Black Car (“Exotic Monsters”)

by Laura Kidd

To my great delight and excitement, this song is featured as “The Weather” on “Cecil in The Big City”, Episode 208 of the Welcome To Night Vale podcast, 15th May 2022. A huge honour!

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Release date: 26th March 2021
Label: My Big Sister Recordings

ABOUT THE SONG

“Black Car” is a song about love and death, guilt and gratitude, taking time to figure out what’s most important, feeling desperately sad and isolated and grieving the loss of so many. Dealing with anger and frustration at the UK government for making so many missteps. Trying to keep on keeping on, while finding it hard to see a way out of this, however many “roadmaps” are announced. Accepting – and feeling – our feelings.

“That this single release marks the first anniversary of the first UK lockdown is an accident, but sometimes things just fall into place like that when we focus on what’s important to us. Throughout this loneliest of years, I’ve tried to keep connected to humanity through making and releasing new music, podcast episodes and my weekly emails, doing what I can to create pinpoints of light in dark times. With all the gratitude in the world, I have to remind myself it’s still ok to feel wounded by what’s been going on and to feel scared about what’s to come. We will all be changed by this experience, and at the root of everything is the love we have for others.”

I don’t know what other bands “Black Car” sounds like, or have any clever phrases lined up to entreat you to click “play”. This is an honest, melancholy song about a universal experience that will be discussed in the history books of the future, guitars and synths centred around a heady electronic heartbeat, with a reverent Kurt Vonnegut reference (“loving echoes”) in the middle.

Keep your loved ones close x

CREDITS

Written, produced, performed and recorded by Laura Kidd at The Launchpad, Bristol. Mixed by Dan Austin. Mastered by Katie Tavini. Artwork by Alex Tillbrook, concept by Laura Kidd.

LYRICS

Remember the summer when everyone stayed at home?
Ships in a bottle, stacked up with our lives on hold

If we could really see the warnings that were written before
If we could really feel
Our hearts would smash all over the floor

Hear me now, I can feel the thunder
March me out with the fallen number
Will there be – is there a black car waiting for me?
Keep your loved ones close

This is surviving, but we’re having a god damn year
Tired of climbing, but the universe left us here

And on my worst of days
I want to keep wanting to be kind
But everywhere I see machines are taking over our minds

Hear me now, I can feel the thunder
March me out with the fallen number
Will there be – is there a black car waiting for me?
Keep your loved ones close

Keep your loved ones close
Even on calm waters, waves will rise
As my heart explodes
Loving echoes dancing in my eyes

Keep your loved ones close
Keep your loves ones close
Keep your loved ones close

Hear me now, I can feel the thunder
March me out with the fallen number
Will there be – is there a black car waiting?

Hear me now, I can feel the thunder
March me out with the fallen number
Will there be –
Is there a black car waiting for me?

Keep your loved ones close

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Have a lovely day xo

Black Car (“Exotic Monsters”)

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