Every now and again you hear a track that just instantly knocks you out. Nobody Ever Got Rich (By Making People Sad), by The Golden Dregs, is one such song.
Part Tindersticks, with a dash of Lou Reed, a drop of Tom Waites and a touch of Nick Cave, it is a song of impossible beauty, enigmatic and emotional, frail yet bold. A lo-fi masterpiece that builds and subsides, filled with rumbling vocals that tear and shred your heart.
The Golden Dregs is the work of Benjamin Woods who with the exception of cello and backing vocals played every instrument on the song. It is why without a doubt I love reviewing music: coming across such gems as this is brilliant.
Woods says of the accompanying video: (it) was created by Jonny Thorpe, in St George’s German Lutheran Chapel in Aldgate. We wanted to create a visual response to the feeling of loneliness in the song – a sad priest in an empty church felt like the right fit for the narrative.
Extraordinary. The track is available now though all the usual digital platforms.
The Golden Dregs had already released an album Lafayette, one I will certainly look out for. They will be playing at The Five Bells in London on 18 June 2019 before the release of an album and a full UK tour.
