On his debut album Amidst The Clutter & Mess, Sydney-based musician Paddy Harrowsmith — who records as Green Buzzard — is taking a different tack than he did with his early records. Amidst The Clutter & Mess is defined by its distinct clarity; no longer anchored by distortion or haze as he was previously, Harrowsmith’s voice — and, by extension, his writing — is now front and centre.
That’s clear from the first seconds of Harrowsmith’s new single “To Be Like You,” premiering today on The FADER. Produced by TV On The Radio’s Dave Sitek, “To Be Like You” is a booming and distinctive piece of Britpop revival that finds Harrowsmith analysing, painfully, a past relationship. The song’s Bill Bleakley-directed video, described by Harrowsmith as a “narcissistic nightmare,” finds him trapped in a set filled with mirrors and mannequins, being forced to reckon with the realities of the past self he feels resentment for; it’s striking and silly all at once.
“‘To Be Like You' and much of the album is introspective lyrically. It’s a break up song essentially. It’s not about one person or one moment in particular but rather those feelings of regret and disdain for something you’ve done and realizing you never want to be like that,” Harrowsmith tells The FADER via email. "The film clip was directed by Bill Bleakley, I worked with Bill pretty closely hashing out the idea and concept behind the video. We decided the use of mannequins and mirrors … portrayed that feeling of questioning yourself and your actions.” Watch “To Be Like You” above.
Amidst The Clutter & Mess is out November 8th via I OH YOU; preorder it here.
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