Lily Allen “The Fear”
When Lily Allen announced earlier this year that her new album was leaving the summery ska loops behind for electro-pop terrain, it felt like the beginnings of the end for the near-instantaneous UK pop sensation. What would be the point of her continuing her career if she didn’t at least try to milk the classic reggae-tinged structures of “LDN” and “Smile” a bit longer? But then, over the next few months, new material began to leak, and all seemed right in the world again as the other appealing aspect to her art, that sharp lyricism, was shown to have lost none of it’s plain-sung bite (and, thankfully, felt just as perfect when lain atop the synth be-dazzled arrangements).
On “The Fear”, the first single off sophomore album It’s Not You, It’s Me, Allen plants her tongue firmly in cheek as she serves a mocking of celeb culture obsession and the lame-brained aspirations it brings. Spotlighting a yearn for a “fantastic” life filled with fast cars, bulging wardrobes, a thin body and “fuckloads of diamonds” (a line brilliantly followed with the lackadaisically uttered, “I heard people die while they are trying to find them”), “Fear” matches this “dream existence” with lighter-than-air chops and an ethereal dance-pop beat that floats somewhere above the clouds, superbly illustrating how un-grounded the shallow mindset really is.
Is it as impeccable a pop creation as “Smile”? Not necessarily, but “The Fear”‘s sarcastic exploration of a sadly death-less societal ill (Stand out lyric #2: “I am a weapon of massive consumption/ And it’s not my fault it’s how I’m programmed to function”) coupled with it’s clever, sweet-toothed presentation promises that a major deviation from the winning musical framing of Allen’s breakthrough won’t be the tragic career death-knell it might have initially seemed.
It’s Not Me, It’s You is due in February.
i’ve heard this song before, but never listened to the lyrics wholeheartedly. she’s the best. very cool vid.