It’s International Women’s Day as if you didn’t know and Fallulah celebrates it with a modest little ditty, ‘Tits of Steel’.
It’s the third single from her forthcoming album ‘Celeste’ (release day May 2nd).
It’s about “the impossible demands you can feel met by when you live in a woman’s body” and is identified as a 2023 update on Dolly Parton’s ‘9 to 5’.
Now if I’m being picky I might argue that I never interpreted Dolly’s song as being particularly a feminist empowerment one even if that’s the way she intended it; the lyrics are a little vague and could apply to any of the 94 genders (I think that’s the latest count).
I’d prefer to compare Fallulah’s song perhaps to Emmy the Great’s peerless ‘A woman, a woman, a century of sleep’.
Anyway, she says, “I’ve been trying to write a song like ‘Tits of Steel’ for years. The song is inspired by my experiences as a woman and is about how impossible a task it is to be one in the right way. I’ve been ashamed, tried to bend myself and cut my corners to fit into boxes, to not take up too much, to avoid pissing people off, to be ‘skilled’ – but that’s the recipe for becoming deeply unhappy. It is impossible to fulfil all the conflicting requirements for women”.
Well yes, indeed, but it’s not all that different for men these days you know, as even ardent musical feminists like Anna Calvi admit to!
And we don’t get a Men’s Day…
Her lyrics are cute. The juxtaposition of contrasting opposites, dichotomies, oxymorons, whatever you want to call them, is brilliantly well put:
“You gotta have tits of steel and a heart of gold
Sex appeal and self control
Experience, but don’t get old
Be the boss, do what you’re told”
That’s clever writing, make no mistake. Even if “I wrote it to set us free” seems a tad ambitious.
Musically it barnstorms its way in with what sounds like tit-steel drums and those war drums stay the course all the way through, underpinning a sustained, chorally backed and catchy melody while the style is a throwback to 1980s Bananarama/The Belle Stars/Mel & Kim – you get the idea.
I think there’s every chance ‘Tits of Steel’ could get UK national airplay, except on the BBC where they’d have to issue a toned-down version, ‘Mammary glands of steel’ or whatever.
Now here’s a thing. I have access to a private recording of the song but it has to remain private as Fallulah will not stream her songs. They are available through her Patreon page (see link below), and the album is already available for pre-order on both CD and vinyl.
I have mixed feelings about that. She’s to be applauded for her courage in standing up to Big Stream but pragmatically she could be accused of ‘cutting off her nose to spite her face.’ I’m not the only writer who has a rule that any review must be accompanied by the single, EP, album or video.
But as fortune would have it she recorded a morning TV programme in Denmark today and that’s in the public domain having found its way onto YouTube pretty quickly. It’s a slightly pared down version compared to the recorded one believe it or not.
See here you have it. Enjoy. Then go buy it.
Fallulah plays SPOT and SmukFest this summer and is embarking on a big Denmark tour in the autumn.
I see she’s covered/remixed at least one Lydmor song as well. I can’t imagine what she’s doing for International Women’s Day but it will probably make the national news.
Find Fallulah on:
Patreon: www.patreon.com/fallulah
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fallulahmusic
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fallulah/
