beautifully poised Be seen and not heard, be forward but coy I see you insist on saying sorry too much still A lesson that you learned in your all girls school I’m sorry for having the wrong change, I’m sorry for the time of day I’m sorry for being good looking, I’m sorry for being a woman I’m sorry for breathing out, I’m sorry you made me shout I’m sorry I was late, I’m sorry I already ate I’m sorry I came at all, I’m sorry I’m sorry I’m always so terribly, terribly, terribly sorry Gee it was sure nice to talk with you today I want to tell you I’m happy now how things have gone my way How I got right over you without your help How you never understood, how you laid the blame on me How you messed me up real good, how you couldn’t face the truth There were places left in you, that you’d never let me through How you were afraid of intimacy How you said you’d never loved me How I feel still feel bitter How things are so much better How I’m so glad we’re not together Yeah maybe lets catch up again soon If I’m not doing anything Depending on the weather
6.
The Dream 01:03
Just because her eyes are closed doesn’t mean that she is sleeping And don’t you suppose to understand anything As the sleep comes to an end
7.
Gilded Cage 04:38
I saw the light and fell out of bed across the space where you slept when you slept A step outside and its all on show this actor’s life is all I know yeah its all I know And if I play my part well the world would never know Just smile and hello they come and go without a question A wink at my reflection those flattered imperfections Just pretend just pretend just pretend But then I woke up with wide eyes here in the sunrise I see right through you The mirror’s made a gilded cage And traded its old way to satisfy a reflection to make you happy But the mirror lied again, thank god its over She was always a little too smart a little too tall a little too far But little by little with the grace of a shovel she gave me a part And if I rehearsed and rehearsed my show and crept like a nurse not to steal her glow I could bath in her light and take my place in the gallery row And if I played my part well the girl would never know Just smile and hello we come and go without a question It takes a time to realise we’re not ourselves at all We just pretend just pretend just pretend But then I woke up with wide eyes here in the sunrise I see right through you The mirror’s made a gilded cage And traded its old ways to satisfy a reflection to make you happy The mirror tried but could not change And woke up with wide eyes here in the sunrise I see right through you The mirror’s made a gilded cage And traded its old way to satisfy a reflection to make you happy But the mirror lied again, thank god its over
8.
Blank Page 02:55
There’s nothing worse than staring at a blank page When there’s so many things you want to say If you stare for long enough the page can suck you in You might start believing you can’t win There’s nothing worse than staring at a blank face One that could never feel the same way You can stare forever but they’ll never let you in You might stop believing in anything You might stop believing in yourself You might seem to drift above your body The world would keep on turning but it turns in slow motion You might go so low you can’t control yourself You never thought you’d see that day There’s nothing worse than staring at a blank face One that looks back at you the same way You can stare forever but the mirror doesn’t lie Maybe you could make a change this time
9.
I’m just a nerd from the suburbs I think you might be like me actually When I look into your eyes its like staring into a mirror Sometimes I like what I see but sometimes I hate myself too And I don’t wanna be me I don’t just want you I actually wanna be you I suppose that’s hard to understand But remember I’m just a man Trying to work out what this life is all about The best he can with the limitations that he’s got You’ve got your head on your shoulders so hold it up proud You’ve got your beautiful head on your shoulders so shout it out loud Sometimes you’d look away shy I want you to know you’ve got nothing to hide You couldn’t offend if you tried You’re winning every time you open your eyes and smile There’s something right with the world When there’s a girl in it who’s made with your style Try as we might we couldn’t get it right I’m afraid its too late I don’t expect you to wait You’ve been waiting so long you’re right to move on You’ve got your whole life to live and I’ve got mine and this is it You’ve got your head on your shoulders so hold it up proud You’ve got your beautiful head on your shoulders so shout it out loud 'Cause the whole world needs to notice what you’re about Now don’t get me wrong this is just a song I’m not trying to bend the truth or trick or try it on Its not a foolish invitation or a dirty pick up line Its just a thing I’ve meant to do for a long time You’ve got your head on your shoulders so hold it up proud You’ve got your beautiful head on your shoulders so shout it out loud Cause the whole world needs to notice what you’re about Don’t be shy to show it what you’re about You’ve got your beautiful head on your shoulders You’re beautiful head on you’re shoulders You’ve got your beautiful head on your shoulders So shout it out
10.
True South 06:16
When I was nine you showed me how to read the stars If you draw a line down from the southern cross Should you ever get lost true south will guide you home Camped in a dry river bed, I soaked up everything you said The stars and the planets rolled out like blankets I made a little map inside my head All your wisdom but yeah, all your insecurities too You don’t like to smile in photos You don’t like to make mistakes We’re just the same, I’ve got your nose I’ve got your name You know we’re just the same, we don’t like to make mistakes These days you’re still gazing at the stars With your hubble eye fixed on far away ants cats and milk The meaning of life is complex son beyond this system is a bigger one That makes you and I seem like nothing at all It must be great to reach so far to see dead light of exploding stars But you see I still struggle with the planet I’m on I don’t like to smile in photos, I don’t like to make mistakes We’re just the same, I’ve got your nose I’ve got your name You know we’re just the same, we don’t like to make mistakes Black holes are heavy space from which there’s nothing that escapes They make true south seem like nothing at all All light’s absorbed without reflect Its not easy its complex just like a father and son We don’t like to smile in photos, we don’t like to make mistakes We’re just the same, I’ve got your nose I’ve got your name You know we’re just the same, we don’t like to make mistakes

