Review: Kate Nash – ‘Made of Bricks’

By Walter Price

Kate Nash’s 2007 Made of Bricks is an album full of awkward, self-conscious and at times seemingly literal walks through the songwriters memories and thought processes. What seems like simple verse come across about as honest as Nash wants them to or would allow them to be. Therapeutic perhaps at the time of conception and then there is the possibility that these vignettes are truly the artist’s (often) quirky perception of the world around and inside her. I tend to think the latter.

As Morrissey before her she conveys emotion in direct verse intertwined with intriguing personal ghosts. Being open and hiding just enough for the listener to fill in the blanks with his/her own plagued and cherished history. All these words to say she captivates with her seemingly simple gift of sing-along gab. Hiding vulnerabilities in shades of sarcasm always works for me.

At the end of the day what makes Bricks one of my Top 20 albums of all time are the catchphrase lyrics each song possesses not to mention the eclectic tongue n’ cheek production constructions framing the tracks and Nash’s ability to hit Björk type high notes here and there is a bonus.

Let’s sample some examples::

Thursday night,

everything’s fine,

Except you’ve got that look in your
eyes,

when I’m telling a story

And you find it boring you’re thinking
of something to say.

You’ll go along with and then drop it

And you humiliate me, in front of our
friends.

Then I’ll use that voice what you find
annoyin’

And say something like

“intelligent input darlin’ why
don’t you just have another beer then?”

Then you call me a bitch and everyone
we’re with will be embarrassed,

and I won’t give a shit.

Why are you being a dickhead for

Stop being a dickhead

Why are you being a dickhead for

You’re just fucking up situations

Shiny floor, slippery feet

Lights are dim, my eyes can’t meet

The reflection that turns my images

Upside down so I can’t see

Think you know everything

You really don’t know nothing

I wish that you were more intelligent

So you could see that what you are
doing

Is so shitty, to me

 

All the stars up in the sky

And the leaves in the trees

All the broken bits that make you jump
up

And grassy bits in between

All the matter in the world is how
much I like you.”

She said “what?”

He said “let me try and explain
again

“Right, birds can fly so high

And they can shit on your head

And they can almost fly into your eye

And make you feel so scared.

But when you look at them

And you see that they’re beautiful

That’s how I feel about you

 

And when I saw you

Kissing that girl

My heart it shattered

And my eyes, they watered

And when I tried to speak I stuttered

And my friends were like whatever

You’ll find someone better

His eyes were way too close together

And we never even liked him from the
start

And now he’s with that tart

And I heard she done some really nasty
stuff

Down in the park with Michael

He said she’s easy

And if your guy’s with someone that’s
sleazy

Then he ain’t worth your time

‘Cause you deserve a real nice guy

 

You could come round mine

We could drink some wine

In the summertime

It could be quite nice

Actually

I think I might just have the bottle

To myself

Darling, don’t give me shit

‘Cause I know that you’re full of it

You’re full of shit

You’re full of shit

I wish you had a favourite beauty spot

That you loved secretly

‘Cause it was on a hidden bit

That nobody else could see

Basically, I wish that you loved me

I wish that you needed me

I wish that you knew when I said two
sugars,

Actually I meant three

I wish that without me your heart
would break

I wish that without me you’d be
spending the rest of your nights awake

I wish that without me you couldn’t
eat

I wish I was the last thing on your
mind before you went to sleep