Pōneke legend Darren Watson is a man who lets his music talk. And boy does it talk! This is the guy who got his single Planet Key banned in 2014, only to successfully appeal the ban. Sticking it to the man always goes down well in my book.

Darren says he’s an albums man, generally. As mentioned, he’s a legend in Wellington, and is known throughout the country. This is New Zealand’s Blues Man. And the thing is, Darren deserves this monicker. Listen to this new single, Man In The Sky. You can find the great lyric video on the You Tubes – and frankly it’s good enough to be representative of the track on the telly, so I’m hoping we’ll get to see that.

Now, the single itself. Recorded at his own Lamington Recording Studio, Darren has crafted an up-tempo, highly compelling and fey melody about the misuse of people’s beliefs to excuse bad behaviour or to control them. Several examples pop immediately to mind. With lyrics that are open and cutting, we get the message that the song is not exactly a fan of people who use this kind of technique in today’s society, with it’s myriad filters of BS to cut through before one finds any truths. Great subject, and great lyrics.

Vocally Darren Watson delivers something that would be like Bob Seger‘s wildest dream. There’s a similar timbre however Darren can hit areas that leave you breath-taken. Every note delivered with earnest, emotive cojones, dragged right up from the soles of his feet. A Blues/Soul fusion of instrumentation smashes through your sensitivities led by the expected blues guitar from the man himself. His delivery does not disappoint. Some excellent phraseology, some deeply thought out harmonics. We have a fat, rich bottom end, and some brazen, right in yo’ mamma’s face brass.

The very core of this song is a big F*** YOU to these faux-benign organisations and personalities. The tune is catchy, commercial but nasty and not sweet. This is a song that would be great to hear from a crowd at Homegrown, or similar. It would also work in the bar or pub with their APRA licensing nicely up-to-date! I also recommend this gets a lot of attention for mechanical licensing, as this could be used for a whole heap of projects, both TV, movie, or private project.

Definitely one of my songs of the year. If you haven’t heard of Darren Watson yet – where the h*ll have you been? Get onto it now. You will be wowed.