Marsicans - 'Suburbs'

Photo Credit: Robbie Jay Barratt

Fresh off of the NME/ Radio One stage at Reading and Leeds, Marsicans’ new single ‘Suburbs’ is a chilled out pop song which explores the restlessness of life, of being uncomfortable with your surroundings, and of a having a driving thirst for new experiences. 

Marsicans are a four piece from Leeds, who exploded onto airwaves recently with single ‘Pop-Ups (Sunny at the Weekend)’, a song which was brilliantly received- whether that’s the rave review by the Sunday Times, being made the BBC Introducing ‘Tip of the Week’, or making it onto countless Spotify playlists- and ‘Suburbs’, seems to be heading in the same direction. Described as lead singer James Newbigging’s ‘quarter-life crisis’, it’s a song about being unhappy with where you are, about being bored and wanted ‘a change of scenery’- a musical manifestation of the grass always being greener. Despite this, it’s surprisingly nostalgic- ‘it’s all the same when I get home’ being reflective of childhood homes and the halcyon periods before the chaotic work lives ‘in the city’. 

The two verses are critical of their subject matter- the first, about the eponymous ‘Suburbs’, discusses the ‘hole’ felt by the band and the boredom of small towns; whereas the second verse, based in the bright lights and excitement of the cities, where ‘that hole starts to heal’, has the singer ‘struggling’ amidst ‘unfamiliar faces’ and needing a peaceful respite at home. 

This leads to a dilemma. If ‘home is everywhere else’, where, exactly, can you lay your head and relax? Unfortunately, the song has no answers. What it has instead is a catchy chorus, a deceptively calming instrumental backdrop to the band’s melodious harmonies, and surprisingly introspective lyrics, about the need to escape despite not knowing exactly where it is that you want to flee- except to the embrace of the ‘Suburbs’.

Words by James O'Sullivan