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Polash From The Garden

by Polash Larsen

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1.
Isolation (Tonight) 03:01
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ISOLATION (TONIGHT) Words and music by Polash Larsen V Chords F Fmaj7 Gm Bb C x 3 F Bb F C V1 After all these weeks in lockdown A routine still won’t be found But I know there’s someone I can count on… Tonight… V2 I’ve cleared my busy schedule It wasn’t exactly hard Got my phone charged and ready for your call Tonight… CH Bb F/A Tonight I’m looking for that sparkle in C your eyes. Bb F/A C Tonight I’m hungry for your smile. Bb F/A A7 Tonight we’ll tell each other beautiful lies F Bb F C Tonight… V3 I’ll compliment your dress. Will you notice I shaved? How I long for your tender caress Tonight… BR Dm Bb F Am If only we’d been together at the start Dm Bb F Gm Dumb luck and circumstance is why we’re apart Dm Bb F A7 Any awkward silence during our heart to heart Bb F We’ll blame the net. Bb F Let’s not forget. Bb F There’s a long way yet. Gm C Of loneliness and isolation. V4 So I’ll tilt my beer to the camera You’ll wave your chardonnay We’ll pretend it’s just like being together Tonight… CH Tonight I’m looking for a sparkle in your eyes. Tonight I’m hungry for your smile. Tonight we’ll tell each other beautiful lies Tonight… Outro F Bb F Bb F Bb Bbm F
2.
Melbourne Rain 04:18
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MELBOURNE RAIN Riff x 2 (riff is over Gm7 to Fmaj7) Gm7 f e d\c a g a (g hammer on a) Gm7 f e d\c a g a f/g c\bflat VERSE 1 Gm7 Fmaj7 Gm7 Fmaj7 Melbourne rain has a way of beating you down. Such a pain as you splash your feet on the ground. Sure other places might be wetter than this But the Melbourne rain is like a junkie’s kiss. Riff x 2 VERSE 2 Soft and gentle. Sometimes extreme. Is it a nightmare or a feverish dream? So many angles trying to find her way in. A moment of weakness and I’m soaked through to my skin. PRE-CHORUS c a c Eb C Are you gunna get your things together? c a c Eb C Get moving don’t worry about the weather. c a c Eb F G Pack up your bags and you better go CHORUS G Am F F/G Bb Vanuatu G Am F F/G Bb Raratonga G Am F F/G Bb Koh Samui G Am F F/G Bb Nothing like a dopamine sunrise G Am Dm C Riff x 2 VERSE 3 The Melbourne rain has her way of keeping me around Try as I might there’s just no skipping out of town. Glossy brochures tempt me with blues skies Glossy people smiling glassy smiles. PRE-CHORUS CHORUS x 3 – to end
3.
Donna and Ali 04:43
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DONNA AND ALI (UP ON SYDNEY RD) INTRO D D D d c b a b VERSE 1 G C Donna works in a bridal shop G D She’s just up on Sydney Road On her feet all day she don’t stop Tulle and taffeta by the truckload Bossy bridesmaids and their pushy brides Talking down as if she’s dumb Donna takes them all in her stride She knows one day her prince will come. CHORUS Gmaj7 Am Does she know she’s one of the lucky ones? We all see she’s got a good heart. And if she’s left her run just a little late Gmaj7 Am Gmaj7 G G G C D Maybe it’s still not too late –not too late - not too late to start? VERSE 2 Ali’s nearby on Albert Street Workshop passed down from his dad. All day long he’s on his feet. Too much to do – he doesn’t believe in being sad. Keeping taxis on the road Grease under his fingernails Tiba’s kebab for lunch reload Past Donna’s shop he often strays. CHORUS Gmaj7 Am Does he know she’s one of the lucky ones? Can he see she’s got a good heart? And if he’s left his run just a little late Gmaj7 Am Gmaj7 G G G C D Maybe it’s still not too late –not too late - not too late to start? SOLO over VERSE Chords as follows G C G D G C G D D D d c b a VERSE 3 Friday night she’s got to close the store Donna ushers her last customer outside When she struggles with her roller door Ali - happens to pass her by “Excuse me, can you help me with this chore?” Ali sees a pair of kind smiling eyes. Without a word he pulls it to the floor Donna looks at him and si-gh-s CHORUS x 2 Gmaj7 Am Do they know they’re the lucky ones? Can they see they’ve got good hearts? And if they’ve left their run just a little late Gmaj7 Am Gmaj7 G G G C D Maybe it’s still not too late –not too late - not too late to start? Last time end on G major
