Our obsession with the genius of Saint Nick the Lesser seems to grow with every listen, so when we heard that the star was back with Train Tracks, we were naturally curious and couldn’t wait to share our experience!
Kicking off with the literal sound of a rolling train, intricately constructed with the help of textured drums, Saint Nick the Lesser opens Train Tracks with production smarts and innovation before a folk rock melodic energy transports us to a timeless Americana universe. The opus expands with metaphorical depth as Saint Nick the Lesser sings, “You never see it coming, that train it moves so fast, if you don’t watch it it’ll sneak up and hit you like that…” We appreciate the direction (pun intended) that the song is going in.
Train Tracks uses the speeding train as a metaphor for life’s problems and struggles. The train represents moments that come out of nowhere. The whistle and the rush reflect the tension and panic we might feel when stress overcomes us. That said, the overarching message is hopeful. Essentially, if we step away from the “tracks” and stop putting ourselves in the path of harm, we can retain control and avoid being crushed by the chaos – choosing peace over panic!
Saint Nick the Lesser confesses, “Train Tracks, influenced by punk, ska, and anti-folk genres, draws inspiration from artists like Laura Jane Grace, Chuck Regan, Tim Barry, and Frank Turner. The song’s narrative reflects a personal story of companionship and introspection, set against the backdrop of a melancholic yet hopeful journey.”
On the story of the song, Saint Nick the Lesser tells us, “It’s sad unfortunately. My buddy was going through a tumultuous time in his life and dealing with a litany of things simultaneously; some thrust upon him, some self-inflicted, and some a natural consequence of what he’d done to cope during that time. He had recently moved to Fresno, but I was still living in the Bay Area where we’re both originally from, so I decided to go and see him. Ended up taking a train from San Jose to Fresno, though that wasn’t necessarily integral to the song’s creation-I’ve just always liked them as a mode of transportation, as I feel that for me, as a creative, it gives an ample amount of time to reflect and draw creative inspiration from given the free time. Plus the countryside is beautiful.”
He continues, “I spent the whole weekend with him, and though we talked a bit about what was going on, and I expressed my concerns over how he was dealing with it, we mostly just held space for one another in deep understanding; I was his friend, and he was going through it. I was there, and he needed someone to be present. That feeling of silent lucidity reached its apex when both drank an entire pot of coffee and ended up wandering along a back-alley railroad track in Fresno. It felt like the perfect moment of being present with someone as their world is crumbling. Additionally, that train track felt like the perfect metaphor for seeing that the path you’re walking may not be ideal, and may lead to something negative one day. Happy to say that years later he’s doing much, much better.”
We always appreciate the intentional and philosophical depth that Saint Nick the Lesser creates with, and have added Train Tracks to our New Music Spotlight playlist, and our TIMELESS playlist, whilst we continue to stream the wider discography of Saint Nick the Lesser, and anticipate future releases!