People look at other people and say things to compare the one to any particular animal/beast that fits the description. They’ll say that some lanky, long-striding dude or lady moves like a gazelle. Other people are fish because they like the water and can move about it quickly and easily, maybe without moving a lot. If someone has a halfway decent set of brains on them, some old rusty fart may liken them to an owl. All of those examples are just means to suggest that the person commented upon is a natural. It’s not thought about, it’s not learned, it’s just the innate ability to pull the covers back from the bedspread, swing the legs out from the gathered warmth and do things that it usually takes beady eyes, night vision, fur or feathers and a head scrambled by sights, sounds, smells and fears that there’s nothing left to do but to act, off the cuff and pressingly. There’s not a thought that really goes into a flinch or a robin out tromping around a big lawn after a rain and knowing, hearing the precise moment when it might be advantageous to slam its beak into the sloppy soil and to snatch a worm from the earth to chew up, mash and regurgitate so its babies can eat. There’s no learning process or a teacher for most of it. These behaviors come right along with our digestion and respiratory systems as far as their involuntariness goes. They find those worms, the birds do, they chew them up and expend a beak to the hungry and blind little ones that need the nourishment. The Magic Numbers don’t chew with their mouths open just to show us what they’ve got in there and they’ve never forced the nasty mess on our gullet before. They’re kind and they’re gentle – a flattering piece of English gentility that is likely an even greater reflection of the way that human nature is supposed to be – aside from the natural tendencies for all little boys to turn everything they can pick up in their hands into a weapon – a peaceful and loving understanding of all things that applies to all. If real human nature were to be carried out, wars would be tough to come by and we’d just have to go back to our SpikeTV coverage of ultimate fighting and those tree-loving protestors hanging around in trees (no longer?) in Berkley, Calif., trying to save four trees from being lumbered at the hands of a college that just wants a new building on campus. The Magic Numbers, who have been the support act of U2, The Who, The Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth and most recent Rufus Wainwright (the tour during which this particular session was recorded back in the last spring)…to be continued…

First song
This Is A Song (Magic Numbers) [4.12MB] [3017 downloads]


– original version appears on Those the Brokes
“This Is A Song” opens up our new album Those The Brokes and is also usually the first song in our recent live shows. It’s been the perfect opener as it gets our heart racing from the offset and just sets you up for the gig. My sister Michele’s bass playing on this is just incredible, she just drives the song home and makes it feel like you’re on this mad ride with her. I had the title for some time and always wanted to use it, I remember listening to Laurie Anderson’s song “From The Air” where she says, “This is your captain speaking…” and it was really direct and I loved it as it took me somewhere beyond the song. After I realized what I’d written the verses about it became obvious to me that I needed to step closer into the lyric and spell out what was happening.

Second song
Let Somebody In (Magic Numbers) [3.41MB] [2784 downloads]


– original version appears on Those the Brokes
The melody for this song came to me whilst floating in the sea. It could have been that I was incredibly relaxed or maybe that I had too many cocktails but I could clearly hear Hope Sandoval’s voice under the water singing away to me and it was just so beautiful. Some songs just write themselves if you don’t stand in their way, the only trouble with this one is that it wouldn’t leave me alone for the entire week’s holiday. On reflection, most of the lyrics to our second album seem to be about fear. Fear to commit, of letting go, of being caught out. This one’s for anyone who finds it that little bit too difficult to let their guard down again having been hurt once before.

The Magic Numbers Official Site