Radar Detector

Album: Darwin Deez (2010)
Charted: 62
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Darwin Deez are a New York based Indie folk band, who are named after the stage moniker of their main man Darwin Smith. This is their second single, and their first UK top 75 hit.
  • Darwin Smith told Gigwise about this song: "A radar detector is a device, illegal in some provinces, that alerts drivers to the presence of police radar in the vicinity. Drivers, in turn, use this information to modulate the speed of their spacecraft, you nawmsayin? I once fell in love with a girl who reminded me of a radar detector in the way that she constantly kept her eye out for my well-being, like a loving machine, and I wrote this song about her."
  • This track is included on Darwin Deez's self-titled album. Smith told CMU how he wrote for the record: "For most of the tracks on this album, I started with a topic or concept for the song, and then I established the rhythm guitar part and the lyrics and melody. More than once, I started with the first line of the first verse, and in those cases, the first line then determined the shape of the verse melody, and then I wrote a chorus to contrast it. I added all the other instrumentation during the recording process."
  • During an interview with The Sun, the comment was made that Darwin Deez's dancing in the video is a bit dorky. He responded: "I went a little crazy during the shoot so I had to ask the director to use the tamer stuff for fear of an excessively high dork factor."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Danny Kortchmar

Danny KortchmarSongwriter Interviews

Danny played guitar on Sweet Baby James, Tapestry, and Running On Empty. He also co-wrote many hit songs, including "Dirty Laundry," "Sunset Grill" and "Tender Is The Night."

Brenda Russell

Brenda RussellSongwriter Interviews

Brenda talks about the inspiration that drove her to write hit songs like "Get Here" and "Piano in the Dark," and why a lack of formal music training can be a songwriter's best asset.

Def Leppard Quiz

Def Leppard QuizMusic Quiz

Can you name Def Leppard's only #1 hit in America? Get rocked with this adrenalized quiz.

Rock Stars of Horror

Rock Stars of HorrorMusic Quiz

Rock Stars - especially those in the metal realm - are often enlisted for horror movies. See if you know can match the rocker to the role.

00s Music Quiz 1

00s Music Quiz 1Music Quiz

Do you know the girl singer on Eminem's "Stan"? If so, this quiz is for you.

Oliver Leiber

Oliver LeiberSongwriter Interviews

Oliver Leiber talks about writing and producing hits for Paula Abdul, and explains his complicated relationship with his father, the songwriter Jerry Leiber.