4.
Black Dog Blue 03:58
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BLACK DOG BLUES Verse chord progression a c D A G turn around on C C#maj7 D7 a c D A G turn around on Em Eb7 Dmaj7 Fmaj7 Cm7+9 Bm7+9 Am7+9 riff Chorus chord progression Em7 A x 2 Em7 A Bm G D x 2 G A Bm B D Verse 1 He’s been thinking While he’s been drinking Drinking all by himself Despite all this thinking He’s not linking The bottle to his bad health But he’s trying to kick it all by himself. Verse 2 This poor slob Has a black dog The dog’s his only friend She’ll woof whine and sob She’s got the job Of hounding him to the end. But he’s trying to kick it all by himself. Chorus Em A Don’t leave him alone. Em A Don’t send him home. Em Someone’s got to A Bm G D Throw this dog a bone and then A Bm G D He’ll see he’s not alone and then A G Bm B He’ll see he’s got a better friend D Than the dog. SOLO over verse x 1 Verse 3 But the black dog Like a heavy log Drags him back again Like a hopping frog A man’s gotta jog Over and around his old friend. And he’s dying to kick it all by himself. Verse 4 There’s no dialogue In a dog free epilogue No talking to the pain You just gotta wait For the state The state of you to change And I’m crying to kick it all by myself. Chorus x 2 and finish.
5.
The Sky Captain's Bride 02:02
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Sky Captain’s Bride Intro Riff: A G#/E F#m A D Bm A riff X 2 Verse 1 A D Storm clouds boiling on the starboard side. A E Horizon cut by lightning knives. Pre-Chorus A E Sky captain smiles at his lovely bride A D He’ll do his best to save their lives. Chorus A G#/E F#m A D Bm A riff He ties her to the wheel so she’ll be alright. Verse 2 A D The boiler’s losing steam and the pressure dives. A E Airship shudders before the storm’s hungry tide. Pre-Chorus A E Sky captain smiles at his lovely bride A D Tries not to see the tear she hides Chorus A G#/E F#m A D Bm A riff He ties her to the wheel so she’ll be alright. X 2 Bridge F#m E The storm runs long and deep. F#m E And the bride falls to a troubled sleep F#m E She dreams of the sky gods feeding. F#m Bm C#m D When she awakes she sees her husband bleeding. Verse 3 A D The captain drags forth the piece of bloodied steel A E With this he cuts his wife from the wheel. Pre-Chorus A E Take the wheel fly on through the night. A D Keep the moon on the left while winds blow light. A G#/E F#m A D Bm A I tied you to the wheel so you’d be alright, tell ‘em A G#/E F#m A D Bm A I tied you to the wheel so you’d be alright. A G#/E F#m A D Bm A I tied you to the wheel so you’d be alright. Finale A G G Bm A And the Captain smiled… At his lovely bride.
6.
Mr Tonight 03:52
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Mister Tonight Intro: Dm Cm Bb Eb F Verse 1 Bb F Eb Two days since she took a slide to the right Bb Another lonely night Can you count the ways she’s been looking for Mr Right Not Mr Tonight. Chorus Cm Bb Two arms to hold her Two hearts to care One roof above them One bed to share Cm Dm And if she’s anything like she seems Eb F They’ll be making love behind the scenes Bb Mr Tonight Eb F Missed you tonight Bb Mr Tonight Verse 2 He’s standing at the bar. Afraid to go far in case he Misses his chance Scarred from the game (he’s not the same) Needing Old-fashioned romance. Chorus Bridge Bb Eb Stand a little closer now. Dance a little slower now. Hot breath on my neck Wh-wh-wh wait a sec. Emotional literacy Avoids the wrong kind of intimacy Maybe it’s all the same Baby we can play the game without shame Cm Dm And it it’s anything like it seems Eb F We’ll be making love behind the scenes. Missed you tonight… Solo over verse pattern. Bridge and end.

