With co-writer and producer Brett Emmons of The Glorious Sons at the helm, the final version of 'Your Dog Don't Like You' came to be at summer's end in 2020. After living as a voice note for nearly six months, the song finally found its legs almost a year later with the sound of barking in the distance and LA’s Griffith Observatory as a backdrop. Peter’s brother recently adopted a dog from Russia who seemingly had an axe to grind with the younger van Helvoort sibling. The opening line wrote itself, but quickly the song turned into a critique of where the brother’s relationship had gone since the downfall of their band, Teenage Kicks. The first verse of the song lived in a digital no man’s land throughout that summer, fall and winter until Peter found himself on a friend’s couch in Los Feliz with an unusual number of days off on tour. With a guitar by his side, the song began to come together, pushed forward by the brother’s own history with Los Angeles. Nearly seven years prior Teenage Kicks had come to West Hollywood to make what would become their debut LP, Spoils Of Youth. It seemed to Peter like this was the last time he could remember their relationship heading in the right direction. The lyrics of the song follow that narrative and take aim at both participants as victim and perpetrator. Although the subject of the song is the very personal sea change that Peter felt was happening, the bones of the song are incredibly universal. Inevitably people will change, but sometimes we allow ourselves to let that chasm grow so large that mending the rift feels impossible. Somehow no one is wrong or right at the same time. The elder van Helvoort sibling offers peace but leaves it up to his brother to take the initiative, almost certainly leaving the two at an impasse. Although the song’s lyrics lust for resolution, like life, it does not always happen that way. Your Dog Don’t Like You is a song meant to abate our pride and say the things we can’t always say aloud.

Your Dog Don't Like You

For singer/songwriter Peter van Helvoort, Always On The Edge ended a long drought. The song was the first in nearly a year, and helped to jumpstart the writing that would result in creating Jubilant Blue with co-conspirator Brett Emmons. “At the time, it felt more like a statement than it did a song. I was having a conversation with myself, trying to trick myself into being okay,” says van Helvoort. The honesty and matter-of-fact-ness of the lyrics is disarming when paired with the singer's raw and emotional vocal delivery. The narrator puts us inside their head as we become privy to a conversation with an unknown recipient. The verse gives us a look into the vulnerability of the author, ‘Hey, pick up the phone, it’s just me calling and I know you’re home’. When we reach the pre-chorus we hear a defiant, albeit uncertain retort, “Everything is fine, and I wanted you to know that I’ve got my shit together, and now you can go.” Until we reach the chorus where van Helvoort reveals his true standing, “Why am I always on the edge of something?” It’s a hugely naked statement that shows the singer at his most raw and exposed.

Always On The Edge

Lazarus is the story of a reluctant comeback. Written nearly seven years ago, the song aimed to act as a post-mortem after the break up of Peter van Helvoort’s band, Teenage Kicks. Although the song’s namesake is known for his famous rise from the dead, the track was penned as an antithesis to the parable. At the time, van Helvoort felt tired of the euphemisms people offered to push him forward towards another musical endeavor, and wanted to write a song that let him burn off the negativity he felt swirling around inside his head. Over the years many attempts have been made to try and record the song, but nothing stuck until the vision of producer Brett Emmons (The Glorious Sons) reimagined it. What was once a down-tempo acoustic song now pulls the listener forward through a military-esque march and whirring guitars into a powerful chorus that speaks a defiant, ‘Just ‘cause you keep calling me Lazarus, don’t mean I’ll rise again’. The verses run through speculation of culpability that culminates before the final chorus with the admission, ‘I guess I was a little brash, I heard you wanna kick my ass’. The song itself lived in this air of grievance until the very final part of vocal tracking when lead guitarist Keegan Powell suggested the song end with a contrary sentiment that truly defines the positivity and energy of the Jubilant Blue sessions, ‘Just ‘cause you think you are made to miss, don’t mean it’s gonna last’. Lazarus is the story of a comeback.

Lazarus

The first in a series of companion releases where we present the songs closer to their original form. We pair these with some songs that helped to inspire the process.

Vocals, Guitar: Peter van Helvoort
Guitar, Vocals: Keegan Powell
Additional Engineering: Matt Snell

Artwork by: Kaleigh Gorka & Kyle Fisher

Darling Congress

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