Indie Obsessive: “You Are Tennessee” by Tender Glue

Monday, April 2, 2018

“You Are Tennessee” by Tender Glue – A Song Review

From a musical perspective, a productive use of two minutes (times n) is to analytically listen to “You Are Tennessee,” where “n” is the number of times you listen. Some songs scream that they were composed, performed and mixed by people who are passionate about their work. This song from Tender Glue screams.

The voice carry a sense of pensive sadness, while the lyrics ironically express appreciation. Tender Glue states, "'You Are Tennessee' is not about Tennessee but it's more of a thank you note to people who give without wanting anything in return.” And the vocals are typically clear and gentle, while last words of some lines are almost treated as afterthoughts or stumbles. As an example, the final word in the first line (“Would you come”) is barely understanding, as if said during a caught cough. We wondered if it was a Soundcloud error, so we went to the Bandcamp and Spotify streams. It is the same in all three.

Still, the guitar work is the aspect that sets “You Are Tennessee” apart from the other strong tracks that are made available each week. Are we overanalyzing the song when we perceive periodic volume increases and decreases, as though the song has breathing?

Tender Glue is the project of Tom Gluewicki. As for the act's name, Tom explains that it has to do with an old friend. "There was a girl, her last name translated to “Tender” in English and when I was younger, I used to be called “Glue”. So one day, I texted her a message saying “We’re going to be Tender Glue” and I stuck with it after we stopped playing because the name could mean nothing and everything." Tom is originally from Poland, but currently resides in Brooklyn, NY.