Wednesday Wadio: The Doves' 'There Goes The Fear'.

"A seven-minute outburst of pure joy... I'm certain I will not hear a better song for the rest of the year. I dare any artist to top this one. It won't happen. - PopMatters.com, 2002

I first heard There Goes the Fear whilst sitting on my couch and instant messaging with Moynihan. "You'll love this song" he said. "NME voted it the single of the year , and you already like the Doves. So download it." Not one to have my music spoonfed to me, I reluctantly obliged, fired up the long-irrelevant but once magnificent AudioGalaxy and sat alone in my living room waiting to be friggin' gobsmacked by this remarkable song I'd heard so much about. I wasn't.



"One of the bouncin-est seven-minute verse/chorus/verse brit-rock epics with a jungle-percussive outro Radio 1 has ever spun." - Pitchfork

I listened to it a second time while writing an article for the website I was working for at the time. And then again while making dinner that same night. I wasn't crazy, I decided - the song really wasn't all that special and I filed it away mentally alongside all the Flaming Lips Mike's been trying to get me to listen to for the past decade. But the next morning, as if possessed, I put it on as soon as I got up and probably listened to it 20 times that day. I wish I were joking. Who am I kidding? I still love it and am listening to it right now.

"A fantastic anthem where the excitement builds with each twist and turn before exploding with the chorus: 'Think of me when you're coming down, Dont look back when leaving town'. These lines reveal the album's theme; admitting wrong and refusal to regret. Resolutely look to the future instead." - BBC

Something miraculous happened in those 8 hours I was asleep - I 'got it'. And for the next 3 years (and still counting) I would listen to the song at least once a day without fail. It's been on 90% of the mixes I've made since that fateful moment, and I've continuously pushed the song on all of my music-loving friends like a crack dealer with an overdue Lexus payment. But what is it about the song that makes it so special to me I'm asking myself right now? How do I relay it originally without just pasting in a bunch of quotes? Um, like this gem, for example:

"Personally, I think the song’s about taking a big bag of Es and dancing elatedly and completely uninhibitedly through the night and next morning." - DrownedInSound.com

If I had to pick a word to associate with it, that word would be 'euphoric'. This song is Friday night. It's driving long distances with your best friends. It's the adrenaline rush of a jetski ride. It's fuck off work and hello Newport. It Ebbs and flows with many different layers, details and influences. I can count triangles, a wa-wa pedal, cowbells - and some tribal insturment right at the end that sounds like a monkey being wanked-off - amongst the sounds buried in the mix. It shares the slow e-brake pause of a Pixies verse with the catchy sing-along chorus of a Celtic drinking song - all the while powered by a Brazilian rhythm so intricate that I can never accurately remember it for the purposes of air-drumming - even after literally thousands of listens.

I feel like I've pulled my pants down somewhat having now admitted my unhealthy obsession and unnatural love of this masterpiece. But if you're nothing else after reading this, you're very fucking curious. Have a listen on Radio Pye in the left-hand column. There Goes The Dave.