I Really Want To Know About Your Love

Charlotte Hatherley “Love’s Young Dream” – There’s another version of this song on the b-side of “I Want You To Know,” and it’s called “Suspiria.” It has the same verses and melody, but the arrangement is far more mellow, and the chorus is completely different, enough to justify the alternative title. The subject matter is identical in each song — Charlotte is interrogating the female half of an estranged couple (her mom?), trying to suss out details of the time when they were young and in love since she only has a familiarity with the bitter aftermath — but whereas the music of “Suspiria” captures the wistfulness of the outsider looking in, “Love’s Young Dream” evokes the feeling of being trapped between two people who refuse to see eye to eye. The verses are grey and turbulent, and the chorus splits into a strange, sideways harmony that nearly trips over a low, mumbling male vocal on its way to a gorgeous, melancholy climax. There’s a palpable sense of disappointment and frustration in “Love’s Young Dream,” and a sense that the singer is very afraid that she will eventually find herself in the same scenario. (Click here to buy it from Charlotte Hatherley’s official site.)

Elsewhere: My new Hit Refresh column is up on the ASAP site with mp3s from Nick Drake, Elliott Smith, and the Exploding Hearts.