The Indie Anthology 39: essential songs

What can I say? This is simply one of THE SONGS, sooner or later it was going to be featured in the Anthology, and after hearing a nice live version on Saturday (at the strangest party/gig I ever been....) this was a very nice occasion... An indiepop myth, Sarah 12. One of the greatest pop songs ever written.

Song: Emma's House
Artist: The Field Mice
Year: 1988

13 seconds and you already know you are listening to a very special tune. 45 seconds, when the guitars burn, to be absolutely taken away. Hear it a zillion times, and still feel disarmed by the magic of the music and the mystery of lyrics. In my opinion writer Alistair Fitchett is not making Bobby Wratten sing just about a girl that moved away. On an unmatched combination of fragility and intensity, the song's house is not only a physical place, but life's account of missed chances. The lines "You have nothing to live up to / You have nothing to live down" are devastating. The Field Mice weren't mourning about an impossible love, but putting words & feelings to the instant when you admit your defeat. While the band does so, they are rippling along your spin. Now tell me pop can't take you places. Deep inside yourself.