Courtney Barnett, bassist Bones Sloane and drummer Dave Mudie let loose in live performances of Everybody Here Hates You and Small Talk in two new videos recorded for Vevo. The relaxed setting showcases the bands camaraderie and feels delightfully like sitting in and watching an unfolding jam session.
The self-deprecating Everybody Here Hates You, which was recorded on break during her tour in support of last years Tell Me How You Really Feel, begins with a confession. I feel stupid, I feel useless, I feel insane, Barnett sings, before a harmonized repeated affirmation of Were gonna tell everyone its OK and a chorus confirms the realization that many people feel the same anxiety.
The grooving opening rhythms of Small Talk are met with Barnetts flirty guitar flits in the new clip. The singer smiles as a lyrical conversation unfolds, the kind where nervous banter serves to disguise first blush crush emotions. Can I get you anything? she asks. A soda, Campari with lemon? Well, you got it. Later she confesses, But you see, all this small talk is killing me, yeah/Im waiting here for you/Im waiting here for you/Im looking cross the room and hoping that youre looking, too. The song was culled while making sophomore LP Tell Me How You Really Feel but didnt make it onto the album.