Description
Mystery Jets announce that their sixth studio album lsquoA Billion Heartbeatsrsquo.Screwdriver is an uncompromising look at the rise of the rebranded altright in the UK, built around a powerfully positive message Fight them with love then the world will be ours.Lead singer Blaine Harrison says of the song, ldquoScrewdriver is about the mechanics of intolerance. Looking back at times of economic instability in history, we see how easily deep chasms grow in society and the population seeks change wherever it is most convincingly promised. Conflict arises as cultures and belief systems clash, unwilling to accept one anotherrsquos place in society, because we are fed the rhetoric that our neighbours are those responsible for our problems then inevitably nationalism once more raises its ugly head above the parapet. But whereas political agendas fuel divisiveness, music unites and reminds us of all that we have in common. The message of Screwdriver is not a pessimistic one because perhaps faced with confrontation we can find understanding, and even maybe learn how to listen to, and love one another.rdquoEach room of the house in the video is a metaphor for the different sections of society in the UK. It wraps around the narrative of the song, that in order to overcome adversity, you have to ldquoFight Them With Loverdquo. The visual showcases the songrsquos inherent message, clashing aggressiveness with tenderness, and culminates in showing after anger, we can always come together through love. All great albums start from a unique perspective. But try a window on the Strand, in an abandoned office block, overlooking the kind of political upheaval London hasnrsquot seen in a generation. Blaine Harrison was living as a property guardian right around the corner from Trafalgar Square when he found himself witness to an entire year of protests. Every weekend from January 2017 on, people were marching for a different cause In the space of six months it was Black Lives Matter, the huge lsquoOur NHSrsquo march, Unite for Europe, he recalls. Then the solidarity sleepout organised by Help Refugees, where we slept in Whitehall for the night… The protestors would wake me up in the morning. Irsquod just walk down and join in.rdquoOver the course of that year, Mystery Jets sixth longplayer, A Billion Heartbeats, was born. This album wasnrsquot about making pointed opinions,rdquo says Blaine. ldquoIt was about being a mirror for whatrsquos going on, reflecting back the way people are feeling.rdquo By turns tender and fierce, abstract and full of classic rock energy, A Billion Heartbeats achieves a balance of passion, fear and hope. Amid the colourful cavalcade of rich harmonies, heavy guitars and rallying cries, the albumrsquos essential message about personal responsibility, and the power in becoming engaged. In a sense, its not just their state of the nationrdquo record but their ldquostate of a generationrdquo record too. We increasingly hear from musicians that music should be an escape these days that therersquos enough suffering in the world, enough misery on the news, without writings songs about it too. A Billion Heartbeats makes all that sound like a bit of a copout. These are songs of protest that get the heart racing in joy high on hope, and serious in their message. Proof, basically, that music speaks louder than words.
