It surprised me to hear that The 1975’s have been together for 18 years.

Seemingly there was a period of apprenticeship, between 2002 and 2012, when their debut album was created, which a lot of traditional bands would say is vital to honing a real tightness that allows for creativity to thrive. What I’ve always wanted to know is where the name ‘The 1975’ came from, as with most bands there is some relevance to the name, the sound of the music and the stickability for the public. I first thought it might be a reference to the birth year of the band members, but that would make them all mid 40s now, which didn’t seem right, in fact the late 1980s would be a better reference to that. Having dug a little deeper, it seems that in their apprenticeship years, there were a variety of names the band went by, but finally settled on ‘The 1975’ as a reference to some scribbles found on the back of Jack Kerouac’s works ‘On the Road’. 

The Birthday Party starts with a mystical jingle, with the concept of ‘digital detox’, which on the outset sounds like an absolutely fantastic idea! The slow, steady drum that gives the song the formation is a powerful accompaniment to the vocals, which are rather beautiful in their dreamy reverb enthused place in the mix. At times they are fuller, with multiple voices which are really effective to give the song a full, rich sound. The other instruments that sit alongside the vocals vary, with guitars, with different effects often used and synths to give it a real 1975 sound. At times there are hints of country lap steel guitars, some retro synths, with a great little counter melody line which I’ve not heard the likes of before. Put all this together and ‘The Birthday Party’ is a really clever song, both conceptually and musically, with a great video to watch too, supporting the music. 

This track is emotionally charged, simple, yet complex and has the grace to make you really listen to the lyrics and sit back and enjoy the craftsmanship and creativity that The 1975’s have put into making this excellent concept for a song that will keep the band at the very top of their game. 

 Indie pop    Indie rock 

Author: Phil Arnold

Phil Arnold is a musician, producer and music reviewer from Devon, in the South West of England. Whilst not writing music reviews, Phil also writes and records under the name of Ugbrooke.