The end of the working week is tantalisingly close, but it still feels too far away. Never fear! Bobby Uncle’s latest feelgood single “Coffee” is as effective a pick-me-up as its caffeinated namesake.
“I wrote the melodies to the entire track on acoustic guitar around late November,” Bobby recalled. “I had a gig on December 9th and wanted to advertise it on my Instagram by singing an unreleased song. At the time, I only had written lyrics for the chorus as I was anxiously into this girl I was seeing. I laid down the guitar riff in Logic and started filming myself singing over it. I was quite emotional at the time which added cadence to the chorus which I would not have added previously. Fast-forward, the gig was a successful night musically, but not for my relationship with this person. A few days later, I wrote the lyrics for the verses and pre-chorus.
“I started by sound designing the lead synth. I needed something harsh and dark to capture anger and sadness for the central melody but to keep the track happy and upbeat,” he went on to explain. “One of my good mates is a metal drummer and he carefully uses the Toms to create build-up and tension. Hence, the Toms were used in certain sections but predominantly in the chorus where each part is more intense than the next. I mirrored the hi-hats with the acoustic guitar to drive the central groove. The electric guitars provide that summer indie pop feel. The pace of the track of 170 bpm reflects the sensation of taking a shot of concentrated caffeine. I wanted people to hear the track and feel like they needed to move, where it’s uncomfortable to be idle.”
Just like this song, Bobby shows no signs of slowing down. He’ll play the House on Fire show at The Loft in Eora/Ultimo on July 20.
Photo credit: Joshua Bisset