An Analysis of Terry McDermott’s “Lose This Feeling”

Introduction:

Scottish rocker Terry McDermott first caught my attention in 2012, when he auditioned for the third season of The Voice (US version) with a near perfect rendition of The Who’s “Baba O’Riley.” I’m not a dedicated TV watcher, but following his audition, I looked forward to each broadcast with great anticipation, wondering what song he would do next — and I was never disappointed. McDermott’s extensive range and clear, slightly thin voice is perfectly suited for 70s–80s style rock/pop rock, and his sensitive attention to the nuances of dynamics, timbre, and articulation make his performances both memorable and powerful. I was enamored, as were thousands of other viewers and fans, and the only disappointment I/we had was that he received “runner-up” on the show, when he totally deserved to win.

 Moving past that apparent injustice — not only has McDermott proved himself an excellent cover artist for 70s, 80s, & 90s material, he can hold his own in the “now,” too. The majority of the songs he performed during his season of The Voice topped the charts on iTunes, and his original releases following the show also charted high, the first and third reaching the #1 and #2 places respectively on the iTunes Rock and New Releases charts. In an interview regarding his first single after The Voice (“Pictures,” 2013), McDermott said that “the style that got me to America in the first place [was] contemporary rock and roll” (Lee, 2013) — and it is clear that his voice and performances continue to resonate with people, no matter what “era” the works originally hail from.

 This post will be a musical analysis of McDermott’s third single post-Voice, “Lose This Feeling” (2013, US-based international collaboration). Termed a “stunning, sweeping Britrock ballad” by Yahoo Entertainment, the single was very well received upon release, with a notable mention in Rolling Stone magazine. “Lose This Feeling” is the product of McDermott, and his band at the time, The Bonfires, working with Australian band Juke Kartel’s Todd Burman, who collaborated as cowriter; the song and its music video were produced in McDermott’s adopted hometown of New Orleans. I would describe this single as hybrid contemporary–retro rock, and it is a powerful song about loving someone who keeps leaving — basically, loving an emotional manipulator/abuser — but trying to move on, to get over that toxic but magnetic person: hence, he wants to “lose this feeling.” McDermott really knows the strengths of his voice, how to strain it until it almost breaks to create a sense of honest and raw emotion, and that skill comes to the fore in this angst-filled song.

 

Terry McDermott · Lose This Feeling (McDermott/Burman)

Form:

At first glance, this song appears to be made up of the familiar and simple elements found in most contemporary music: verse, chorus, and bridge. However, a closer look shows that it’s more complex and interesting than that, befitting the conflicting and complicated emotions of the song. It starts out with a 4-line verse, moves to the chorus (2 lines), then back to the verse — but after the first three lines of the second verse, it breaks away into an alternate ending that has an additional line, which acts as a pickup into the chorus (for a total of 5 lines in the second verse). After this pickup, the chorus that follows has 5–6 lines, depending on how you count them, revealing that the first time the chorus was sung, it was a short version; this longer version of the chorus is what is repeated for the remainder of the song. These irregularities add a lot of interest to the song, as well as supporting the message, as mentioned above.

Lyrics:

The lyrics, too, make use of irregularities and contrast to express feelings of anger/resentment, regret, and desperation. The first verse is structured in a simple ABAC rhyming scheme, and the short chorus contains rhyming affinities, which don’t end the lines, but support each other with “feeling” in the first line, and “screaming” in the second line. Following this, it gets more complex and unexpected. In the second verse, there are no clear rhymes or similar-sounding words, which gives it an honest feeling — like he’s reaching his wit’s end and is truly asking for help.

Besides the sounds and rhythms of the words, considering their meaning, the second verse appears to back-explain the first part of the song. The first verse and short chorus express pain and a desire for it to end, but a little vaguely — these first sections act as an introduction to the relationship problem he’s having, without telling us everything. Then, the full extent of the issue is revealed in the second verse: “I look at her smile and see your face.” It shows that he’s trying to move on, out of this toxic past relationship, but is having a hard time fully letting go; that’s a very difficult problem, and we can see why he wants to “lose this feeling.”

Additionally, while not written out in some versions of the lyrics, following the longer choruses, McDermott lets out an ornamental “Ahhhh” which slides from high to low. Besides being really technically well done (as far as pitch and timbre), it evokes a cry of pain and frustration. This is especially appropriate when leading into the bridge, which speaks of a “deep black anger inside of me,” and also leading into the outro, because he still hasn’t figured out how to get himself to stop caring about this person — the problem remains unresolved.

