Madness - Grey Day

I think every british person must know who Madness are, their songs like 'Our House' and 'I Like Driving In My Car' are lodged into the nation's collective conciousness along with Tea, Doctor Who and class division. Often known as a comedic pop group, Madness' more serious tracks have become ignored in favour of their popular ones. You won't hear 'Embarassment' on the radio, but you'll hear 'Our House' about five times a day! These rude boys are easily amongst my favourite bands, they managed to use popular music as a way to comment on social issues, consistently wrote excellent music, and always stayed ahead of the times. Grey Day is one of the best songs I have ever heard, so put your best listening ears on, and enjoy.

Grey Day covers the subject of depression, not in the more popular 'emo' way of whining and fake crying, but in a very honest way, which as a surferer myself, feels really true and sincere. It's an acurate representation of the thoughts and ideas going through my head on a daily basis. A thunderous drum fill pounds our ears as the song starts, and a melancholic riff takes hold. The rythm is muted ska, the overlayed riffs haunting, the voice feels lonely and isolated. Vulnerable. The chorus is a perfect display of the feelings on it's own:

In the morning I awake,  My arms my legs my body aches,
The sky outside is wet and grey
So begins another weary day.
So begins another weary day.

We're treated to a bridge, Madness' own blend of funfare-y music hall style, but now more melancholic. We return to the song, and after the final chorus, the main haunting riff takes over. It's depressing, a bittersweet melody, and fades to silent. It's a strong song, and contains a suprising amount of musical complexity, something Madness do not recieve as much credit for as they deserve.

The B side is called Memories, it's arpeggiated riff takes us into more standard ska fare. Fitting with the theme of depression set by the A side, Memories is a song about regret, mistakes and search for progression. The end of a relationship to be more precise. It's slow ska, melancholic ska, powerful and deeply emotional ska. It's great.

if Two-Tone ska is the combination of ska with punk attitude and music hall asthetics, then Madness really do stand at the top of the field. They have an amazing confidence when handeling controversial subjects, and a wealth of experience between them all.  As close to a perfect single as we can ever get. Buy it now!