Sometimes as a songwriter, I feel like I’m writing about some of the same concepts as I’ve done in the past and I’m using the same words. As a lover of variety, this rankles me a bit. I guess that’s why I appreciate a song that takes a different point of view.
“Brendan”, from Ripe’s 2023 album Bright Blues, explores the idea that death is a just a guy called Brendan, living his life, doing his job. The depiction of death as a character is not a new concept, just look at a War and Peas comics where Death puts in a regular appearance in a stereotypical grim reaper outfit, but I like how it’s done in this song.
I stumbled upon Ripe through one of Spotify’s algorithmic playlist and their music sits at the pop end of my listening spectrum. Pop to me is easy listening, with solid instrumentation and good songwriting, usually not trying to fit into a niche genre. Sometime’s its called “Adult Contemporary’, which really could be anything when you think about it…
During Spotify Wrapped 2023, I saw a video from the guys from Ripe. It was super cute and heartfelt, so despite their tracks having millions of streams, they seem to be down to earth people.
“Brendan” begins with a soft organ synth sound, and only after a split second does the vocal and guitar come in, the first verse setting up the premise for the song. The second half of the verse brings in some more percussion (if you can call a handclap, percussion?) and lead guitar. The lyrics here I think are quite universal:
I don’t know if we’d know how to put meaning into things
If not for Brendan
What good is a journey if the journey’s all beginning
And no ending?
Ripe – Brendan
The backing vocals are also really effective in supporting the melody.
At this point, we move into a new section, perhaps what I’d call a pre chorus, where the drums kick in and you can tell we’re building up to something good. Lyrically, it’s become more conversational, the kind of conversation you might have a the end of the day with someone you love. The last line expresses gratitude that Brendan’s here, which leads us to the chorus, the simple, one word Brendan repeated, with some punchy horns filling in the gaps. It’s catchy and on reflection, a nice build up to get here. I realise at this point I’ve not said anything about the bass, but its kinda funky and really helps keep the song flowing.
The second verse explores the idea of God just being an overworked woman who has the massive job of deciding who should be saved. I’m not a religious person so how God and death work together for those who are is a bit lost on me. We move into the pre chorus and chorus again, then an instrumental chorus before a small break down with some nice synth and thuddy drums. Then intensity is kicked up an octave with a variation of the pre chorus, before a final chorus. The song more or less finishes how it starts, with the music and vocal stopping together.
I was listening to this song while driving down south over the holidays, and reflecting that the lyrical content and the music is like a breath of fresh air. Everything has so much space, which fits with how I like to write music. Everything in its right place and nothing over the top. Maybe if I work really hard, I might be able to write something like “Brendan” one day.