Singled Out: Ravishers' Underachievers

"Underachievers" is one of those self absorbed artist songs that tries to alleviate some of the neuroses that I feel by voicing them. A lot of musicians are well acquainted with the dual nature of being an artist. There's the egotistical/ambitious side and then there's the self loathing/reflective side. I think a lot of musicians reach for the brass ring - and then try to hang themselves with it. So the song is the negative voice, the self saboteur in your head that questions your every step.

On a more positive note, the song has some fun elements. I'm particularly fond of the fuzz guitar work in "Underachievers." We were paying homage to Lennon's great fuzz guitar sound, and just overloaded a channel on the board when we recorded it. No amp, just direct in. It's a cool, raw sound, and unlike anything I thought would be recorded when I wrote it. "Underachievers" was initially a very slow acoustic song.

Perhaps my favorite thing about this song, is that it inspired a subtle, yet funny music video, starring Ravishers' guitarist, Jonathan Barker. When I first suggested filming him for a day, I knew he would say yes. I thought getting him to do some pole dancing in the video was going to be harder. I was wrong. Some people are just born artists.