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In today’s post, [ai] somewhat belatedly announce the release of the new music video for “The Subway Song,” which premiered on Friday, November 5. Watch it now on YouTube:
Did you notice anything familiar? If so, you may be able to answer today’s trivia question:
Which music video released in the mid-80’s by a certain well-known alternative band do the text font, color, and arrangement of the video for “The Subway Song” allude to?
Come on, take a guess in the comments below! The answer will be provided in the next post!
What the critics are saying . . .
“The Subway Song” has already received some attention from reviewers. See the following write-up at CelebMix, which notes [ai]’s “gift for alluring pop-rock full of glistening hues and wonderful lyricism”:
Now for some nerdy “behind the music” info . . .
“The Subway Song” is the first single from the album No Cure for the Princess Disease (as you know from having watched the video, right?). Set for worldwide release on Friday, November 12, No Cure for the Princess Disease is “the Korea album” in [ai]’s Far East Trilogy.
“The Subway Song” is central to the concept of No Cure for the Princess Disease because the album itself is a musical journey which may be thought of as a ride on the Seoul Metro with the passenger/listener making 9 different stops and seeing/hearing something completely different at each one. The “orange, purple, yellow, and blue” of the chorus are literally the colors of some of the lines on the Seoul Metro, as you can see from this map:
Although it is the fourth song on the album, “The Subway Song” may be considered the beginning of the “magical mystery tour” which No Cure for the Princess Disease offers the listener. Stay tuned for the other 8 stops on the Seoul Metro as [ai] plan to release videos for each of the other songs on the album as well (probably at the rate of one per month). Subscribe to the [ai] YouTube channel so you don’t miss them!
More nerdy “behind the music” info . . .
[ai]’s musical director Mark Will originally wrote “The Subway Song” when he lived in Korea and he first recorded the tune with his Seoul-based band Princess Disease for their eponymous album in 2010. This recording was rushed in advance of a CD-release party, so it was only after Mark relocated to Taiwan that he was able to record the track in the way he had always heard it in his head. The version on No Cure for the Princess Disease is as close to perfect as he could make it.
Track credits are as follows:
Mark Will – vocals and bass
C.J. Hsu – guitars
Cody Byassee – drums
Zen Chien – production
Of particular note is C.J. Hsu’s slide guitar intro. Mark asked C.J. to do his best George Harrison impression and the result is too beautiful for words. When Mark first heard what C.J. had come up with, he almost cried.
Here is one of the Harrison tracks Mark sent C.J. as a reference point (solo begins at 3:47):
[ai] miss you, George!
Coming soon to an email inbox near you . . .
In addition to the answer to today’s trivia question, the next post will feature a link to an interview between [ai]’s Mark Will and his former bandmate Craig Branch, host of the “Can’t Find My Way Home” podcast. Look for it later this week!
Trivia answer: REM?