Nap Eyes – “So Tired”

Nap Eyes – “So Tired”

Last month, the Halifax quartet Nap Eyes announced their fourth album, Snapshot Of A Beginner, the followup to 2018’s I’m Bad Now. And they really announced it, coming out the gates with a song as noticeably titled as “Mark Zuckerberg.” Nap Eyes are back with another new one today, but thankfully it isn’t called “Elon Musk” or “Jeff Bezos.”

Instead, their latest single is called “So Tired,” which has a lot less baggage! That’s not to say any less thought went into its meaning. Here’s what frontman Nigel Chapman had to say about it:

The “So Tired” refrain marks a slight shift in perspective and its meaning is twofold. For one, I get frustrated sometimes by what the world seems to require for success at a given task (for example, polished songwriting, coherent and understandable communication), so part of this is just me venting on this subject. Sometimes I would rather flow with free writing than try to box songs into rehearsed, many-times-repeated containers.

Second, at times I find myself wishing people would not hold so many preconceptions about the things in this world a given person might try to communicate. Most of us, myself included, usually assume we already know a lot — even about things we’ve spent very little time thinking about — and because of this attitude, people are often predisposed to misunderstand new ideas, even when they’re communicated in straightforward and coherent ways. But there’s no doubt, an idea won’t ever get through until there’s someone around to listen to it.

“So Tired” is an important part of Snapshot Of A Beginner, given that it’s the album’s opener — which means it also functions a lot differently than its predecessor. “Mark Zuckerberg” was a jangly, nervy character sketch that barreled along through quippy observations. “So Tired,” in comparison, is a fried, patient opening to the album. It begins fairly restrained, and then the band kicks in, leaning into their folkier/twangier side. By the end, Chapman is singing about being “so tired of trying to recreate.” And accordingly, the song has the feel of a long sigh on a languid summer day, albeit a pretty gorgeous sigh. Check it out below.

Snapshot Of A Beginner is out 3/27 on Jagjaguwar. Pre-order it here.

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