TITLE: Toasted Skin
ARTIST: The Academy Is
ALBUM: Santi
So the season’s changed your face,
toasted skin turned darker shades
so as to better disguise your figure from the streetlights.
First floor window opened up
as you tip-toe on the back porch,
to meet the new girl on the corner,
Make your big plans for the summer.
No one’s gonna stay inside,
We’re singing,
(dododododo)
We are finally here,
and we’re not going nowhere without our friends.
And we can’t stop singing,
(dododododo)
Everybody’s making sure we stay up till sunset,
but we can’t forget.
If we ever find our way back,
this is all we’ve got.
S-so you borrow your best friend’s Jeep,
cracked her windshield and lost her keys.
Crashed the rich kids’ parties,
got kicked off of private beaches.
We introduced our friends to yours,
and we would laugh while we were ignored.
And from coast to coast, we’ll soon disperse,
but let’s live tonight like it’s our first.
We’ve got fast food, tattoos, late talks, longer walks,
checking for the music, for the fireworks and alcohol.
No one’s gonna stay inside,
we’re singing,
(dododododo)
We are finally here,
and we’re not going nowhere without our friends.
And we can’t stop singing,
Everybody’s making sure we stay up till sunset,
but we can’t forget.
If we ever find our way back,
this is all we’ve got.
I remember sleeping in with the shades drawn,
casting shadows on the bed
Tomorrow feels like it’s meant for the fight,
soaring beyond, twisting above.
And when I sleep, I still can feel it,
I can feel it, I can feel.
When I sleep, I still can feel it,
I can feel it, I can feel.
When I sleep, I still can feel it,
I can feel it, I can feel.
No one’s gonna stay inside,
we’re singing,
(dododododo)
Fuck yeah!
Finally here, and we’re not going nowhere without our friends.
And we can’t stop singing,
Everybody’s making sure we stay up ’till sunset,
but we can’t forget.
If we ever find our way back,
if we ever find our way back.
First floor window opened up,
as you tip-toe on the back porch.
(if we ever find our way back)
To meet the new girl on the corner,
make your big plans for the summer.
(if we ever find our way back)
If we ever find our way back,
this is all we’ve got.
When I have nothing better to do, I challenge myself to listen to the songs of one artist for twenty-four hours. It doesn’t matter if they only have two albums or even one, like when I challenged myself to tune in to Panic at the Disco for a whole day. What matters is that there’s only one group/solo artist feeding you ears in that twenty-four hours. It gets kind of sickening but it’s a whole lot of fun, too. You suddenly discover that you like this song you said you hated the first time you heard it or find that the lyrics to the song your currently listening to is abundant with poetic justice. It’s also a way to wonder what the lyricist had been thinking about while he had been writing that particular song. Also, it’s a way to connect with the musicians and the other geniuses behind it.
I’d already gone through with Radiohead (this being the first), then Oasis, Blur, Pulp, Panic at the Disco, and Aerosmith. No one is exempt from my this little experiment of mine. Yesterday, I listened to The Academy Is. And now, even without my ipod, I can still hear William Beckett’s beautifully unique and soulful voice in my head.
The challenge is over but I’m still playing their album Santi. The song “Toasted Skin” is stuck on my mind. I love it’s happy-go-lucky beat, the guitar riff at the start, the way William seemed to enjoy singing this particular song. I am listening to it right now. It is not a well-known song which explains why there is no video here, and at first, I didn’t even like it. but after the third playlist loop I found myself singing with William.
It certainly is a ‘summer’ song, the kind of song you’d sing with a group of friends while playing an acoustic guitar in the beach.
The Importance of Being Idle 