In Earnest - 29
In Earnest are a dark indie pop/rock trio from Southend On Sea, featuring the song writing couple Sarah Holburn and Thomas Eatherton, and the multi instrumentation of Toby Shaer.
2020 despite a global pandemic has been a busy year for In Earnest, they released their debut single Put Me Under in April and this was followed up by Come Upstairs in July.
Their latest single 29 was released on Thursday 9 September and is a daydream of childhood memories in chronological order, written by Tom on his 29th birthday. Tom states:
The song is a collage of true stories that have shaped me, involving punching my dad at an ice rink (and regretting it), Chester Bennington and a friendly ghost. It reflects on tedious adulthood and holding onto a childlike thirst for adventure.
Like all of In Earnest tracks to date, the emphasis is on creating beautiful melancholic melodies and 29 is no exception, the lyrical memories of Tom are supported by Toby’s ethereal string arrangement, which is sublimely complemented by Sarah’s dreamy synth pads and harmonies.
The lyrics will relate to all of us, I’m sure we have all reflected on memories of growing up and feeling older, I love the self awareness of the opening line when Tom sings “I wrote a letter to myself so no now else would have to read it”.
And the summer holidays are reflected in the verse “dragged away from all my friends, calebdar days stole my summer I'd miss Matthew's friendly ghost,
sunlight cured us of the shivers, threw my shoes into the lake, when school was done, freedom celebrated, all the hills and valleys climbed I never quite learned to tie my laces”.
29 reflects the perceived struggles of getting older as outlined in the chorus when Tom sings “you never see it coming, immortal ideas fade, I'm feeling so much older now 29 years today”.
It is another masterful song from In Earnest, this trio certainly know their way around a sad melancholic banger, again it will evokes memories and could easily draw a tear to a glass eye.
I really can’t give In Earnest enough superlatives, they are without doubt one of my favourite discoveries of this strange year, go check them out.
Give 29 a stream now:
https://open.spotify.com/track/0ekv7WmjIv6AdVorSiTWhV?si=CQxKdsVpR3iJZeXhLjcC0A
In Earnest can be followed on Website, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Spotify:
https://www.facebook.com/inearnestband
https://instagram.com/inearnestband?igshid=syhwu3z09oyw
https://twitter.com/InEarnestBand
https://open.spotify.com/artist/7v3jiSa5MoEtcDnstOiNaE?si=x1kd1kCWSyKJqMhmlkJrHA
