“Just over the horizon / That’s where I always think you’ll be”
Over the last week or so I’ve finished reading Survivor by Chuck Palahniuk and as such – in a subliminal way that I’m sure Chuck would enjoy – I’ve been using the novel as the starting part for my thoughts about the music I’ve been listening to. Without wanting to spoil the book for those who haven’t read it yet, Palahniuk basically compares the illusion of freedom in modern consumerist life to being part of a religious death cult, it’s massive pretentious, but a great read all the same. Theme wise it draws on the constant tension caused by trying to ignore the awareness of your own mortality. For whilst you may chase the dream of a perfect life; of money, love, children, good health or whatever it is that you find fulfilling, you do so in the knowledge that we all come to the same end: death. It’s this dichotomy that’s always drawn me to Real Estate’s suburbia influenced indie-pop and is a quality especially overt on Horizon – a track from their latest album Atlas. Inspired the bands favourite muse – the comforting rhythms of small-town life – the track distills how the Horizons which surround such rural communities are a fertile breeding ground for both dreamers and cowards alike. After all, no matter whether you choose to stand still or dare to wander/wonder, you do so knowing that the final destination is the same for both journeys.