The Statistics just released their new single "Maryanne" and to celebrate we asked Darby Yule to tell us about the song, which comes from their forthcoming album "The Robson Street Hymns" (out September 6th). Here is the story:
I wrote Maryanne while I was just starting to hash out what I wanted our new sound to be like. I had a ton of slow songs that all fit into it but nothing that was upbeat. I really love Motown and I knew I wanted it to be epic Singer-Songwriter Americana so I basically meshed the two together. It's so strange how certain styles really compliment each other in ways you would never expect. It created this really dancey version of the acoustic songs I was writing that I absolutely loved. After that, I knew I just wanted to yell a name. I had all of these fantasies of being in these super dramatic Backstreet Boy music videos as a kid and I don't think they ever completely left. So I just wanted to do something really dramatic and yell out "Mary" while everyone was singing the chorus. Luckily, I think that works pretty well and I think it's one of the highlights of the song!
I came up with that line "Some lives end at nineteen/in my hometown." When I was noticing how many friends that I graduated with already were married or had kids. I didn't really look at it as negative or positive, just more of a reality of living in your hometown. I think that the two characters in this song have that small town practicality to them even though they are big dreamers. I've struggled with that practicality, being in the music business. You have to think so big but there's that part of you that's like, "recording in a studio sounds awfully expensive. I mean, I could do it on my computer for free." I think that the two characters in the song are always fighting that but also see a value in it. After that, I was really just piecing together things that we all used to do in high school and what it was like being a teenager with my first girlfriend. I spent a lot of time driving around with her and talking about plans for the future. It's really a song about coming of age. That's what most of the record is about.
I take new songs that I want to try down to an open mic in town. I like it because the audience normally outright ignores performers and talks over them most of the night. I have to win them over which makes my songs better. One of the things I remember most about Maryanne is that the entire place went silent for the whole song. It's a crazy feeling when it happens. One of the reasons why I love songwriting is because of moments like that. I don't even pitch a song for a record if it isn't able to do that. Maryanne was different though. I had people already asking where they could listen to it and writing down my name. This was long before we had produced the song. It was well received in it's infancy really. It would kind of be like people reacting strongly to a reading of a TV Show script before they shoot it or have others edit it.
Maryanne and Turn Up the Radio were recorded separately from the other tracks. It was the first time I actually felt competent in a studio. I had practiced a lot between Maryanne and the rest of the record. I'm a real stress case when it comes to writing an album. I always think that most people are going to hear us and base their opinion off of our recordings so it needs to be perfect. As a result, my neck spasmed on the trip down to the studio so I was on muscle relaxants the entire time we were recording Maryanne. I like to think it's my version of sex, drugs and rock and roll. Neck meds, masturbation, and singing about my feelings! I stopped taking them when it got to my parts because I couldn't think straight.
I'm really excited to share Maryanne with you all! It's a cool mix of Americana, Rock, and Motown that is easy to dance and sing along to. After all, what is music without singing and dancing? Hopefully you like it enough to keep listening and share with your friends. Maybe we will see you out at a show soon too!
Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen for yourself and learn more about the album right here!
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