“Sawdust” and “How You Know Things” by Sleep Kicks – Song Features

 

     Sleep Kicks, a Norwegian quartet, recently released the EP “How You Know Things.” All six tracks are recommended, but we particularly gravitated toward two – “Sawdust” and “How You Know Things pt. I.” The first is a Post Punk gem that was originally shared as a single in 2023. The second is Part I of three songs that can be considered the “title track” of the EP.
 
     “Sawdust” was written shortly after the band’s debut album “The Afterdrop.” Sleep Kicks explain that the single was evidence that they did not intend to rest on laurels of the debut album; the urge to just keep working and pushing towards new achievements is thinly veiled in the lyrics of “Sawdust.” Both the lyrics and the interplay between the vocalists interplay are masterful in the final segment of the song, when the suffix “ing” takes a lead role:

Can’t stop the bleeding

The circus is leaving

For another town

Always competing

Never retreating

Eventually healing

Failure is fleeting

Patterns repeating

For the soldier and the clown

 
     Sleep Kicks are based in Oslo, Norway. They are Terje Kleven (guitar, vocals), Frode Gundersen (drums), Jørn Landbakk (guitar), and Stephen Gardener (bass, synth). The credits of “Sawdust” show that Jade Marie Hasselgård contributed background vocals. Talking about their music, Landbakk once explained:
  “We quickly found out that the four of us have too many different influences to be able to stay within the strict boundaries of post-punk. Instrumental post-rock dynamics can be heard in several songs, while others lean on an almost krauty repetitiveness.”
 
     “Sawdust” by Sleep Kicks

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sleepkicks
Website: https://elasticstage.com/sleepkicks

Lyrics of “Sawdust” by Sleep Kicks

Not a sparkle, not a sound
Bruised and battered on the ground
Collecting dogtags on a chain
Yet another failed campaign
Way outnumbered and unprepared
And all ambitions left for dead
 
Can’t stop the bleeding
The circus is leaving
For another town
Failure is fleeting
For the soldier and the clown
 
Filter teardrops, sweat and blood
Through the sawdust and the mud
Time to reload, go again
Find the strength to entertain
Walk the tightrope for the crowd
Before the silence gets too loud
 
Can’t stop the bleeding
The circus is leaving
For another town
Always competing
In search of a meaning
And the clock keeps counting down
 
It’s time to get back on the horse
Ride out to conquer the applause
 
Can’t stop the bleeding
The circus is leaving
For another town
Always competing
Never retreating
Eventually healing
Failure is fleeting
Patterns repeating
For the soldier and the clown

     “How You Know Things pt. I” is the more Atmospheric Rock than is “Sawdust.” And the backing vocals of Jade Marie Hasselgård play a larger role. The song does not include the standard instrumental intro, but does include an extended spoken-word segment during the second half (the lyrics are included in this post).
 
     The materials released with “How You Know Things pt. I” state:
   “[The] track leans more clearly than before into the band’s long-standing dream-pop influences — soaring, melodic, and atmospheric - and perhaps a tad in a more uplifting territory than the band has previously operated. The lyrics nod to Hemingway, while music nerds will certainly approve of the bouncy 7/4-groove in the bridge.”
 
     “How You Know Things pt. I” by Sleep Kicks

Lyrics of “How You Know Things” by Sleep Kicks
Clearly, I miss him
But since you put it in that way
Why not leave them to it?
 
She was silent and asked for nothing
“There is no chance,” she said
And left without a smile
Without a smile
 
I believe that it must be
I will sleep as they would sleep
 
Met him in the doorway
Must have been a Tuesday night
Oh, those awkward moments
 
They're gone in just ten seconds
Couldn't look him in the eyes
But I think I saw a smile
I saw a smile
I saw a smile
 
I believe that it must be
I will sleep as they would sleep
 
Were you expecting someone
To show up at your door?
How you know things will be
Exactly how they were before
 
Did you expect the feeling
to fade out silently?
How you know things will be
Exactly like they used to be
 
Were you at some point thinking
There's nothing left to do?
How you know things will be
Precisely like you'd want them to
 
Was this the first incentive
To grow a thicker skin?
How you know things will be
The same as they have always been
 
I believe that it must be
I will sleep as they would sleep

“Everyfire” by Field Hospitals – A Song Feature

 

     This marks the second consecutive post in which we’ve featured a Minnesota-based band whose song references the extended presence of federal law enforcement in Minneapolis. Despite any appearances to the contrary, Indie Obsessive does not intend to turn more political. Rather, the aim remains the same as always: highlighting and promoting music we genuinely enjoy. The previous song from The Dead Century and the below track from Field Hospitals are aligned with that goal.
 
