Tag: Three Green Trees

Three Green Trees – Pyramid Schemes

“That’s how you do a low-budget indie music video!”

Tim: These guys have been back in touch offering up their new single, and since we liked their last one, River, so much it’s probably only polite to give this one a go as well.

Tom: That’s how you do a low-budget indie music video! It’s nice to see some creativity and style put into it, rather than just “let’s dance around on a stage / in the streets”.

Tim: Hmm. It’s good, I like it. Not as much as River, I’m afraid, but it’s certainly a good track. As before, it’s the big emotive chorus that stands out so much, although to be honest I’m not so keen on it, or the main verses. I don’t know if it’s that way the words just drag out a long time, or that there’s not much going on beneath them (in the verses).

Tom: I wonder if, given our general love of cheap pop tunes and key changes, whether we’re not really qualified to review this properly. Is it that the tune’s a bit maudlin, or is it that we don’t have the attention span?

Tim: Oh, please, are we really qualified to review anything? It is a slightly maudlin tune, but, for example, my whole feelings are switched around when we get to that “all the wonders of the world” bit, because however much of a depressing message that may convey it does provide a nice hook to get into. There’s not that much of it, but when it comes along it’s really rather pleasant.

Three Green Trees – River

“I’m a proper sucker for that ‘ah-ahh’ing over a good instrumental.

Tim: Bands occasionally write to us and say “love your site, can you feature our track” etc, and it’s about fifty-fifty as to whether they actually know anything about us at all. But Stéphane from this Swedish band got in touch and seems genuine, and to top it all it’s actually a track worth featuring.

Tom: I’m always astonished how little Swedish accent most Swedish bands have when they sing. Can you imagine someone British trying to sing in Swedish? We’d mangle every vowel there was to mangle.

Tim: Probably, yes, but then non-English-speaking folk have vastly more exposure to English than we do to other languages. And, as I found out, pretty much everybody in Sweden speaks English to a high level. Aaaanyway, to the song:

I think I’m a proper sucker for that “ah-ahh”ing over a good instrumental, because that’s one of the things that I really like about this, and it’s not the only song with that in it that I’ve liked.

Tom: Yep, that last chorus is beautiful.

Tim: I don’t quite know why – maybe it’s just that with the right notes it’s easy to get something that sounds emotive and tuneful, but I don’t care if it is that simple because it works for me. It’s not just that, obviously, because there’s a good deal more to it. Simple but very effective instrumental bits before/between the verses.

Tom: I did think it took a while to get going, but the payoff at the end’s worth it. It’s a pleasant indie tune with no great pretentions, and there’s nothing wrong with that.

Tim: Nice lyrics with it as well – let’s go and be alone together in a place of natural beauty, and who’d say no to that?

Tom: People with a sun allergy, technically, and pretty much anyone if you happen to be holding a hammer and a sack at the same time, but I get your point.

Tim: Well, with an attitude like that I’d add: anyone if you happen to be Tom Scott.

Tom: To be fair, me and the outdoors don’t exactly get along.

Tim: Finally, I’m not sure why, but even though it’s three and half minutes, it still seems a bit short. Don’t know what that means overall, but it does make it easy to listen to on repeat, and I like that in a track.

Tom: I was quite sad when it ended: I reckon that the middle eight’s a bit long, and I’d have been happy to hear an even BIGGER final chorus tacked on to the end.

Tim: And also I like their logo, with the whole fairly subtle shapes/letters thingy. Though I do think the middle one looks more like a Q than a G.

Tom: What do you mean, their… oh. Clever.