#I remember lyrics skin#

TUCKER: You might have noticed the way Ben Watt, as producer, distorted Thorn's voice here and there in that song. When you mess up - and, baby, you'll mess up. In a world of microaggressions, little human transgressions. On the song called 'When You Mess Up,' Thorn urges the person she's talking to to forgive minor sins and not blow them up into relationship- or career-ending dramas, which is to say, we all mess up.ĮVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL: (Singing) You seem so young again. And, sometimes, it addresses broader symptoms of modern alienation. Sometimes, it's about one person hoping to break through another person's defenses to achieve closeness. TUCKER: This collection, 'Fuse,' eventually reveals itself as an album-length plea for compassion and connection. Tell me what to do 'cause nothing works without you.

I'm here at your door, and I've been here before. Tell me what to do 'cause I've always listened to you. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, 'NOTHING LEFT TO LOSE')ĮVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL: (Singing) I need a thicker skin.

#I remember lyrics skin#

Take, for example, 'Nothing Left To Lose,' whose jittery beat and swooping keyboards get your head bobbing, only to be brought up short by Thorn's declaration of pain, of needing a thicker skin to endure the agony of a romance that's become one-sided. Thorn's voice draws you in, and Watt surrounds her with an atmosphere that works as either an enhancement or a dramatic contrast to what Thorn is singing about. Describing their roles that way diminishes some aspects of collaboration, of course, but it's a useful shorthand for the way a listener experiences any new Everything but the Girl song. KEN TUCKER, BYLINE: The low, smoky voice of Tracey Thorn is the signature sound of Everything but the Girl, with the duo's other half, Ben Watt, producing the beats. (SOUNDBITE OF SONG, 'TIME AND TIME AGAIN')ĮVERYTHING BUT THE GIRL: (Singing) Time and time again she says something like maybe she's leaving, but she never leaves. Before we listen to Terry's 2018 interview with Tracey Thorn, let's go to our critic Ken Tucker for a review of their new album, 'Fuse.' He says the duo's return puts them back in the center of current music making.

They formed their act in the 1980s when they were dating and became pop stars in the '90s, especially in Britain, for their smart, slinky dance pop. Today, we feature our interview with Tracey Thorn, who's one half of the duo with her husband, Ben Watt. The popular British duo Everything but the Girl has released their first new album in 24 years.