M J Smallman has submitted a couple of songs to me over the last year, but I have to say, his most recent release, “Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain” is a huge step up for him.
This is the first song that MJ has penned and recorded himself and one he should be proud of.
The song is essentially a love song but with dark and sad undertones. Using the premise of Courtney Love and Kurt Cobain’s troubled relationship as the underlying story, MJ has cleverly woven their events with those of the song’s characters.
Starting off slowly with some beautiful guitar work, guiding us into the song and setting the mood. MJ then teases us with a short line before a deep baseline rumbles to life; the guitar fades and he takes hold of the lyrics.
The deep bass and drum patterns give the song a moody feeling and when combined with MJ’s voice, which has a real sense of pain and sorrow, you really can feel the emotion of the song.
When the chorus kicks in with distortion and reverb you can feel your pulse quicken a little as the song really takes a hold of you.
The use of a slightly faded vocal in the latter part of the song was a stroke of genius and gives that portion of the vocals a different dimension.
When I initially listened to the song, I felt there was a tiny bit too much reverb on the vocals and although I still feel this is the case, it has grown on me and does give the vocals depth.
The end of the song feels a little out of place in my opinion and I am not sure that it adds anything to the overall product. If it adds anything it is a strange ethereal feeling and maybe this is what MJ was going for.
Overall, the song has all the components that are required for a well-crafted, well-produced single and does have the ability to affect emotion.
Favourites
• Line: The opening line “Looking in the rearview, thinking about those nights I was near you in heaven”.
• Part of the song: The intro guitar work is brilliant, it sets the song up well.
• Video: The video is pretty good; it adds emotion to the song and you really feel the pain of the girl in the video.
Chad J Country Rating
| Music | 8 |
| Vocals | 9 |
| Lyrics | 9 |
| Single (Of 30) | 26 |
| Video | 6 |
| Overall (Of 40) | 32 |