Rather than fall into a black hole of commonly misconstrued lyrics, a la “Hold me closer, Tony Danza,” or “We built this city on sausage rolls,” multi-instrumentalist Conner Youngblood wisely chooses to embrace the mondegreen in the chorus of “Pizza Body,” the latest single from his upcoming full-length Cheyenne.
That’s right. There is a word for mistaking words or lyrics in a way that gives them a new meaning. It’s called a “mondegreen,” and it was coined by American author Sylvia Wright in 1954 when she mistook "…and laid him on the green" from a Scottish poem, for “Lady Mondegreen.”
Knowledge is power, amirite? All jokes aside, this track is an absolute gem of contemplative catharsis, despite "you wanna be somebody" sounding vaguely familiar to "you wanna pizza body." Youngblood proves his mastery as a songwriter and musician, crafting a melody that melts from the heavens as it floats down a riverbed of warm acoustic strumming and cool pedal steel twangs. No sonic element is overdone or forced, but just the right amount to induce pure bliss. The highlight comes with his unique vocal manipulation to achieve a soulful slide up and down the chorus.
Evoking the woodsy aura of Sufjan Stevens and the spiritual ethos of Michael Kiwanuka, Youngblood is quickly establishing himself as an innovative singer-songwriter. The only thing he might be missing is a song about a cheesy slice of ‘za.
Stay tuned for Conner Youngblood’s upcoming full-length, Cheyenne, available everywhere August 17th via Counter Records.
Catch Conner Youngblood at one of his upcoming European Tour dates:
9/27 – Brighton, UK @ Green Door Store
9/28 – Bristol, UK @ The Louisiana
9/30 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Community Room
10/1 – Glasgow, UK @ Stereo
10/2 – Manchester, UK @ Now Wave Venue
10/3 – London, UK @ Oslo
10/8 – Amsterdam, Netherlands @ Paradiso
10/9 – Hamburg, Germany @ Molotow
10/10 – Copenhagen, Denmark @ Vega Small Hall
10/12 – Oslo, Norway @ Cafe Mono
10/14 – Stockholm, Sweden @ Obaren
10/15 – Gothenberg, Sweden @ Oceanen
10/17 – Berlin, Germany @ Privatclub
10/18 – Poznan, Poland @ Spot
10/19 – Warsaw, Poland @ Bardzo Bardzo
10/20 – Wroclaw, Poland @ Akademia
10/22 – Vienna, Austria @ Rhiz
10/24 – Zurich, Switzerland @ Exil
10/25 – Nyon, Switzerland @ La Parenthèse
10/26 – Paris, France @ Le Pop Up du Label
10/27 – Brussels, Belgium @ Witloofbar
10/29 – Barcelona, Spain @ Sidecar
10/30 – Madrid, Spain @ Costello Club
Connect with Conner Youngblood: Website | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Spotify
