‘I Would Like To Say I Always Loved You’, the closing track of Skinny Dippers' new album 'The Town and The City', is a free-spirited and free-flowing melody about a blissful break up. The lyrics, recited like a letter to this previous lover, or the stream of consciousness of an affable poet, elicit a sense of peace and acceptance. The layered vocals giving a sort of Beach Boys harmonisation allude an image of 90s solstice – possibly a reference to the band’s summertide title.
The touching, melancholic fluidity of the refrain ‘But as our days are flashing forward I can't help but sit and reminisce’ urges you to stop and reminisce yourself; consider the fleeting nature of all love and relationships. The abstract rhyme scheme, represented in a continuous loop of quatrains, makes the song appear colloquial – a passing word of good riddance. The repetitive platitude ‘I need an escape’ emphasises how monotony can imprison you, and everyone else for that matter.
Throughout the years, warm indie rock has descended into a flavourless art in which people nod submissively to its five string serenades. It has become widely recognised as a pleasing way to while away the first two junctions of the motorway, but perhaps forgettable by the third. Skinny Dippers, on the other hand, linger in your mind resolutely. ‘I Would Like To Say I Always Loved You’ is a dauntless outreach into a style unexplored: a genuine laugh in the face of adversity. It is the perfect way to discover Skinny Dippers as a band before digging into their record.
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