I’ve always liked the title of this one.
There’s something about this track that feels edge-ish. Verge-like. Brink-esque. It’s a seven-minute slow approach to a cliff.
Having loved the song for years, it was only recently that I decided to look into the title. As it turns out, the Battle of Edgehill was the first clash in the English Civil War; the war that would essentially end the English monarch’s role as a nicely-dressed dictator, and turn the country towards its current parliamentary model. As far as turning points in history go, that’s pretty edge-ish, verge-like, and brink-esque.
Now, I can’t say for sure that this was Groove Armada’s reason for giving the track its name – it could be an homage to a small university in Lancashire, a tribute to a neighbourhood in Liverpool, or a reference to…well, the edge of any hill anywhere, really.
But I like the idea of a British duo (whose name has military undertones to begin with) honouring a battle that changed the course of their country’s history by naming one of their most beautiful songs after it.
So until they notify me otherwise, preferably by means of an autographed vinyl copy of the album and two backstage passes to their next Canadian tour date, that’s what I’ll continue to believe.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. It’s a slow build. Until 2.46 – the point at which most pop songs are wrapping up – it’s all plodding percussion, a Tangerine Dream sample, and various effects. You can tell it’s going somewhere, but eventually you start thinking there won’t be a payoff after all.
2. It’s a beautiful payoff. You know that inevitable moment in IMAX movies, when the camera flies over the edge of a mountain, and suddenly an enormous, immersive landscape spreads before you and your stomach does a quick cartwheel? Yeah, that, but in the form of a string arrangement. That arrangement was done by Daniel Hewson, who deserves at least as much credit as Groove Armada for this song’s power.
3. It’s a long comedown. Rather than fading out or driving the song into a wall, the strings drop out and we’re back to where we started; plodding percussion, Tangerine Dream, and a lingering feeling of tension. Did those strings even happen? Are we at the start of something big, or is it over? Is this the edge or the end?
Recommended listening activity:
Waiting for something to appear over the horizon.