TWO LAST NAMES RELEASE NEW TRACK ‘CAPTAIN SMOOTH’
Gippsland outfit Two Last Names are following up recent single ‘Yah Yah Yah’ with their brand new track, ‘Captain Smooth’. A song about all the, “dumb shit,” they wish they hadn’t done, this new track is yet another display of the playful yet poignant use of lyricism we are used to hearing from the punk rock band.
The structure of this song really grows on the listener as the song progresses with the instrumentation and bravado gradually building. The twangy guitars and light high hats at the beginning was quite a surprise as it is something one would not normally expect to hear from the band. As the song progresses, the familiar and heavier bass kicks, assertive strums of the guitar come into play and the lyrics, “I’d have more braincells if I didn’t drink those UDL’S,” are belted out with a regretful yet apathetic tone. From this point, the song really kicks into your brain with a repeating “If I” lyric that is supported by a heavy punk kick beat and chord progression that certainly brings that familiarity back.
The lyrics and vocal playfulness are the definite highlight for this track. Although seeming quite indifferent to the regrets being listed, “I’d be really buff, if someone taught me how to do the monkey bars,” there is a sincerity both in looking at certain events, but also in acknowledging that “never meeting you” would have been a real regret. Towards the end of the song, there is a more reflective moments in the lyrics. “The time is didn’t stand up for someone who needed it.”
With uses of sighs, pauses and inflecting yells, there is an immediate realisation when listening at the moments or memories that are affecting the song and the band in a certain way.