Never Trust a Happy Song

    One of the most underrated skills in entertainment is deception (when it's legal). You have a quality story to make the hero look like a villain and do it well. One of my favorite movies this year, Cruella, did just that. This deception is also done in songwriting. Many creative minds have matched up sad lyrics to happy beats and made some amazing art. I decided to spotlight a few of these songs.

    Some rules. The lyrics have to be totally dark, sad, or negative in some way. I had to toss out the song "Someday I'll Be Happy" by OCTAVIO the Dweeb for being a little hopeful, and it inspired this post. Also, the production or beat has to sound happy or exciting in some way. I rejected "Fitzpleasure" by alt-J for this reason, even though the song is about rape. Also, I like to focus on lesser-known songs, so "Pumped Up Kicks" is not on this list.

You Shaped Hole by Baby Queen

    Baby Queen is my favorite new artist of 2021. She writes melodramatic "teenager" pop music without making it seem too annoying. Here she is mourning her last breakup. She sings about using drugs, learning, and hookups with friends to get over her ex. In the end, there is a hole inside her shaped like him. You think she will stop being sad at the song's bridge, just to destroy those expectations and say she is still depressed. I talked about her a few months ago in another post, and now she has released her first mixtape, "The Yearbook."

Forest Whitaker by Bad Books

    Let's take that Baby Queen song and make it much more depressing, to the point where our frontman might kill himself. This time his ex has totally moved on and had a child with another man. This guy just wallows in his depression for months. He bought a talking bird that has only heard, "I'm lonely." These lyrics are contrasted with an upbeat, whistling indie song. 

Mack the Knife, made famous by Bobby Darin

    This is here because I wanted the oldest song to be deceptively happy. The farthest I could go back was 1928. This song was originally part of the German play The Threepenny Opera and became a jazz standard after being translated into English. In 1959, Bobby Darin covered the most famous version, a #1 hit, and won a Grammy. Lyrically, it is about a serial killer and his victims. Macheath, the killer in the song, kills people, takes their money, and dumps their bodies in the water.

Mr. Tillman by Father John Misty

        Before releasing his first album, Father John Misty, whose real name is Josh Tillman, had a mental breakdown where he lived in a hotel for two months. This song is in the point of a staff member at the hotel, who gets progressively more frustrated with Mr. Tillman as he starts to hallucinate and live through the same day over and over again. This song works well because of the laid-back indie-folk production with more whistling and Father John Misty's dry humor.

Electric Avenue by Eddy Grant

    In 1981, in the London neighborhood of Brixton, the African-Caribbean (or black) youth squared off against the Metropolitan Police in reaction to the racist, heavy-handed policing policies that had just been enacted in the neighborhood. This led to injuries to 296 cops and some citizens and the destruction of many vehicles and buildings. A couple of years later, an African-Caribbean Englishman wrote a song about this riot, his only hit in America. The new wave reggae beat is what makes this song memorable. I do not recall many reggae-inspired songs in the '80s, so it probably stood out from every other new wave act. Plus, it makes the riot sound like a party instead of a riot. Ironically, the street Electric Avenue did not see much of the violence.

99 Red Balloons by Nena

    It's the end of the world as we know it, and I feel like our governments are way too paranoid and started a nuclear war. The main character released 99 red balloons into the sky, and the military thought they were a threat, leading to war. The happy beat really shows how over-the-top and unnecessary most of the Cold War paranoia was. It almost makes fun of the government. Note: I was not alive during the Cold War. Maybe this paranoia made sense at the time, but 30 years later, it appears a little ridiculous.

Walk You Home (Night Vision Binoculars) by Passenger

    This is the cutest song about stalking ever. Passenger started out as a band before the frontman went solo with the name and had the hit song "Let Her Go." If you listen to the first verse, it sounds like a man with a crush on a girl. When you get to the second verse, you discover he is watching her while she is at home. The song kind of reminds me of the Police's "Every Breath You Take" due to content, but it is not on the list because it is an obvious choice. However... 

Can't Stand Losing You by the Police

    The Police are great at writing songs about dark subjects. Their discography has hit songs about prostitution, stalking, and pedophilia. Today's subject is suicide. The protagonist has just broken up with his girlfriend and feels like the only action is death. The lead singer, Sting, claims this song was meant to be a joke, showing how overly dramatic teenagers are about everything.

Sukiyaki (Ue o Muite Arukou) by Kyu Sakamoto

    This song was actually a #1 hit in the 1960s, and it is completely in Japanese. The song was written after the songwriter protested a treaty and discovered how meaningless his actions were. So he started crying. The singer looks up as he walks in this song, so other people will not see his tears. Backing the song is chipped '60s instrumentation and more whistling. This production is more crucial than you think. I have listened to some covers where the singer tries to make it sound serious and dramatic. They are much worse. This song gets its power from the contrast.

Semi-Charmed Life by Third Eye Blind

    I know I said there will be less obvious picks, but I couldn't forget this song. This song is about a crystal meth addiction the lead singer used to have. He talks about how he used to enjoy the drugs, but now it feels like a chore. You would notice this if the lyrics in the verses did not go by so quickly. This is a staple of alternative radio to this day because of how fun and catchy it is. 

Changing of the Seasons by Two Door Cinema Club

(Skip to 1:05. I hate music videos with things other than the song.)

    Finally, we reach Two Door Cinema Club, an Irish trio that cannot make a sad-sounding song. Everything in the catalog sounds happy, from the guitar lines and the synth tones. However, I would not want them to do anything different than that. The lyrics read like a breakup song. The lead singer does not care about his girlfriend anymore and has to end it.