about

‘Polash From The Garden’ is the forthcoming solo EP from The Offtopics songwriter & frontman and former Grenadines guitarist Polash Larsen. The EP is an introspective, reflective and occasionally whimsical offering from an artist more known for his on-stage antics and high energy performance persona.

“You know, 2020 was shaping up to be a really good year. A lot of great things were going to happen but I suppose HG Wells’ Martians felt the same way about 1897...”

Recording during the lockdown created unexpected opportunities to explore songs that couldn’t find their place in a band context. “It would have been easy to become negative, focusing on what we couldn’t do but we (Polash and sound designer and Tim Minchin engineer Darius Kedros) chose to lean into the limitations. If I couldn't play it on guitar myself then we couldn’t bring someone else into the room to do it. There was no hiring fancy equipment. One of the tracks features a drum that Darius found in hard rubbish! I still try to focus on story when I write a song and the stripped back production puts the events and characters front and centre.”

‘Polash From The Garden’ brings together a mixed line up of songs known to Offtopics audiences but given the acoustic singer-songwriter treatment, an odd pair of orphan songs finding their home for the first time and a brand new song that responds to the enforced separation of quarantines, lockdowns and the new normal. The EP makes a virtue of “making do” and is inspired by the acoustic bootlegs of Bobby Womack and Rick Rubin’s American Recordings with Johnny Cash. The EP title is a play on words referring to both the recording taking place at Kedros’ Garden Studio and the Bengali-Australian Polash being named for the flower from the Flame of The Forest tree. Illustrator Rebecca Stewart’s cover art was inspired by a New Delhi mobile Covid testing station depicting the artist as “the sort of Hindu god who keeps an arm free to pat dogs”.

Artist Bio:

Polash Larsen is a Bengali-Australian songwriter, singer and guitarist who works primarily in roots genres such as Soul, Funk, Blues, Reggae and Rocksteady. Between 2003 and 2012 he was a member of Indigenous rock band The Grenadines. During this period, the group was nominated for a Deadly Award, he wrote songs, sang and played guitar as well as contributing to management of the band. In 2014 he founded comedy funk party band The Offtopics and has released two EPs and three singles with future releases planned for the band. He has collaborated and performed with artists such as Mutti Mutti soul singer Kutcha Edwards, The Short Order Schefs (for a tribute to the late Toots Hibbert) and Namibian-Australian Hip Hop artist One Sixth. In 2020 he teamed up with theatrical sound designer, 90’s British trip-hop survivor and local drinking buddy Darius Kedros to record a solo EP “Polash From The Garden”. The EP was recorded under strict lockdown conditions making a virtue of the restrictions brought about by the Victorian Covid response.

In various parallel lives Polash has been a dramaturg, taught scriptwriting and arts management and is a premiership winning hockey coach.

He lives in Brunswick.

credits

released January 21, 2021

Guitars and Vocals: Polash Larsen
Engineer, Mixing and Mastering: Darius Kedros
Cover Art: Rebecca Stewart

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The Offtopics Melbourne, Australia

From Bourbon Street in New Orleans to Memphis and Jamaica via the bars of Brunswick, The Offtopics deliver infectious songs that will make you tap your feet and bring a smile to your face. Fronted by funk dynamo Polash Larsen, these are some of Melbourne’s most talented musicians working their basses off to show you a good time. ... more

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