Chords for Great Songs You Might Not Know (Vol. 4)

Hello, and welcome back to this series.
This is volume number 4, and on this show I discuss a few tracks that you may or may
not be familiar with.
Whether it's music from a smaller, up-and-coming band, or maybe a legend in the game with a
cult following, or two weirdos that I'm seemingly obsessed with, these are songs that
I love that I think you might love too.
This is Great Songs You Might Not Know.
So first we're going to be talking about an indie group on the rise called Rakoma.
They released their self-titled debut EP in 2018, and I've been listening to these guys
non-stop lately.
They're a four-piece alternative rock band from Seattle, and the bio on their website
is a better introduction to them than anything I could ever come up with.
[E] These boys know how to caress your ears with [Dm] simple yet honest tunes that make you want
to cry and laugh all at [Em] the same time.
Perfect.
Across their entire EP, that description [E] is definitely applicable.
These songs are all pretty stripped down, uncomplicated, and more than anything they
feel true, real, [A] and authentic.
The track Get On is a standout for me.
It's a timeless tale of staying true to yourself and fighting [Am] adversity.
The song Howl is another great tune.
It starts out pretty soft and gentle, there's a fantastic buildup, and we have [G] an explosive
finish to [Am] a wonderful EP.
But interestingly enough, the song I want to mention most for [Em] this video is something
you can't even listen to on streaming [E] services yet.
It's the original song that they performed for their NPR Tiny [Am] Desk contest audition,
and it is [G] called The Kicker.
Riding around in their car, performing this [C] song, this is the sound that won [G] me over and
[Am] made me check out their EP in the first place.
[F#] I watched a ton of auditions for the contest, and this one is by far my favorite.
And while sadly they did [Em] not win, NPR did invite them to open up for the winner while
they were on tour, so not a bad consolation prize.
The lead singer of the band, Glenn, has this beautiful tone to his voice.
While the lyrics are touching, and the layered guitars certainly add a little spice to the
song, Glenn's voice is what keeps me coming back.
I'm hoping that there will be a studio version soon enough, but for now, this live performance
is my favorite thing to listen to right now.
_ [A] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [E] _ _ _ Bill [F#] Faye
The next musician I want to talk about is Bill Faye.
This is an English singer-songwriter who has a ridiculous, one-of-a-kind perspective on
the music [C#] industry.
Bill was originally signed to a record deal in the [Gm] mid [F#]-1960s.
He released two albums, one in 1970 and another in 71.
After his second album came [Am] out, he was dropped by his [E] label, and he needed to find a different
line of work.
So, for decades, Bill was a normal working man, but he was still practicing music at
home [F#] as a hobby.
In the 1990s, his music from all those years ago started to gain somewhat of a cult status.
This eventually led to some older stuff getting reissued in [F#m] 1998, 2004, and [E] 2005.
But at this point, [A] Bill was still just doing his own thing, and staying out of the spotlight.
This was until 2012, when Bill finally released new, original material, 41 years after his
last official album came out.
The project is called Life Is People, and in the landscape of all the singer-songwriters
out there, Bill Faye is right up there with [F#] the best of them.
Like I said before, Bill's perspective is one that I've never heard before.
To have your dream come true, only for that dream to [A] be crushed a few years later, and
then [E] to return after 41 years, is something out of a movie.
The song I want to mention specifically is called Jesus Etc, which is actually a cover
of a Wilco song from their well-known album Yankee Hotel Foxtrot.
And yes, you may be asking [C#] me, Harrison, why include a cover from Bill Faye if you're
so obsessed with his unique perspective on life, and I'll tell you.
Wilco is actually one of the bands that helped popularize Bill's music during his hiatus.
They were a part of his cult following, [F#m] and they would play his song Be Not So Fearful
at a ton of their concerts.
So this is Bill Faye, [B] the guy who returned to music after 41 years, covering the band
that helped him come [F#m] back after 41 [G] years.
Voices [B] escaped, singing sad sad [G#m] songs
And last but not least, I want to talk about the song Lying Has to Stop by Soft Hair.
I actually talked about it in a video about a year ago, but I keep rediscovering it every
few months, and I just love it so much.
Soft Hair is [D#] a collaboration between musicians Conan Moccasin and Sam Dust, who is more commonly
known [C] as L.A. Priest.
In 2016, they released their self-titled album, and it's pretty strange.
The general feel is a funky, futuristic, space rock kind of sound.
There's something so wonderful about musicians that are willing to try anything, and I think
Lying Has to Stop is a perfect example of that.
The introduction to the track is this unnerving, sort of waterlogged sound that honestly seems
like it should have been an interlude in between songs, but they threw it in there anyway.
Then you think the real meat of the song is starting, and it's pretty much just another introduction.
This time it does actually blend together with the rest of the song, but it's just
funny to me that they keep leaving the listener on the edge of their seat waiting for the
track to really get going.
Once it does begin, it's this addictive, borderline [G#] creepy tune that will get stuck
in your head for weeks.
The instrumental is [B] as groovy as can be, Sam's voice is deep and full, and [F] Conan's voice
is the exact opposite, [D#m] and I would not want to have it [C] any other way.
_ _ Lying Has [A#] to Stop _
[D] As always, leave a comment with something you might want to hear in a future episode,
and be sure to let me know how you feel about these tracks.
Thanks for watching.
_ [N] Hey, thank you for watching that video.
If you want to support the channel, feel free to like, comment, and subscribe.
You can follow me on social media at RenshawHS, you can buy my merch, support my Patreon,
and thank you so much, I'll see you soon.
[A#m] _ _ [G#] _ _ _ [D#m] _ _ [Fm] _ _ _