Melody & Rhythm:

The intensity of the melody combined with the driving beat and rhythms are part of what really make this song expressive and gripping, leading the listener through an emotional rollercoaster from start to finish. To begin with, the beat is established at a moderate pace, setting a baseline of intensity from which the opening eases into the song and its content. The first verse has a limited pitch range with mostly short intervals, and the lines have a lot of breathing space between them; each line is followed by a stretch of instrumental which could easily fit another line. The meaning of the words is also supported by the extended duration of the melody at the end of lines 1 and 3: the “away” is drawn out in “Every time you walk away,” emphasizing it as the emotional key to this phrase, and “yesterday” is extended slightly in “Feeling like it was yesterday,” which underscores that this is a repeating problem. Even with the slower start, we’re already getting a taste of interesting irregularity, too, with the compression of more words into the endings of lines 2 and 4 of the verse (requiring shorter, faster notes), which subtly increases the intensity.

Following the relatively low-key verse, we are swept into the soaring notes of the chorus, assisted by the ramping up of the rhythm carried by the electric guitar; this contrast immediately transports us into his emotional/mental state, and gives the chorus a lot of weight: “So tell me how to lose this feeling; I'm tired of screaming into space.” In these lines, “feeling” starts high and diminishes in steps, much like the feeling he wants to get rid of, and “space” also starts high, but then stretches down in a long slide, which really makes us feel the immensity of that space. Additionally, the up-down pitch modulation of almost every other word in the chorus gives us a sense of what he is going through in his struggles with this relationship — the high highs and the low lows, the tugging back-and-forth and emotional confusion. Highly effective.

Also, where it breaks pattern in the fourth line of the second verse, “I’m only looking for answers” deliberately speeds up to the fifth line: “Can anybody out there hear me?” This fifth line is really drawn out, like he’s actually calling for someone, mimicking the sound/feeling of someone desperately yelling into open space. Throughout the song, dynamic combinations of melody and rhythm like the ones I’ve highlighted create an atmosphere of frustration, regret, and angst.

Texture:

This song starts out with baseline homophonic texture, and it would be easy to mistake most of the song for homophonic: McDermott’s voice is on melody, and he is accompanied by synth piano, electric guitar, and drums, which follow the same rhythms and chords, sometimes with a sung harmony or reinforced melody, also in McDermott’s voice. However, a subtle and easily overlooked element during the latter part of the first verse turns this homophonic texture quickly polyphonic: the addition of a delicate piano line, which picks out notes in a secondary melody. This contrasts with the main melody carried by McDermott’s voice. During the choruses and bridge, sliding “Ahhh”s are also peppered in at unexpected places, providing counterpoint to the main melody — so, while the song often returns briefly to the original homophonic texture, by runtime, the majority is polyphonic, and this complexity supports the conflicting feelings of the song.

More noticeable than these subtle polyphonic accents throughout is the overt complication of texture at the end of the song. Following the last chorus, which has stripped-down accompaniment, a repeated “Lose this feeling” creates an energetic polyphonic texture while McDermott sings parts of the chorus layered over top. Leading up to last line, there are three or even four melodies going at the same time, creating a beautiful cacophony of angst. For the last word, however, the texture turns entirely monophonic, leaving “feeling” on its own — not only do the supporting multiplied voices leave off, but the instruments cut out too, leaving McDermott’s voice alone to ring out on this angsty last word. There is truly excellent craftsmanship here, making for an excellent climax.

Conclusion:

In sum, Terry McDermott’s single “Lose This Feeling” is a powerful mix of honest lyrics and an emotional — but perfectly controlled — performance. My initial reaction to his voice in 2012 is what convinced me that I really do enjoy 70s–80s style rock, not in a posery, wish-I-had-experienced-the-80s way, but genuinely, for its emotive and expressive qualities. While this song is excellent, if you would like to hear Terry McDermott’s voice at the absolute height of perfection, here is a recording of a cover he did while on The Voice: “I Want to Know What Love Is” by Foreigner (1984). It’s so beautiful I could listen to it on repeat for days.

 

 

Sources:

Lee, Ashley. “‘The Voice’ Runner-up Terry McDermott Releases New Single “Pictures” (Audio).” The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Feb. 2013, www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/music-news/voice-runner-up-terry-mcdermott-424869/. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

 “Music Video Premiere: Terry McDermott, ‘Lose This Feeling.’” Yahoo Entertainment, 5 Nov. 2013, www.yahoo.com/entertainment/blogs/tv-news/music-video-premiere-terry-mcdermott-lose-feeling-190057426.html. Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

Parker, Lyndsey. “Music Video Premiere: Terry McDermott, ‘Lose This Feeling,’” Rolling Stone, Nov. 4, 2013, https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/music-video-premiere-terry-mcdermott-lose-this-feeling-47911/.

“Terry McDermott - Lose This Feeling [Official Music Video],” YouTube, uploaded by DZR Images, 6 Nov. 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaoSRs0jDog.

“Terry McDermott (Singer).” Wikipedia, 10 Jan. 2024, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_McDermott_(singer). Accessed 26 Feb. 2024.

Audio sourced from: https://soundcloud.com/terrymcdermott/lose-this-feeling-mcdermott