Talking In Tones

Album: Modern Nature (2014)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This song is about telepathy. Vocalist Tim Burgess explained to NME: "I like to think people know what I'm thinking. I think with body language and a smile or a non-smile people can tell what you're thinking. And then you realize that they actually don't."
  • The Modern Nature album title came as a result of an accident. "It was a book by Derek Jarman that fell on my head," Burgess laughed to NME. "It was a sign – we were in the middle of making the album and I went down to do a guest vocal for a band called Grumbling Fur and it just appeared and landed on my head. It was my Isaac Newton moment. I thought, 'I'm having that.'"
  • The video was directed by Nik Colk Void of Factory Floor and stars actor Nico Mirallegro (The Village, My Mad Fat Diary) as a young version of Tim Burgess.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New York

Janis Ian: Married in London, but not in New YorkSong Writing

Can you be married in one country but not another? Only if you're part of a gay couple. One of the first famous singers to come out as a lesbian, Janis wrote a song about it.

Michael Glabicki of Rusted Root

Michael Glabicki of Rusted RootSongwriter Interviews

Michael tells the story of "Send Me On My Way," and explains why some of the words in the song don't have a literal meaning.

Adam Duritz of Counting Crows

Adam Duritz of Counting CrowsSongwriter Interviews

"Mr. Jones" took on new meaning when the song about a misguided view of fame made Adam famous.

Daniel Lanois

Daniel LanoisSongwriter Interviews

Daniel Lanois on his album Heavy Sun, and the inside stories of songs he produced for U2, Peter Gabriel, and Bob Dylan.

Kip Winger

Kip WingerSongwriter Interviews

The Winger frontman reveals the Led Zeppelin song he cribbed for "Seventeen," and explains how his passion for orchestra music informs his songwriting.

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," Kiss

Director Paul Rachman on "Hunger Strike," "Man in the Box," KissSong Writing

After cutting his teeth on hardcore punk videos, Paul defined the grunge look with his work on "Hunger Strike" and "Man in the Box."