This is Jack Penate with his excellent new single ‘Torn On The Platform’. The song came out on June 25th, and coincided with the singer/songwriter playing at the Glastonbury festival where he wowed everyone with his energetic performance. I first saw him while watching the Glastonbury footage and immediately knew he was headed for big things.This song, his third to be released, or should I say unleashed, on the general public has now reached Number 7 in the charts, pretty good for an unassuming guy from South London.
The song is a strange but evocative mix of heartfelt pop lyrics and an uptempo Indie beat. As soon as the main rythym kicks in I was instantly reminded of The Housemartins, and got a bit of an 80s vibe in my head. There’s some obvious ska influences in there too, which is a mainstay through a lot of Penate’s music.
The lyrics speak for themselves, with a story of a guy who is leaving his town, (in this case London), and can’t bear to say goodbye. For the first two verses you think he’s talking about leaving a girl behind until the line “You’re not my girl. you’re my town” puts that to rest. The song moves on at a blisteringly pop pace right up until the final verse when the guy makes his decision and jumps off the train just before it leaves.
The video is great, mixing footage of Jack and his band playing the song in what appears to be a dingy basement, with an animated cardboard cut out on stage. It puts across the sense of fun which seems prevalent throughout not only this song, but also Jack’s onstage performances.
I can see Jack Penate going on to conquer the charts time and time again. His sound is something new, while taking very recognisable elements from other genres and influences. Brilliantly done.
If you want to see more, you can catch Jack performing at the T In The Park Festival in Kinross, Scotland on the 8th July. Keep your browsers locked on Brit Music Scene for news of further tours and performances.