Music / Sam Fender

Influenced by:

• Bruce Springsteen, The Beatles, Steely Dan, Jimi Hendrix, Kendrick Lamar, ABBA, Joy Division, Joni Mitchell, Talking Heads, ABBA, Tracy Chapman, The Smiths, Jeff Buckley, Kings of Leon

Influenced:

• Louis Tomlinson

I remember the sickness was forever
I remember snuff videos
Cold Septembers, the distances we covered
The fist fights on the beach, the bizzies round us up
Do it all again next week
An embryonic love
The first time that it scarred
Embarrass yourself for someone
Crying like a child
And the boy who kicked Tom's head in
Still bugs me now
That's the thing, it lingers
And claws you when you're down

—"Seventeen Going Under"

Sam Fender is an English singer-songwriter from North Shields, Tyne & Wear who began his career in 2013. He is known for his high tenor voice and singing in his native Geordie accent. After releasing an Extended Play in 2018, he found fame after releasing his debut album Hypersonic Missiles in 2019 and later Seventeen Going Under in 2022.

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Discography:

• Dead Boys EP (2018)
• Hypersonic Missiles (2019)
• Seventeen Going Under (2021)

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This a high time for hypersonic tropes:

• Animal Motifs: Magpies. An example is the cover of the Dead Boys EP, which is Sam holding the corpse of one.
• The Anti-Nihilist: In the Title Track of Hypersonic Missiles he mentions that although he doesn't see any "decent rhyme or reason" for existing, he still believes in what he's feeling.
  They say I'm a nihilist
  'Cause I can't see any decent rhyme or reason
  For the life of you and me
  But I believe in what I'm feeling
  And I'm firing for you
  This world is gonna end
  But 'til then, I'll give you everything I have
  I'll give you everything I have
• Big Brother Is Watching: "Play God" is about an "Orwellian overlord who controls society and generates mistreatment of the working class."
  No matter who you are or where you've been
  He is watching from the screen
  Keeps a keen eye on the in-between
  From the people to the queen
• Bittersweet 17: The Title Track of "Seventeen Going Under" is about Sam's life when he was 17, although it focuses more on the bitter than sweet.
• Cover Version: He has covered "Waiting For Love" and "Back To Black".
• Drugs Are Bad: "Spice", which is about someone who recently left school becoming addicted to the titular drug, resulting in him beating up his dad and getting sent to jail.
• Generational Trauma: In "The Dying Light", he mentions that he's scared to have kids, mainly due to not wanting them to inherit his depression.
• Generation Xerox: Sam sings about how his dad looks almost exactly like him in "Spit of You". He also describes himself as "a mirrored picture of my old man" in "Seventeen Going Under".
  'Cause one day that'll be your forehead I'm kissing
  And I'll still look exactly like you
• Lyrical Dissonance: His songs are usually about rather dark subjects yet often sound rollicking and upbeat.
  • "Aye" is a notable example, its peppy clapping beat contrasts Sam's angry lyrics about all the terrible things that have occured throughout history to today.
• Minimalistic Cover Art: The cover of "Hypersonic Missiles" is a picture of Sam with his name and album title above in the left and right corners respectively.
• Oop North: Comes from Newcastle, and has a very notable Georgie accent when singing.
• Protest Song: A fair amount of his songs are these, an example being "Saturday", which is about calling out the poor treatment of the working class.
• Shout-Out: "Will We Talk?" mentions Blue Monday "blarin' loudly on the speakers".
• Stepford Smiler:
  • Mentioned in "You're Not The Only One".
  Your composure is so brittle, and you hold yourself so well
  Inside, you cling to pieces of a broken carousel
  • Also mentioned in Seventeen Going Under.
  See I spent my teens enraged
  Spiralin' in silence
  And I armed myself with a grin
  'Cause I was always the fuckin' joker
• Take That!: He is not very fond of celebrities who are only famous for looking good and nothing else such as the Kardashians, as shown in "Mantra" and "Poundshop Kardashians". He also mentions "An orange faced baby at the wheel of the ship" in the latter.
• Vomit Discretion Shot: Sam mentions doing this in "Poundshop Kardashians" in response to the "beautiful people devoid of emotion".
  As I puke my guts up all over the decking
  'Cause the square reeks of plastic action man
  And Poundshop Kardashians
• Working Class Anthem: "Saturday", which is about Sam complaining about the poor treatment of the working class and how Saturday is the only day they get some sort of comfort.
  No power, working zero hour, making some cunt rich
  Who will never understand what it's like down here
• You Are Number 6: A dehumanising example is used in "Seventeen Going Under" to highlight his mother's financial troubles and how the Department for Work and Pensions didn't seem to care about her.
  I see my mother
  The DWP see a number

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I catch myself in the mirror
See a pathetic little boy
Who's come to get you down