With a little more alternative gusto than Out Here Now’s Americana/folk-leaning arrangements, “Happy New Year” invites audiences to contemplate changing relationships and the relentless passage of time as marked by a holiday full of fireworks and electric energy.
About the song, Ever More Nest’s Kelcy Wilburn writes:
“One of my favorite photographs of a particular friend and me was taken on New Year’s Eve as we walked our way to a giant bonfire made of drying Christmas trees. The old Mid-City New Orleans tradition had gotten unmanageable by that year, and it was a crazy fun and wild thing to witness. New Year’s is such a strange holiday—celebrating the passage of time, a sometimes joyful and sometimes painful process we can’t control. We celebrate the end of a good year; we celebrate the end of a bad year. As humans, we’re always trying our best to mark the beginnings and endings of things that never really stop or start. New Year’s celebrations can be arbitrary, but they can also be quite powerful. I love the dichotomy.”
lyrics
LYRICS:
In the dark of the darkroom all of the liars come in through light
And I walk among the liars out of the daybreak, out of the spark
Ten years ago we were walking down the road
I had my hand in my pocket, you had your arm on my shoulder
We made our way through the dark through the cold
We made our way to the fire where we would never get older
In a wooden frame under a glass pane we’re still the same
And we talk every so often, we find the light between the shadows
And bathed in blue light from a screen, it’s not exactly where we thought we’d be
But that’s how it goes for strange bedfellows ten years down the road
We put a record on, we lit a cigarette,
We opened up our bottles of beer and champagne
Then we toasted to the end of the year
It was a hell of a year, it was stupid insane
Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year,
Happy New Year, Happy New Year is what we still say every year on the same stupid day
Happy New Year, singing Auld Lang Syne with a casual note as to how time flies
When you’re staring at a photograph you’ve got a memory in your mind
Oh I can tell you, friend of mine, when I see you again
We’re gonna have ourselves one hell of a time
Happy New Year Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year, Happy New Year
Well I’m staring at a photograph, I got a memory in my mind
I can tell you, friend of mine, when I see you again
We’re gonna have ourselves one hell of a time
credits
released December 2, 2022
Written by Kelcy Wilburn (BMI)
Published by Parish Road Music (BMI)
Produced by Neilson Hubbard
Recorded & mixed by Dylan Alldredge at Skinny Elephant Recording (Nashville, TN)
Mastered by James DeMain at Yes Master Studios (Nashville, TN)
Crowd noise recorded by Kelcy Wilburn
Vocals & rhythm guitar: Kelcy Wilburn
Lead guitars: Will Kimbrough
Bass guitar: Dean Marold
Drums: Neilson Hubbard
Strings: Fats Kaplin
Rooted in Southern musical traditions and infused with confessional 90s angst, the music of Ever More Nest can likewise lull
and rock you right off a front porch. Ever More Nest’s dynamic, homegrown voice—hugged by lush, church-pew harmonies— is complemented by ghostly, effusive guitars, spirited mandolin and banjo, mournful fiddle, and a rhythm section steady as a country train....more
If you have a fondness for expertly wrought roots-rock with sharp lyrics and aching vocals, look no further—“Strangers” is for you. Bandcamp New & Notable Jan 8, 2022