If aliens were to judge human relationships based on our music, they would likely conclude that we have two types of romantic entanglements: ones that are brand new and blissfully happy, and ones that are over and ended in heartbreak.
Real relationships often have moments of these two phases, but few songs are written about the mundane moments; the routines that are the foundation of a couple’s strength. Or the routines that push a couple apart. The small victories that make a couple unbeatable. The small resentments that make a relationship untenable.
Thankfully, British duo Flyte can provide our extraterrestrial overlords with a bit of nuance, thanks to songs like “Tough Love” in which a couple questions its will to continue, simultaneously recognizing their desperate love for each other and their tendency to mistreat each other.
What makes this a beautiful song:
1. Sung from the perspectives of both people involved in the relationship, the two singers acknowledge their own faults with lines like “How are you still breathing / with my hands all over your heart?”
2. As guest vocalist Laura Marling’s verse transitions to the pre-chorus, her voice pans from its original space in the mix over to the left, making room for the other vocalist.
3. While the verse is in 4/4 time, the chorus is in 6/4. Not a huge difference, but enough to be unpredictable and slightly on-edge like a difficult conversation.
Recommended listening activity:
Imagining whether you would be able to explain your relationship to a younger version of yourself. (Or maybe an alien.)