Sam Fender Faces Remembrance’s Sting In Returning Single ‘People Watching’
At just 30-years-old, Sam Fender is an ever-gushing geyser of puncturing and poignant storytelling, often leaving his listeners in the wake of their own memories. The wrinkles, scrapes, and bruises from merely being alive are embedded into the DNA of Fender’s new single “People Watching,” which shares the name of his forthcoming third album set to release on February 21st. The English-singer let on War On Drugs’ frontman Adam Granduciel to produce the track with him in LA, his cinematic sonic core soaring to towering heights. His sophomore album ‘Seventeen Going Under’ pushed him to the top of the UK Albums Chart, was named the Hottest Record of the Year 2021 by BBC Radio 1, and earned him nominations and titles at accredited award shows and publications.
Photo via Sam Fender.
“I people-watch on the way back home / Envious of the glimmer of hope / Gives me a break from feeling alone / Gives me a moment out of the ego” Fender admits with full reverence in just the first lines. The intro’s instrumentals almost masks the raw subject matter, its upbeat drum hits and key chords setting the scene for a celebratory anthem. Instead, it jumps right into the laments of Fender’s heart– a place he allows himself to fall into through the act of people watching. It feels like both a place of healing retreat and painstaking reminiscence, with lyrics like “Oh, I feel so dark rememberin’” and “I’ll hold you in my heart till the day I die” showcasing the gravity of both ends of remembrance.
He builds the track around his late friend Annie Orwin, who was pivotal in his life and artistic career. “Above the rain-soaked Garden of Remembrance / Kittiwakes etched your initials in the sky” showers its listeners in a heartfelt tribute to Orwin, showcasing the indelible mark people can stamp onto your life and surroundings. The enormity of the song follows through from the beginning to the end, leaving everyone in an assortment of emotions ranging from anger to loss to longing.
Fender continues to invite us into the passenger seat of our own lives, driving us through vast fields of past memories to uncover the present emotions that are ignited because of them. He doesn’t shy away from introspection, but rather gives us the chance to roll down the windows and feel the burning kiss of humanity– to feel the full weight of being alive.
Be sure to listen to his new single now streaming on all of your favorite platforms. His third album ‘People Watching’ out on February 21st is available for pre-save here.
