This album opens with “Seeing Things,” and an early line grabs me: “I see my reflection, it looks like a monster.” I love it, for it doesn’t necessarily mean that he is a monster. But he could be. It’s all about perception. The song’s next line mentions the Unicorn Woman, who will be a featured character in a later track. So right away Felix Hatfield is creating his own world on this album. This song also directly mentions Leonard Cohen and the song “I’m Your Man” (or perhaps the reference is to the album of that name, which is the first Leonard Cohen album I ever bought): “I see the ghost of Leonard Cohen/The record spins and grins, I’m your man, I’m your man.” I love the whole vibe of this song. We know we are in good hands on this journey, even if in reflection they seem monstrous hands. “Seeing Things” is followed by “Sick With The Flu.” I appreciate the humor of the song’s first lines, “How do you get anything done/When you’re dreaming of me ‘til the day is done.” The mix of folk and jazz elements works so well, in combination with that sort of understated delivery of the lyrics. “And we may find it hard to relax/But we’re not brushing our teeth/Down by the railroad tracks.” It’s something to keep in mind, and I don’t think I’ve heard it put quite that way before.
In the album’s title track, “False God,” Felix Hatfield sings, “Are you disappointed/I don’t have brains for sale,” and then repeats, “Brains for sale, brains for sale,” which is just totally fucking delightful. The backing vocals echoing “False god” have a country vibe. Kendall Core provides some backing vocal on this track. I also love the play with language and expectations, like when Felix Hatfield sings, “I’ve been looking for you/You’ve been looking forlorn.” And those unexpected pauses are fun. When the saxophone leads in the second half, the song has something of a classic sound and vibe. Everything about this song works. “You look a little fried, False God.” Ah yes, too much of that artificial tanner for the bloated orange mass. Then “Train To London” opens with the sounds of the beach. The vocals and music have a different sound, a low-fi vibe, like it was recorded on the beach, for those sounds recur in the track. “Did I hear your voice this morning/Was that an echo in the wind.” And it sounds like a train passes just before the end.
At the beginning of “Nobody For Me,” Felix Hatfield sings, “Nobody has time/Nobody for me,” and the horns respond, backing him up, almost teasing him. You get the sense the horns are playing along, but have better things to do, and will abandon this character soon. “What happens when things don’t work out/Exactly like you hope/I’m still around and nobody cares.” I can’t help but laugh at those lines. And his vocal delivery is perfect for this sort of grievance. Even the piano work has a humorously sad vibe to it. I love it. Stefan Jecusco and Stevie Weinstein-Foner provide backing vocals on this track. Then “Secret Society” opens with some good, urgent work on harmonica. This one has a different vibe, probably at least in part because it was recorded live. I’d say it was a strange one, but what does that even mean anymore? Backing vocalists shout back at him, “Skulls” and “Bones,” and the track has references to The Simpsons and Batman and even Quiet Riot. It has a loose feel, bordering on chaotic, a bit of punk energy, and there is more good work on harmonica throughout the track.
Felix Hatfield changes gears again with “That Kiss,” which begins with some pretty work on piano and trumpet. Taylor Tuke plays piano on this one. It shifts to some gentle strumming on guitar. This song has a surprisingly sweet and romantic vibe, with Esme Patterson joining him on vocals. “I’ve been thinking about that kiss/I mean that kiss the devil couldn’t fake/I mean that kiss that made the earth shake.” Some of this song’s beauty comes from its honesty. I love that instrumental section at the end. This ended up being one of my favorite tracks. It is followed by “Her Crazy Days.” Check out the opening lines: “She didn’t think about Wednesday’s disaster/She just stepped on the gas and drove faster.” Hey, sometimes that is the answer. But this song is looking back at a character from the past, her crazy days. “She was never going to be prom queen/After she got busted for amphetamine/And for writing ‘Fuck the Bobcats’/In spray paint down the hall.” I have to assume the Bobcats were her own school’s team, and not the rival school’s team. By the end, we learn just how far in the past those days really are: “Pictures of her grandchildren hanging/And a box of old memories ‘neath her bed/Where she keeps her crazy days.”
“Troubled Person” has an old-time folk vibe about it, like it’s being played on a porch. It opens with a line that is right at home in that context: “Life is hard but you can’t tell me why.” His vocals are supported by banjo, and there is a great, raw sound. That is followed by “Walking Distance.” It is nighttime as this song begins, and we’re out for a walk somewhere in the country. It’s a sweet, contemplative number, with Jolie Holland joining him on vocals. “To the way that you held me close/The day you wouldn’t let me go/Tonight it feels like walking distance.” If you are into The Moldy Peaches, you’re going to love this. Then “Crazy Love” has more of a full band sound, with a country bent, and is about Kurt Cobain. “Maybe it didn’t mean much to him/All the things that he would say/It seemed to put us in touch with him/And for the moment life was more than okay.” That’s followed by “Unicorn Woman,” that character that was mentioned in the album’s opening track. This one features some pretty work on strings, and some odd, eerie whistling that I love, like coming out of the wild west, maybe a ghost town of the wild west. Karla Mi Lugo does the whistling, and Ayla Lovera provides some nice backing vocal work. The album then concludes with “Lucky To Be A Sad Man.” In this one, Felix Hatfield sings “Every song that I hear/Brings back the pain/Every record that I play/Makes it rain.” Sometimes music reflects exactly what you’re feeling, and it seems to have a power. Though I think Felix Hatfield is also poking a bit of fun at that idea, a bit of fun at himself as a musician. Yet, he seems honest as he tells us, “But they don’t understand/How fortunate I am/To be a sad man/I’ve been where they’ve never been.”
CD Track List
- Seeing Things
- Sick With The Flu
- False God
- Train To London
- Nobody For Me
- Secret Society
- That Kiss
- Her Crazy Days
- Troubled Person
- Walking Distance
- Crazy Love
- Unicorn Woman
- Lucky To Be A Sad Man
False God was released on October 23, 2020.
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