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'