Kenton Hall & The Necessary Measures take stock on their latest single ‘The Sun Shone Down’.
Kenton Hall & The Necessary Measures – The Sun Shone Down
Kenton Hall describes his music as “pop songs for people under fire”. There was something about that phrase that ensnared me immediately; for, aren’t we all under fire, in one way or another? We all have our respective crosses to bear – therefore, this is, in fact, music for all.
Except, of course, it isn’t at all. It’s, as Richard Ashcroft once said, a song for the lovers. A song about reconciliation, reminiscing and reconnection, it takes a longing look backwards whilst also feeling distinctly like it is rooted in the present.
Lyrically, The Shun Shone Down touches on personal growth in the face of potential emotional catastrophe (“So you’ve fallen in love / good, that’s what you deserve”) and maturity (“that’s not why I’m here / I’ve no axes to grind, I just wanted to hit rewind”). The ability to recall and recollect without raking over old coals and over-analysing is, really, an essential life skill – one it sounds like Keaton has learned, in time. The words here paint a vivid picture, clear as day, which is no surprise considering their author is also an actor, author and director. How’s that for pedigree? Musically, it’s a life-affirming, feel-good ballad, dominated by prominent piano lines and richly – almost sumptuously – produced.
Kenton Hall is Canadian, but, given that, on this song at least, he is operating in a similar sphere to the aforementioned Mr. Ashcroft as well as classic British acts like Cast, Nick Lowe and Noel Gallagher, and with the strings adding a distinct late Beatles-vibe to proceedings (shout out Marion Fleetwood) – you get the impression he might be more at home on the rainy streets of Manchester or Liverpool than the snowy bluffs of Banff. As The Sun Shone Down concludes, it almost reminds us of the Rolling Stones classic You Can’t Always Get What You Want – we think it must be down to the choir.
In the words of the artist, this pre-album single and album opening track is “a Beatle-esque anthem about a platonic meeting with an old flame”. It sounds like Kenton may well have been the one that got away.
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Words by Greg Hancock
