Yes, “Don’t” was recorded before September ’22, but regarding my thoughts on Her Majesty, let’s just say that if that I were British and awarded a knighthood, I would decline...and that song also belongs between “Mean Mr. Mustard” and “Polythene Pam,” NOT after “The End.”
Somehow I’ve never gotten around to Graceland yet. But the vocals I did on “Blue Ink” came about because I loved Roy Wood’s Elvis impression on “I Dun Lotsa Cryin’ Over You” and wanted do my own. For “Sticks and Stones” I was going for a Left Banke feel, like on the more intense “Let Go of You” which also helps explain that bridge. “Be There” is kind of an attempt to do Badfinger/Pete Ham, the vocal likely would have been better an octave lower but the way I did it was an attempt to be more vulnerable. Embarrassingly, that "Feel the Pain" vocal is me trying to do Lemmy (was exposed to Motörhead through Ween), glad you liked it though. And I count inversions as the same chord...
Also, glad I can post to this community, who can tell which specific songs I had in mind while recording, like with Dylan and the Buggles. That made me laugh. And “Lazing...” is one of my favorites, though that bridge in "The Door" is a bit closer to “Tin Soldier Man.” Also I agree on The Age of Plastic, to me a solid 14 and might be even higher if “I Love You (Miss Robot)” were replaced with “Technopop” with whatever sequencing/lyrical decisions would make that resulting album flow best.
Lastly, I recorded “Synth-Pop Hero” in late 2022 before hearing any Sparks (did the deep dive this past year which I obviously enjoyed given how their influence shows up on a few tracks on Self-Titled Debut) and went for the most climactic keyboard sound I could in order to parody the genre, as much as I respect the Buggles. So I felt validated when I got around to Pulling Rabbits Out of a Hat, only to read John point out the “BIG DRAMATIC” keyboard sound on the title track, which is very similar if not identical to the keyboard sound I used over the chorus.
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