about

Adrian Whitehead’s stunning songwriting lays bare the human condition and shines a light into the dark corners of our inner worlds. Channelling the likes of George Harrison, Elliott Smith, and Harry Nilsson, he creates a unique sound that reflects his extensive musical experiences. An accomplished multi-instrumentalist, Adrian has performed with some of Australia’s best known artists including The Badloves, Pollyanna, Even, Abby Dobson, and Liz Stringer.

Adrian’s long-awaited second album, Nerd from the Suburbs, weaves alt-pop and psychedelic influences into an elegantly constructed soundscape. Produced by Shane O’Mara (Paul Kelly, Tim Rogers, Lisa Miller) at Yikesville studio in Melbourne, Nerd from the Suburbs is the end result of a journey that started almost a decade ago. Not content to merely recreate the sonic mastery of his first album, One Small Stepping Man (2008), Adrian goes deeper with this new offering: delving into the web of human experience, getting tangled in the contradictions and paradoxes, and finally distilling a sound as beautiful and disgusting as the lives he writes about. A clinical Sigmund Freud gives in to schizophrenic psychedelia; expansive cinematic soundscapes contrast against a New Orleans bar scene, complete with drunken trombone and tack piano. Finally, in an attempt to find intimacy, the closing track thrusts the listener into the farthest reaches of the known universe, shadowed by reverb-drenched guitars and lofty vocals.

Though there’s plenty of humour and warmth, Nerd From The Suburbs is not afraid to stare into the abyss when the time comes. And there lies the true paradox: when we put ourselves under the microscope we are likely to find not only great pain and sadness, but also healing and comfort. When the long night is over, the darkness swirls into shades of grey.


Praise for Adrian Whitehead

“Whitehead has shown his utter mastery of 60s and 70s-influenced pop forms that all of us in the power pop community enjoy”
Absolute Powerpop

“Brilliantly written songs and perfectly catchy summer melodies fill the air wherever this is played and I am as giddy as a schoolgirl whenever I hear it”
The Rock And Roll Report

credits

released March 22, 2018

Adrian Whitehead – vocal, acoustic guitar, piano, drums (3), bass (3, 9)
Shane O’Mara – electric guitar (1, 3, 7, 8, 10), baritone guitar (2), solo (9)
Jacob Cole – electric guitar (1), solo (2), 12 string (7)
Jethro Pickett – electric guitar (8), backing vocals (1, 7, 9), wisdom (all)
Ursula Woods – backing vocals (1, 7, 9)
Tim Keegan – bass (1, 2, 4, 8)
Jak Housden – bass (7, 10)
Sam Young – drums (1, 2, 8, 9)
Terepia Richmond – drums (7, 10)
Joe Tobias – trumpet (2, 3)
Ellie Lamb– trombone (2, 3)
Amy Lowe – tuba (2, 3)

Music and lyrics by Adrian Whitehead ©&℗ 2017

Produced by Shane O’Mara (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9) and Jak Housden & Shane O’Mara (7, 10)
Recorded at HoneyBaby Sound, Pete’s Kitchen, Soundpark and Yikesville between 2011 and 2017
Mixed by Shane O’Mara 2017
Engineered by Lloyd Barrat, Shane O’Mara, Jak Housden, and Pete Hillman
Mastered by Mikey Young
Photos by Ursula Woods
Design by Billy Davenport

PB:113 Adrian Whitehead: Nerd From The Suburbs

This recording has been a long time in the making and many great people have helped and inspired along the way. Big special thanks to Jak Housden for getting this whole thing started many years ago, Pete Hillman for your encouraging words and bionic ears, Anna the Rock and Jethro Pickett the Oracle, Lloyd Barrat who literally is sound, all the musicians who played on the sessions, Scott Thurling from Popboomerang, Ursula Woods for artistic direction, and last but not least Shane O’Mara for weaving this whole thing into something special

www.adrianwhiteheadmusic.com
www.facebook.com/adrianwhiteheadmusic

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Popboomerang Australia

Australian music label founded by Scott Thurling and releasing its first CD in 2002 with over 80 recordings to date.

Specialising in melodic pop, jangle, folk and rock and predominantly working with Australian bands with the aim to building their careers locally & internationally.

Artists include Skipping Girl Vinegar, Georgia Fields, The Aerial Maps, Celadore, Bon Scotts, Tamas Wells & Tim Reid
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