Music Review: Thunderbird // MB Padfield
GENRE: POP - It's never easy to admit to being the "other woman" - but MB Padfield manages to do so with grace, vigor, clever rhymes and brutal honesty in her new stripped down version of her original song, "Thunderbird."
As someone who has been following MB's music career for the past few years, it has been interesting to follow her process of re-branding herself as an artist and songwriter. I've watched her progress from the teenage girl dropping bubblegum pop ukulele tunes with an Ingrid Michaelson flare, to a woman sharing her personal life experiences through matured lyric writing, electronic pop influence, dark vibes, and a top-notch Los Angeles based production team - all showcased in her previous singles "Seams", "Full Throttle Baby" and "A Beast." It's been fantastic to watch her journey, but to hear all of that go away in a 4 minute stripped down acoustic piano performance was certainly a treat.
"Thunderbird" starts as most songs do - at the beginning of the story. Boy meets girl, chaos ensues, with lyrical references to her past experiences with alcohol consumption driving a dangerous love. She very quickly addresses the infamous "other woman" perspective, as she finds herself falling for her unavailable lover. Her lyrics create an emotive imagery, especially in the lines "The storms they took you, and I raged on" as well as "Flew too close to the flames and melted your wings." Her falsettos in the chorus display a special vulnerability in this piece that I have not yet heard in her other releases, that is both comforting and haunting at the same time.
What continuously strikes me the most in this song, from the first time I heard her perform it live on acoustic guitar and every time since, is the stand-out line of the second verse: "She married Jekyll, but I'm fucking Hyde." Blunt, brilliant, and chilling. The song drives to a strong finish with MB's repetition of the phrase "Oh honey I" delivering intricate but subtle riffs, and raw emotion that does not require any other lyrical representation.
MB filmed this video with the help of some stellar engineers: Cinematography credited to Ben Proulx of Project 2 Studios, and audio engineering tackled by Connor Hayes, Tyler Ayers and Matt Blanchette of Revelry Studios. Music and lyrics were self-written. Both photos used in this post are credited to @cant_afford_coke. MB Padfield is a force to be reckoned with, I've known this for a long time. Keep an eye out for the "official" version of "Thunderbird" coming soon.
