“Da Vinci Riot Police” by George Ezra, Wednesday, July 6, 2022
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Put on George Ezra's Wanted on Voyage, and you hear a modern folk-rock record with some pop appeal. Ezra immediately draws listeners in with "Blame It on Me." Throughout the record, we hear sparse rock 'n'roll electric guitars and rhythmic acoustics, but Ezra isn't afraid to add keys or synthesizers for effect here and there. But while the instrumentation is good on the record, what stands out most is Ezra's deep voice. Coming from a time in the '00s when a high voice was everything for pop and rock music, George Ezra's bass-baritone range reminds listeners of old-time music, sung by old-time singers who are either elderly or who have died long ago.
A statue of Paddington Bear at Paddington Station, London. From Flickr. Photo by Martin Pettitt.
IN EVERY SONG YOUR FATHER SUNG. But then watch the music videos or catch a live performance from George Ezra's first album cycle, Wanted on Voyage, and you see the source of that distinct, sexy, old-sounding voice coming from a baby-faced blond-haired, blue-eyed (and tall) kid. In 2014, when Ezra released Wanted he was just 20 years old. He began a year before, playing at Glastonbury Festival and releasing an EP, but Wanted on Voyage was his major breakthrough with the lead single, "Budapest" charting internationally, including in the United States. The title of the record comes from children's book series Paddington Bear. Paddington has a sticker on his suitcase that says "Wanted on Voyage" when he turns up at Paddington Station in London. Like Paddington, Ezra's album is inspired by his travels. For Ezra, his voyage included buying a European train pass that allowed him to wander all over the continent, exploring Berlin, "Barcelona," Amsterdam, "Budapest," and in today's song Milan, where he witnessed something strange when looking at a statue of Leonardo da Vinci.
Statue of Leonardo da Vinci in Milan, Italy. "Photo by CEphoto, Uwe Aranas" Source.
EUROPEAN SONIC BOOM, ELECTRIC CHAPEL / BOOK A ROOM. George Ezra tells the story of the penultimate song from On Voyage, "Da Vinci Riot Police" while on tour in New Zealand to Vikki Anderson. Ezra recalls looking at the statue of da Vinci and suddenly a riotous parade started marching down the street with "flares and shouting." The police showed up, and Ezra said that "da Vinci looked after me for a bit." Besides being envious of how seemingly easy it was for UK citizens to hope on a train to Milan like New Yorkers can just drive to Florida to visit their grandparents, the story behind "Da Vinci Riot Police" reminds me of my non-European travels--particularly when I'm alone--and something weird happens. One minute you find yourself off the beaten path and the next you meet a stranger or you see a ritual that seems unreal. You struggle to think about how you would describe it. And after it happened, if you were alone, you wonder if it really happened or if it was a hallucination or even a dream implanted later? If you were with a friend, you recall it together, but when you tell the story, you can see the disbelief in the listener's eyes. You've gotta be there to see it, I guess.
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