Plastic Orchestra Ease the Pace and Let the Groove Breathe on Crick in the Neck
Plastic Orchestra have always been a band who are not afraid of motion. The music has always been the result of joyful propulsion, changes in rhythm, and the collective sense of wonder which has a conversation rather than a statement quality. With ‘Crick in the Neck,’ the Melbourne band takes a different turn. They ease up on the rhythm, expand the emotional palette, and even introduce the notion of space into the groove. The effect is the most intimate and disclosing song they have ever done.
Ultimately, Crick in the Neck is a song about care, and the price tag that comes with it. "It’s about the sort of people who keep everyone else together," Stewart says, "who listen before they speak, who solve everyone else’s problems, who take everyone else’s stress, who keep going when everyone else wants a rest." The band’s title for the track is a masterstroke of dry wit, taking a physical ache and transforming it into an emotional shorthand that everyone recognises. Crick in the Neck is a start of a conversation, rather than a start of a fireworks display.
Musically, the song is a vibe rather than a push. It is a warm, relaxed beat that is funk- and R&B-derived but in a way which is holistic, rather than courtesy of distinct imitation. The bass is deep in the pocket, led by the vision of leader Grace Snow, moving in a languid, eloquent way which provides the song's message. Drums are also confident in their swagger, swinging in a way which is relaxed, inviting the listener to breathe into rather than tighten up for a beat.
Guitars appear more as color than flash. The sound of them takes a nod at experimental sounds of the seventies, slightly askew and slightly playful. Guitars come in and out of focus without necessarily commanding attention but all the same managing to set mood. On this backdrop, there emerge and recede vocal harmonies of the female voice rising and falling along lines of a chant.
These voices are less lead and harmony than they are concurrent thoughts, drifting briefly around the perimeter of an idea. It is an expression of the band’s philosophy as a unit. Plastic Orchestra is a collective that exists under Snow’s banner that is fueled by their love of sound itself. They have termed it an “excuse for playing with all of the music equipment that they own,” but Crick in the Neck proves that more than can be handled is not necessarily more. There is nothing here that doesn’t feel thought-out. There is an implicit confidence in the arrangement of this song, an understanding that it doesn’t need anything more than it has in order to be understood. What sets Crick in the Neck apart from other Plastic Orchestra tracks is not simply its speed but also its emotional slowness. The group refuses to tie up any loose ends.
