Ryan McMey refers to himself as an emotional autobiographer rather than a story teller when it comes to putting pen to paper to write a song.
Latest single “On The Home Phone” is a shining example of the brand that Ryan has created as a result.
Written in about an hour, in the hazy heat of the first lockdown in 2020, this track, once again, includes hard hitting observations of life using poetic lyrics that make their point. This has become a recognisable trait of Ryan’s, literally sharing his life and tights in catchy melodies and clever word play.
Gentle meandering guitar, and delicate vocals kick off the track almost simultaneously, and together they paint a watercolour of melancholy memories surrounding a drunken argument that could’ve ended a relationship.
We’ve all been there, right? If not with a relationship, then most definitely with a friendship. We all feel the pain when are messages are left unread, or, worse still, read and ignored. The desperation we feel when we are trying to get hold of them to explain, and resolve things makes us resort to the unheard of, hence, “I even called you on the home phone”.
You can feel the heartache mixed with regret and fainted with guilt embedded in to the tone that Ryan sings in, and the wallowing guitar strumming adds to the atmosphere being evoked. A minute and a half in, the accompanying music ramps up to drive home the desperation behind the lyrics. Vocals, words and music marry perfectly in union to create an almost blissful ode to breaking up/wanting someone back.
Musically, it hits the eardrums with raw emotion, but it’s Ryan’s soft voice delivering bittersweet musings, that often haunted hik until 2am, that really hit the “feels”. I, too, am guilty of overthinking situations and replaying conversations in my head, to the point I can’t sleep. Through blogs, I put those thoughts into poetic ramblings . However, Ryan is brave enough to share the thoughts that gnaw away at his brain, letting us in on the most beautiful way of presenting them to the world.
Those are the songs that hit hard.
The ones we relate to most. On The Home Phone is out now.
By: Kate Ford