La scène alternative britannique a trouvé une nouvelle voix à suivre de près : shortstraw., alias Erin West, artiste basée à Coventry, vient de dévoiler « Dot Cotton », un single aussi mordant qu’addictif, sorti le 13 mai dernier via le label Our House Online.
Entre punk, grime et rave culture
« Dot Cotton » est une fusion explosive de punk lo-fi, de rythmes grime et de pulsations rave. C’est brut, électrique, presque chaotique, mais tout est millimétré. Ce morceau capture une tranche de vie jeune, urbaine, saturée de pop culture britannique et de désillusions générationnelles. Il ne s’agit pas seulement d’un clin d’œil à Dot Cotton, figure culte de EastEnders, ou à Calvin Harris (je sais pas pourquoi je fais référence à lui) c’est une introspection mordante sur les conséquences de nos actes passés, nos contradictions et notre façon de faire de l’humour une échappatoire.
Une Ford Fiesta, des raves et une certaine rage
Erin West décrit son morceau comme « une réflexion sur la culture pop britannique, avec des références à Dot Cotton, Calvin Harris, ma Ford Fiesta qui tombe en morceaux, et mon amour pour les raves, tout en regardant en arrière sur des comportements passés et leurs conséquences. » C’est une confession lucide, mais jamais moralisatrice. On sent l’ironie, l’urgence, et surtout une énergie vive.
« Dot Cotton », c’est aussi l’illustration d’un mal-être générationnel : l’ennui, la colère, la nostalgie d’un passé immédiat déjà usé. Le morceau sonne comme un cri, mais un cri qu’on danse. Il évoque l’envie de « juste passer un bon moment », même quand Louis Sarkozy est partout à la télévision.
Lyrics:
breaking a bottle
on my broken teeth
i can feel the nerves
every time that i breathe
i got them beat 97s
same jacket same jeans
and i try to be happy 7 days of the week
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
trust me im fine on my own
w my hands in the air
give me shit
get slapped in the face with it
shit faced like ur out getting wasted
not acting bad
i’ve just not got no patience
and i’m not big
more like complaisant
smell like a bar
worn like a fragrance
ur so pretty
pretty vacant
cant lie
you’d be my favourite
for an hour
know ur placement
train delays
so it’s back to the shop
now the sniffer dogs humping ur sock
so ur stood in the rave
still on the spot
and me and my mates are just pissing u off
me and my mates
i once did this thing
broke my arms off so i couldn’t be reached
lucky for me they had a sling
they regret it now cos im a total neek
drugs on the side
police at the door
dilated eyes with shit on the floor
shit on my shoe
and there’s shit in my eye
fucks sakes i moved the track to the side
what was i saying
oh
they’re having a mare
racking up lines that are whiter than my hair
i know u think of me
don’t act like u don’t care
that’s rotten to the core
u little mouldy pear
sitting just right like goldie and the bears
3 big bowls and a comfy chair
i swear its funny u had to be there
that’s the story of my life and it’s getting unfair
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
but i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
im fine on my own w my hands in the air
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
trust me im fine on my own
w my hands in the air
breaking a bottle
on my broken teeth
i can feel the nerves
every time that i breathe
i got them beat 97s
same jacket same jeans
and i try to be happy 7 days of the week
you wouldn’t even know it but ive been rock bottom
i learnt that things have gotta break to be fixed and forgotten
you werent even there don’t tell ur mates that you’ve got them
that shit runs deeper than the wrinkles on dot cotton
breaking a bottle on my broken teeth
got told i need to break the habits before they break me
still im sat here like a dickhead like i just got told to say cheese
my behaviour was acceptable at the time like in the 80s
in my ford fiesta that shakes when it hits 80
and the check engine light that flashes on the daily
u look like a piece of shit there’s really no need to gate keep
still all ive got is luv dgaf if that makes u hate me
breaking a bottle
on my broken teeth
i can feel the nerves
every time that i breathe
i got them beat 97s
same jacket same jeans
and i try to be happy 7 days of the week
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
trust me im fine on my own
w my hands in the air
give me shit
get slapped in the face with it
shit faced like ur out getting wasted
not acting bad
i’ve just not got no patience
and i’m not big
more like complaisant
smell like a bar
worn like a fragrance
ur so pretty
pretty vacant
cant lie
you’d be my favourite
for an hour
know ur placement
train delays
so it’s back to the shop
now the sniffer dogs humping ur sock
so ur stood in the rave
still on the spot
and me and my mates are just pissing u off
me and my mates
i once did this thing
broke my arms off so i couldn’t be reached
lucky for me they had a sling
they regret it now cos im a total neek
drugs on the side
police at the door
dilated eyes with shit on the floor
shit on my shoe
and there’s shit in my eye
fucks sakes i moved the track to the side
what was i saying
oh
they’re having a mare
racking up lines that are whiter than my hair
i know u think of me
don’t act like u don’t care
that’s rotten to the core
u little mouldy pear
sitting just right like goldie and the bears
3 big bowls and a comfy chair
i swear its funny u had to be there
that’s the story of my life and it’s getting unfair
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
but i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
im fine on my own w my hands in the air
story of my life always did it for the dare
and when the consequence came they were all no where
i don’t really mind nah i don’t even care
trust me im fine on my own
w my hands in the air
breaking a bottle
on my broken teeth
i can feel the nerves
every time that i breathe
i got them beat 97s
same jacket same jeans
and i try to be happy 7 days of the week
you wouldn’t even know it but ive been rock bottom
i learnt that things have gotta break to be fixed and forgotten
you werent even there don’t tell ur mates that you’ve got them
that shit runs deeper than the wrinkles on dot cotton
breaking a bottle on my broken teeth
got told i need to break the habits before they break me
still im sat here like a dickhead like i just got told to say cheese
my behaviour was acceptable at the time like in the 80s
in my ford fiesta that shakes when it hits 80
and the check engine light that flashes on the daily
u look like a piece of shit there’s really no need to gate keep
still all ive got is luv dgaf if that makes u hate me
