We are honoured to premiere the new stand alone Christmas single from those iconic dream pop exponents the black watch, the band headed by multi-talented John Andrew Frederick.
This follows the magnificent double album ‘For All The World’ released earlier this year (and reviewed by me here) and precedes new material on their twenty-sixth LP on The Bevis Frond’s Blue Matter Records, entitled ‘Varied Superstitions’, slated for release in early 2026.
With a hint of feedback, the track bursts through the speakers with a dynamic jingle jangle and a wailing guitar (either e-bowed or backtracked). Frederick’s vocals are deep and sonorous delivering sweet melodies as the instrumentation bubbles with a muscular beat and driving percussion. As with all the black watch tracks, it is anthemic and enigmatic, infused with a pop sensibility. Think of Brian Jones Massacre dancing with The Beatles and a little kaleidoscopic psychedelia.
Frederick says of the new track that is filled with optimism:
Some time ago I realized, as the song notes, that there’s ‘no need to freak’ about much of anything in life. The title’s sentiment is something I quite believe–with a rumor of resignation thrown in for good measure. In other words, the wise, it seems to me, learn and apply the virtues of acceptance. And I hope that listeners will accept the good old-fashioned handclaps in the second half of the song as proof that we must go on singing and putting our hands together. And that, notwithstanding what my all-time favorite group told us, all you need isn’t just love but love plus belief.
As usual, Frederick imbues every note with belief, unveiling yet another delectable morsel from his never ending banquet of musical feasts.
‘There are Solutions to Each & Every Problem’ is out this week and available tomorrow through the link above and all the usual download and streaming sites.
the black watch are a veritable institution having been around since the eighties. Their albums have a sparkle and a sense of yearning that permeates every note and every song is a stadium filling anthem suffuse with melody and atmosphere.
Lead singer and songwriter, John Andrew Fredrick is a musician, a poet and a writer (his fifth novel came out in 2023).
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