𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿 - this week: Aquarius - Patrik Ahlm

Welcome all to 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗹𝘆’𝘀 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗿, a series of weekly reviews by Charles Connolly - an artist in his own right. Here, Charles delves into the greatest brand new singles brought to you by the best unsigned artists on our electrifying and eclectic set of 𝙉𝙚𝙬 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙞𝙨𝙩 𝙎𝙥𝙤𝙩𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙝𝙩 playlists.

𝘼𝙦𝙪𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙪𝙨 - 𝙋𝙖𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙠 𝘼𝙝𝙡𝙢

Charles is starstruck…

What a split world this is. One side versus the other; with seemingly very few in the middle. Anger and hatred up against hatred and anger. One nightmare mirrors the other. Neither is right, but neither is either entirely wrong? Did Google Translate understand that? Did YOU? There is something to be said for both sides of the argument, but both go too far. Emotions get in the way, like petrol to a flame; or Mentos to Coca-Cola. Emotion is what blocks logic and rational thinking. Being impartial is near impossible, because we all have our own history, experience and emotion. And there is one thing we must simply accept: it is impossible to please everyone. So what do we do? Well, WE can do very little. We are, after all, the little people, with no power whatsoever. We can but watch through slitty fingers. But what can THEY do? I’ll tell you! They can calm down, get off their high horses, and compromise! There is horror on both sides, but there is also merit in both sides. It’s this merit we need to bring to the surface. We need to keep the pendulum even, with as little swing as possible; as dull as this sounds. I know that to many of you, this will seem obvious; and yet, it is very rare in reality. That’s why you must believe. Okay: hope, then. We’ve just got to stay positive, or we will drown.

When observing the nightmare of both sides, from a distance through your telescopic lens, you might feel safer. But we read the reality in the paper. It’s too much to bear. So we turn the page, from one horror scope to another. That’s right, folks; it has come to this. As reality blends into impossible fiction, we find ourselves looking to the stars. No, no: not the gossip column; not those stars. I’m talking about horoscopes. Ya know, that laughable thing that so many people still read every day of their lives. Those readers smirk and tell themselves it’s all so silly, yet still they wonder if there could be some truth in it. I think it’s possibly a little bit like playing the lottery. You know you’re not going to win, yet you continue to buy tickets “just in case”. You don’t believe the horoscopes, but maybe by some tiny chance, there is truth in there somewhere…? I suppose it’s less harmful than what’s going on in the rest of the world. Do I believe in it all? No. I do not believe that my destiny will arrive at lunchtime by post. But I do believe in star signs in terms of people and their personality traits.

As for me, I am but a fish. A kind, sensitive one, but a fish nevertheless. I always thought it unfair that cool summer people have the lion when I have the fish. Mind you, the rest of the summer people have cancer; no doubt from spending too much time in the sun. Fish beats cancer any day. Fish is good for you. But don’t worry, I’m not about to go through all the signs. Let’s look at my supposed traits. Intuitive: yup. Artistic: yup. Empathetic: yup. Moody: yup. Escapist: yup. Gullible: absolutely bloody not. Ah well, 5 out of 6 ain’t bad! Apparently my quality is “mutable”. At first, I thought that meant I was easy to shut up (I might have to dispute that). I now learn it means I am prone to change… Hmm… Possibly another one I’m going to have to argue with. Let us move from the Devonian period (when everything was a little bit fishy), to the Age of Aquarius. It’s all about air and water here. Hence those famous wavy lines. But why Aquarius? Why haven’t I chosen something like Capricorn or Saggy-Teary-Arse? Well, because Patrik Ahlm is Aquarius, of course! He’s this week’s pick, don’t ya know. Shall we see how his personality aligns with his supposed typical traits…? Let’s do that. Ah wait, there’s one problem. I perhaps don’t know him well enough to compare. I’ll tell you what; I know his music well enough. So how’s about we assume that his music is typical of his personality? That would make sense, after all. Right. First up is Friendly: absolutely definitely. I know him well enough to know that. I didn’t even have to think about the music that time. Intellectual: have you HEARD his lyrics?? This latest song of his contains an English word I had to look up. And he’s Swedish! So that’s a yes, too. Innovative: are you kidding me?? Every single one of his releases is different, and even within each song, he is so unpredictable. It’s another yes. Spontaneous: it seems so. While he spends much time getting a song right, the initial idea will come to him in a flash, and he will suddenly drop everything in order to get it done. Detached: he is certainly different, I’ll give you that. I think I would guess that he is detached when he wishes to be. Privacy and solitude are often what artists need. And finally, Rebellious: now THIS is a word I like. It doesn’t have to mean bullying, or even anarchy. Let’s touch on this one further and in more depth.

