Catchy, tender, and upbeat, Paper Beat Scissors’ impassioned “Don’t Mind” soars with warm folk-pop and a tongue-in-cheek smile at hypocrisy and privilege.
Stream: “Don’t Mind” – Paper Beat Scissors
With an eye for clever lyrics, an ear for catchy sounds, and one of the best artist names out there today, Paper Beat Scissors is an easy fan favorite once you get to know him. A decade’s worth of material shows an artistry constantly in motion: One that evolved out of a classic guitar-and-vocals setup to embrace the power of the recording studio, exploring the vast worlds of “indie folk” and “folk rock” without forgetting his roots or claiming allegiance to a singular style, structure, or space (listen to 2015’s Go On for a particularly good time).
His first piece of new material in two years, “Don’t Mind” affirms Paper Beats Scissors’ exceptional artistry and special place in the realm of independent, genre-defiant “singer/songwriters.”
Strong words, few deeds
Tell me what a friend should be
Go again: roll the dice
Show me where my heart should be
Nevermind if we see the day
When it comes it surely waits
Warm lights on the wall, is it too late?
Lift the cup, lift the plate
Atwood Magazine is proud to be premiering “Don’t Mind,” the lead single off Paper Beat Scissors’ upcoming album Parallel Line (out September 2019 via Forward Music Group). The musical moniker for English-born, Montreal-based singer/songwriter Tim Crabtree, Paper Beat Scissors is an established presence in the great white north, and it’s high time he broke out into the rest of the world. His first full-length album in four years promises to introduce Paper Beat Scissors to his largest audience yet thanks to the nature of streaming and the music world’s valiant attempt(s) to globalize.
Catchy, tender, and upbeat, the impassioned “Don’t Mind” soars with warm folk-pop and a tongue-in-cheek smile at hypocrisy and privilege.
“I have a tendency to write songs where there’s an implied sneer in the lyrics, but don’t question ’til long after the fact whether anyone else picks it up,” Crabtree tells Atwood Magazine. “For me this song is about a lot of things, but not least those characters in your life obliviously giving you a hard time for doing things that they, themselves, excel at. Hypocrisy, shall we say.”
If you don’t mind
Big wounds in your short lives
Don’t mind me, I’m just saying goodnight
Bet you can’t tell what comes out of my mouth
Was it wizened pearls, was it turpentine?
But you don’t mind if you don’t mind
Opening with just Crabtree’s vocals and acoustic guitar, “Don’t Mind” expands into a sonic euphoria of sound featuring a “frenetic” organ (in the artist’s words) and the Warhol Dervish String Quartet. By the second chorus, Crabtree’s exhortations of “You don’t mind!” are supported with a rich forest of genial sounds that glitch and glide with feverish energy.
Meanwhile, Crabtree’s lyrics tell a tale of disregard and ignorance – of folks who don’t stop or think twice to help another out when they are in need. Whether it’s out of selfishness, greed, or a sincere lack of care for their fellow human beings, these people walk around their life and play primarily by their rules – taking pity on a world that, ultimately, takes pity on them. “Bet you can’t tell what comes out of my mouth. Was it wizened pearls, was it turpentine?” Crabtree sings in the second verse, fired up but committed to taking the high road.
You would be forgiven for not noticing the Crabtree’s coy undertone: On first listen (and every one thereafter), “Don’t Mind” is dazzlingly exuberant – a ray of sunshine ready to warm our cold ears and brighten up our days. The beauty of a song like this is that it can and will do all that, and more: Who says you can’s take jabs at hypocrites, and have a good time doing it?
Paper Beat Scissors’ new album Parallel Line is out September 2019. Stream “Don’t Mind” exclusively on Atwood Magazine!
Stream: “Don’t Mind” – Paper Beat Scissors
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