5 Songs I Love w/Alex Paclin

Following the release of his eclectic new album 'What Time Makes Us', we caught up with Multigenrist Alex Paclin to find out more about his favourite tracks! If you're a fan of the songs below, be sure to check out 'What Time Makes Us' at the end of this article.

1. Hozier – Movement

"This is a big and epic song. It has a great buildup, from a powerful kick with claps,

Rhodes and an intimate vocal to a Hammond organ, sacred-like backing vocals and a full

drum kit at the end. It has emotive lyrics talking about different kinds of movements of the

author's lover and specificity makes it even cooler: "like Jonah on the ocean" is referred

to the Hebrew prophet Jonah, “you’re Atlas in his sleeping” is a reference to Titan named

Atlas from Greek mythology and he's also beautifully mentioning Polunin and Fred

Astaire. I like how Hozier leads every verse with the phrase "when you move, I'm moved".

And at first, when I heard the chorus, it surprised me and seemed out of place because of

switching the tonic chord from minor to major, but after a few listens it felt right, just like a

new color in a composition."

2. Bee Gees – How Deep Is Your Love

"How deep is your love is a simply beautiful song and it's the one which I wish I wrote.

Notice that none of the melody lines are repeated within the verse and chorus, yet it feels

solid and memorable. The melody has a wide range, going from a chest voice in the

middle to a high head one and of course, there are nice harmonies. It also features the

substitute (non-diatonic) chords that make this song shine."

3. Alt-J – Every Other Freckle

"Every other freckle explores the primal nature of humans. It expresses passion in every

possible way with lyrics, such as: "I want to share your mouthful", "Turn you inside out

and lick you like a crisp packet", "I wanna be every button you press" and more. The

music emphasises the lyrics with toms imitating the African drums and the actual African

drums. There is also a cool mixture of acoustic and electronic instruments – you have a

dirty lead synth and an acoustic guitar that appears sometimes."

4. Aerosmith – Dream On

"Aerosmith's music influenced me a lot and if I had to pick one of their songs it'd probably

be Dream On. For me it's a great dramatic ballad about getting older, coming through the

bad experience and becoming a new man out of it. And of course, going your way until what

you strongly believe in comes true. I like that it has several unique instrumental parts in it – starting with a harpsichord or a synth with a guitar playing a riff that progresses

melodically, then there are the second and third instrumentals that are slightly different."

5. Hozier – Cherry Wine

"Another one by Hozier, this time a great acoustic ballad with just a vocal and a finger-picking guitar that is recorded live which makes the song even better. You feel the

contrast between buoyant guitar plucking and the lyrics about suffering. Here he speaks

about a victim of domestic violence, a man who will tolerate the abuse and justify it

with good moments in this relationship."

Listen to Alex Paclin 'What Time Makes Us'

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