“Red Lights” – The Deathray Davies
With its theatrical orchestrations and incisive urgency, “Red Lights” is the kind of song that prompts a smile in a particular way that only music has access to. There’s nothing overtly funny happening in the lyrics; it’s the music itself that’s deftly amusing–there’s first and foremost the surging uphill churn of the intro and its subsequent reiterations, but a number of smaller grin-inducing moments unfold along the way. including unhinged horn bleatings, bashy drumming, quivery synth lines, and even some well-timed moments of near silence. A lot gets packed into 2:29 and it’s all good, from the sing-song-y melody to the abrupt ending.
Not that I’m sure exactly what’s going on here lyrically but this yet again supports my general inclination to treat a song’s words as sounds and a vibe as opposed to a story. There’s something about hearing the phrase “drive right through red lights” over and over that rouses the psyche at a feeling rather than a comprehension level. That’s how most lyrics function for me truth be told; the song becomes more like a dream to feel into than a concrete reality to analyze.
The Deathray Davies is a band on its second or maybe third wind. Fronted by John Dufilho, its origins go back to Dallas in the late ’90s, the band name a self-conscious joke-cum-homage to the Kinks. They were featured on Fingertips way back in 2005 and then again in 2021, after the band awoke from its self-described “15-year-nap.” “Red Lights” is a song from the Davies’ forthcoming album, Lampshade Earthquake Microphone, to be released in November.
