21. Single Review of Threads by inpictures
Originally published July 31st, 2024
To start the month off, we have a sneak peek review! That’s right. This is a first look at a song that won’t be releasing until Friday. The song is called “Threads,” by the indie pop rock artists, inpictures.
About the Band
Hailing from (depending on where you are) the other side of that little pond we like to call the Atlantic, come a rock duo that are so in tune (last pun I swear), that they may just be the greatest team to ever reside in the city of Leeds, England. The ultimate bromance, Andy Doonan and Dom Bennison are known together as inpictures.
inpictures are an alt-pop music group who have had a bit of success already in their young career. Opening for artists like The Staves, Toploader, and Lucy Spraggan, inpictures have been featured on the radio and have even had some television placements. Their accomplishments have led them to the recording studio to work alongside producer, Andy Hawkins, who has previously worked with The Pigeon Detectives, and famed producer, Ken Scott, who you might recognize as one of David Bowie's (gasp) producers.
It is obvious, with such a resume, that inpictures have the potential to be a big name in the music industry. They have previously released only singles. Their last release, Now is All we Are, was released in April of 2023. Unlike their past releases, “Threads” will be the first single and title-track to an upcoming 5-song EP that, per their Spotify bio has a planned release for later this year!
As always, be sure to like AND follow inpictures wherever they can be followed:
You can also check out their website for updates on releases, tour dates, and merch!
Threads
Threads is a synth, alt-pop ballad with a build, that runs just over three minutes. It features layered synth parts and a disciplined, programmed percussion. Instrumentally, the music is reminiscent of the sensational album Ghost Stories by the legendary pop rock super band, Coldplay. It opens with layered effects; some saturated in reverb, others reverse effects to give a deep and ambient atmosphere.
The vocals come in subtle at first, with no harmony; just parallel octaves in the first verse. This takes an exciting turn as we come into the first chorus as the duet incorporates layered harmonizations, featuring one of my favorite things, the vocoder, and they do it masterfully. Waving flags of influence all the way from Bon Iver and his work on 22, A Million, Imogen Heap and her breakthrough performance of Hide and Seek, and, again from Coldplay’s Ghost Stories, Midnight, this transitions to a more tempo-driven second verse where an arpeggiated acoustic guitar is now accompanying and providing a more rhythmic element to the progressions.
As this continues to build, the second verse transitions into a emotionally driven second chorus; not elevated in volume, but elevated in resolve as the chorus resoundfully repeats. At the final moment of the last chorus, the instruments drop leaving a spotlight on the vocalists’ performance of the last line of the chorus.
Lyrics
Lyrically, inpictures are just that; they place their audience “in pictures.” Using analogy to tell their story, “Threads” opens with the line “Wish you were close as the threads of our clothes. Every time that you might call and you give me that look like you wanna talk.” The author is telling a story of two lovers who are in a challenging place where they are wanting to communicate with one another but are struggling in how to do so.
Leading into the chorus, the lyricist then sings “And all the threads between/ holding us together/ keep me hanging on to every word we never said.” This gives the impression that, maybe the author is looking back at a lost relationship with regret, wondering if things would be different had situations been handled differently.
As we go into the second verse, this reads more evident as the author references traveling the roads of their history and “thinking about where this all leads.”
The second chorus adds an element as it ellaborates more on the feelings of regret and wittingly stays within the fabric analogy by acknowledging the hardships of being left “hanging on to loose ends.”
Full disclosure: I’m not 100% on the translation of the lyrics. There is are a couple of lines that I’m not perfectly confident on. But I believe I have done the author justice in giving enough insight into what the story is about.
Final Thoughts
After analyzing the lyrics, vocals, and instrumentals, “Threads” reminded me of one more band. This band is a lesser known band, in spite of the fact they have a very famous lead singer. Alt-Pop duo Princess Goes also rely heavily on their ambient soundscapes. The similarities between the two bands are certainly complimentary, but where inpictures has them is their vocal performance is a bit more polished (sorry to all the Dexter fans reading this).
This record is very well produced and the performances are very good. If I could offer one constructive criticism, it would be that the layered synths, paired with the reverb, were on the verge of oversaturating the climax of the song. It didn’t get to that point; I simply noticed but wouldn’t call it a distraction. It was, in fact, very beautiful. I was enjoying it as I began to wonder if it was getting overwhelming. That’s the only criticism I have though.
The vocal performance, lyrics, and melody were as talented as anybody else that’s out there. The story was emotional and the lyrics executed on driving the narrative home. I love how, in all of the swirling musicality of the climax, the decision to pull back and leave a solo on the last line of the chorus. It really drove the point home.
This is fantastic song. inpictures have a fantastic sound. If this the first to come of a debut EP, I can’t wait to see what’s in store for us.
Make sure to be on the lookout for “Threads” by English rockers, inpictures, available to EVERYONE on August 2nd!
In a lot of ways Threads reminded me of late 90s through 00s pop production, addictive and easy to listen to if not any large musical departure from a similar landscape. That's not a bad thing, this duo of musicians seem to really know their sound and how to best fill sonic space. I do think there is room for other instrumentation in the song, perhaps a bit "larger" production value that may not be necessary, but would be welcome. I look forward to seeing how their next release compares.
ReplyDeleteSome really well produced pop from inpictures, really love the pizzicato strings on "now is all we are"
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