A Success Story: Pacifier

In the music industry you read stories about artists being rushed into signing record deals or releasing the all-important debut album, but you never read the success stories of artists who wait, take their time, and unleash a sensible single now and then to gain support. Music media are always on the lookout for the best new sound, but sometimes it clouds their own judgement as to what deserves the acclaim, and what does not.  Catfish and the Bottlemen waited, played over 100 shows in 18 months, and are slowly entering the community as an up and comer.

The band Catfish and the Bottlemen are one of the few success stories to be read in future months, years, decades. After playing shows galore, they signed to Communion Records, home of Brugge resident Gotye, and Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros. On that record they produced a song called “Pacifier”. It is a song about a friend of vocalist Van McCann. The protagonist lost her mother at a young age. It's a very sad story, fitting for a sad song. It's also a bold choice of lyrical content, one which suits the grouping Catfish and the Bottlemen sneak in to. They're a very light-hearted style of post-punk, with influences of indie rock and punk.

The song is unique in its own way based on its adventurous melody and the originality in the lyrics. McCann has a very distinctive vocal, sounding best loud and contagious, rather than the drones of the verses. Backing vocals are present and fit the quartet’s style, especially towards the end of "Pacifier", where McCann sings the refrain: "Still, I'm a pacifier." Overall it is a very catchy song that will grab the attention of anyone who enjoys listening to good lyrics.