     The lyrics of Field Hospitals’ “Everyfire” are sufficiently vague to accommodate different readings, but they begin “Days of occupation.” The lyrics are included at the bottom of this post. Still, the strength of the song lies in its instrumentation. A synthesizer initiates the single and a punchy rhythm section soon joins, but “Everyfire” is guitar-driven and melody-focused. The press release interestingly declares that the track:
  “[B]alances their classic jangle pop sound with subtle synth textures and a driving post-punk feel, “Everyfire” shows the Field Hospitals expanding its musical palette without losing the tuneful, classic Indie Rock guitar sounds that define the group.
 
     The members of Minneapolis’ Field Hospitals are Matt Helgeson (bass), Dan Ganin (guitar), Hank Henry (vocals, guitar), and Jeff Ball (drums). They feature melodic chiming guitars and a driving rhythm section. “Everyfire” is their first 2026 release. A sophomore album is planned to later this year. The band’s 2025 debut EP “Ethel Green” won praise from critics and was picked as one of Spin’s “Best EPs of 2025.” The band was also one of the featured artists honored in Racket’s annual “Picked to Click” music industry poll.
 
     “Everyfire” by Field Hospitals

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fieldhospitals.mpls/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/field.hospitals/

Lyrics of “Everyfire” by Field Hospitals (littered with “best guesses”)
Days of occupation
Lie around us in the dark
And then romance untied
If you were wandering
 
Down that shoulder
You left the lonely running
Find the cold run into tonight
And show me very fight
Just show me every fight
You said run
Now show me every fight
Just show me every fight
You said run
Now show me every fight
 
Call me up
Call me out
You were faded
I replied
And it all defines
Who made it
And the other questions “Why?”
 
Down that shoulder
You left the lonely running
Find the cold ran into night
And show me very fight
Just show me every fight
You said run
Now show me every fight
Just show me every fight
You said run
Now show me every fight
 
Just show me every fight
You said run
Now show me every fight

“Been Better” by The Dead Century – A Song Feature

 

     A burst of rapid-fire guitar launches the intro with urgency, soon propelled forward by power percussion. The intro of “Been Better” lasts 27 seconds, approximately the same length as the outro that showcases the guitar skills of The Dead Century. In between resides a Trojan Horse - a convincingly engaging framework harboring a somber theme. The band accurately describes it as “an upbeat, guitar-driven Rock song that’s full of angst, joy, and yearning,” but not in equal parts.

 

     Lyrically, “Been Better” unfolds as a telephone conversation, with most of the reflections coming from the person on the other end of the line. She is struggling within circumstances that are outside of her control and stretch beyond her personal world. The lyrics are included at the bottom of this post. While she admits patience is required and expresses gratitude for the call, any suggestion of faith in the future fades with her closing confession: “… between you and me, this shit better get better soon.”

 

    It’s significant that Minneapolis serves as the home base for The Dead Century, a city shaped in recent months by political conflict, federal law enforcement presence, and the lingering aftermath of civil unrest. The band notes that “Been Better” was originally drafted during the difficult days of the 2020 lockdowns, but was only recently recorded in Minneapolis. The song’s lyrical message feels as timely now as ever. The band’s explanation is more interesting:

  The very first draft of this tune was a product of those hyper-anxious early days of the covid lockdowns, basically pre-history at this point. It took some serious revisions to find its way here, but (alas?) the song still hits our ears with the same kind of urgency—that better days are on the way, but also that sh*t better get better soon.

  Here’s to the triumph of hope and kindness over experience!

 

     The members of The Dead Century are Nick Check (guitar, vocals), JP Check (bass), Austin Peterson (lead guitar, vocals), and Robert Muehlbauer (drums, vocals). Nick and JP are brothers.

     “Been Better” by The Dead Century

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedeadcentury
Website: https://www.thedeadcentury.com/

Lyrics of “Been Better” by The Dead Century
She’s been living on her own since the summer
She’s not distraught, just a little distracted
Said “Lover, let me count the ways”
And the list came up a little shorter than expected
 
And since you asked
She said “I guess I’ve been better
You know it’s been a rough few months
And I don’t know when that’s going to change”
 
You know the last time was an absolute trainwreck
Well, she’s so grateful that that’s been established
The sugar crash was almost as cruel as the come down
And in any case those feelings just vanished
 
And since you asked
She said “I guess I’ve been better
You know it’s been a rough few months
And I don’t know when that’s going to change
Well I’m alright
Just under the weather
I’m stuck here and holding out hope
That we’re gonna see better days”
 
Everyone tells you that time’s going to conquer the pain
But tell me how long has it been now and how much has changed
You keep moving forward but every day just feels the same
But what can you do when the only solution is wait
And wait, and wait
 
She says “Anyways, thanks for the phone call
It’s cool to talk to an interested party
There’s comfort in community, there’s solace in the solitude
And in theory that should be enough for me”
 
And since you asked
She said “I guess I’ve been better
If time is what fixes things then I guess
There’s not much left I can do
I’ll do my best
Keep up with the patience
Yeah, but between you and me
This shit better get better soon”