Rebellion is often seen as the quality of wanting to stand out and be different. I see it more as something subtly different. Wishing not to be the same. This is how I see Patrik. He doesn’t want to be the polar opposite of everything and everyone. While everyone is busy being orange, he doesn’t want to be blue. Instead, he wants to be orangey-red, with touches of blue, green and purple. While everyone is a straight line, he doesn’t want to be a circle, he wants to be a wavy line. While most of the world’s musicians are trying their very best to imitate dull pop, the true rebels in music are doing jazz and prog and all that “space between the notes” junk. Patrik sees good in both, but he also sees the problems with both. And so, rather than making something that is neither one thing nor the other, he blends the best of both worlds. It feels like a direct train with no intervening stations to slow you down. A calorie-laden gastro-extravaganza, with the calories of just one detached Tic Tac. Basically, a diplomat’s compromise. This is the kind of rebellion that goes down well on both sides of the coin. Pop lovers will love it. Pop haters will love it. Patrik Ahlm is a juggler. A gymnast. It is all about balance.

But really, this man is more than a pair of scales. His music goes further than gymnastics. He is an entire one-man circus! Watch the magician as he turns fizzy pop into wine. The lion is the cello’s growl keeping you on your toes. The elephant stomps its drums. Patrik is the clown that cries sad lyrics interspersed with sharp wit. A human cannonball? Only he knows how to strike a match and launch a chorus. A contortionist? Patrik should bend and break, yet he remains intact. He’s a stilt walker towering over us, looming large. He is even a fire eater: the fire is scared and so afraid, it went and called the fire brigade! And finally, the most important member of the freaky clan: the Ringmaster! Aquarius is a world of his own creation.

Phew! So yeah. Patrik Ahlm’s got a new song out. It’s called Aquarius. I really kinda hoped this time it would simply be “fine”, so I could write about someone else. I don’t like to be predictable. But that’s just stupid thinking. The best is the best, and the best deserves the highest praise. This Corner is the highest praise I can give. I have no other outlet. Aquarius is so totally pop, yet so totally different, fresh and original. I usually compare Patrik to Gary Barlow. I will continue to do so, as I do still hear Gary’s incredible writing and pop voice. But…!! I think Patrik has WAY exceeded the level of Gary Barlow here. You see, Gary Barlow has the tendency to be all pop, no interest. If he were a shoemaker, he would have mastered the skill of the craft, but it often feels like he is following someone else’s design. That’s Gary. Not only has Patrik mastered the skill, but these shoes are his own designs. Spotify hasn’t quite gone into shoes yet, so Patrik instead finds himself slumming it with music. It feels like he follows no one but his own nose. While it’s a nose worth following, it is only his to follow. If there’s anyone I hear more this time, it’s Stevie Wonder. The dry strings, dark like coffee and cigars, prove his confidence is not overblown or unqualified. The “space between the notes” manages to work without killing the pop, or sounding pretentious.

The chord changes feel natural and normal enough for pop… But they’re very much not. They are VERY unusual. Each change is NOT what one might expect to hear in a pop song. And yet, this is so utterly a pop song. Patrik is doing what I often do in writing. Disguising complex in a wrapper of easy pop. This is often what the great songs of the past did. They “seemed” simple, but they weren’t. Listen to The Beatles. Listen to Stevie Wonder. Listen to Queen. Listen to ABBA. Listen to Billy Joel. Listen to Paul Simon. These are the great songwriters of the last 60 years. It all flows easily enough, but it isn’t actually simple at all. It’s a fine balance to get this technique right. This is what I call PROPER pop. It’s far harder than jazzy proggy stuff, because with jazz and prog, just about ANYTHING goes. The difficulty comes in pulling together accessibility and complexity. I think the only real way of achieving this is to have had a wide-ranging listening habit from a very early age. I have never really known this technique to come about successfully from an artist who has only listened to one or two styles of music throughout their life. I don’t think it’s necessary to have studied music properly in any way (I’m living proof of that, and so are almost all the names I mentioned above). One simply needs to absorb as much music as possible. Oh, and you must love pop. You can’t make pop if you don’t love pop.

However, having had a lifetime of listening to all-sorts, doesn’t automatically constitute great songwriting. Not at all. Patrik has a stunningly flawless voice that makes us feel as though we could all do it. We can’t. His beats seem simple enough. Surely that is easy, no? Well, no. While it is relatively simple on the surface, it is the subtleties that raise it to another level. The pauses, the fills; they’re all so musical. Production-wise, Aquarius is not normal or usual in any way. Those strings should technically sound very awkward and amateur. But of course, they don’t. This is the work of a master. Patrik’s use of synths, pads and sound effects is inspirational. Listening through headphones made me wonder if I had a phantom kettle behind me!! An acoustic guitar is tucked in so neatly, later on in the song. It is all these little details that come together to make the whole. The mix itself is as flawless as his voice, pulling things together even further. But with all of this said, none of it has anything to do with the writing. Which is basically everything. And it is the song at which I marvel. Those chords, those melodies, those words. It is all so perfect, and yet all so different. Yet again, this really does sound like a classic that has always been, yet sounds like nothing else. I love it when everything aligns and I become starstruck.

What’s YOUR star sign? Let me know in the comments if you think you match your supposed personality traits.

All these signs, I’m starting to see it as a sign of madness. Ah good, I see a Stop sign. Certainly a sign o’ the times.

I’ll sign off now, for I am apparently mutable.

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