Track Review: Superman // Justpeoplewatching
Influenced by a diverse musical melting pot including the likes of Paramore, Jack Johnson, Coldplay, Counting Crows and Vance Joy, Justpeoplewatching has a unique “mish-mash” sound. Beginning as a solo project by multi-instrumentalist Marc Ferreira, the band soon grew to be a quartet purely from collaboration. Beginning as a singular cathartic project, Justpeoplewatching is now reaching audiences across the globe. Featured in The Other Side Reviews, Less Than 1000 Followers, Rising Artists Blog and several online playlists, the Canadian foursome share their original sound with the masses. The latest addition to their discography is ‘Superman’.
Following their single ‘The Clock’, Justwatchingpeople approaches the issue of mental health once again with heartfelt passion in ‘Superman’. Lying somewhere between Fall Out Boy, Paramore and Coldplay, the chilling melody showcases their sophisticated sound. Combining a simplistic piano with pounding drums and hard-hitting guitars, ‘Superman’ is a river of tumultuous sound carrying you across its waves in the melodic arrangement. From the first moment, I felt moved by the track; however, it was the ending that fully impacted me melody-wise. A breath-taking fusion of barebones piano and Kira’s strong vocals have a haunting quality.
I always try to listen to a single at least twice to experience the melody and lyricism separately but also as a whole. The depth of the lyricism certainly enhances the poignancy of the song and makes it slightly more “real”. A personal narrative of being insecure, isolated and conflicted helps individualise the track connecting with listeners. Marc shares that ‘Superman’ is “…an exploration of expectations and how it feels to fail to live up to them. The song uses the metaphor of being Superman and realising that you can’t be everywhere at once and that you can’t save anyone by spreading yourself too thin” – something I think most in the modern-day rat-race can understand.
Overall, I love the track. It has nothing to do with my preference for Paramore but rather the way I was left gasping for breath after hearing it. Marc and his crew may believe they are unable to be Superman but I bet you anything this song has saved many people – they are Superman.