5 Songs / Constantines Songs Sung by the Other Guy
5 Songs is a weekly series where we point out the strange, the grand, and the unique connections between our favorite songs. Let’s get weird.
Words by Chris
“The Other Guy” is the energetic Steve Lambke, who provides vocals on at least one track on all of Constantines’ records. Unlike main vocalist Bryan Webb—whose voice is raspy and gruff—Lambke’s voice is thin and papery, and decidedly youthful in comparison. Lambke’s songs are often a side step from Webb’s, and if anything, showcase the ensemble mentality that works so well for Constantines’ messages of social awareness and noise.
“Seven A.M.” / Constantines
This song is the other vital self-defining song on Cons’ debut record, the other being the first track, “Arizona”. It creates a world where the band wakes up in the morning and plays their tails off. Lambke screeches, “We’re paper-less! Won’t document this!” Too late, dude. It’s cool, though.
“Scoundrel Babes” /Shine a Light
Constantines / Scoundrel Babes
This is the black sheep on Shine a Light for sure, but that’s like saying Leonardo is my least favorite Ninja Turtle… it just doesn’t matter. Lambke assures us of the beauty of the people, over his own chugging guitar and some shimmering cymbals, “Slip the jaws, and split the horizons. Fire up the gospels like a bomb!”
“Thieves” / Tournament of Hearts
Like the other songs on this record, this one finds the band going off into stranger directions with their music. This song seems to sneak around just like its name suggests. Lambke’s vocals are whispered, with a call-and-response style backup from his mates. It’s essentially a tale of adventure and young love. That’s a porno saxophone at the song’s conclusive tilt, “Tonight we can’t be held by fences or by chains. We’re thieves and lovers.” Woooo.
“Windy Road” / Tournament of Hearts
This is the last track on Tournament, and comes after the incendiary “You Are a Conductor”. The song is gentle with just acoustic guitar accompaniment and some filtered piano. It’s a classy and subdued goodbye to rambling at-large, and concludes the album with nothing more than a whisper.
“Shower of Stones” / Kensington Heights
Constantines / Shower of Stones
A big, big song in their live performance, this one has that My Bloody Valentine effect where it only makes sense if it’s played really, really loud. Here, with three-guitar feedback, it nearly imploded my mild-mannered Pabst tall boy at the Thunderbird. This song is the aftermath of a great love crashing into the sea, “It was like nothing, nothing I’ve ever seen before,” and the guitars shimmer and bang like a raging tide. One of the few songs in Cons’ catalog that demonstrates purely in sound what the song is about.
With the Draw Us Lines name, this post was absolutely essential. What are your thoughts, folks?
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