"I'll be the bike, man: / the basket and the bell / the breath before I fell / Open skin up to the air / my mouth to taste the day..."
The pop psychedelic sunshine of "Bikeman" by Miserable chillers, the long running music project of NY-based composer and artist Miguel Gallego (with various co-conspirators), may shine on you in different ways depending on your age or depth of digging in your parents vinyl collection. The freewheeling tropicalia that to my ears encompass splinters of 60's Brit pop, 70's American jangle pop, 80's new wave, 90's indie and every earth shifting iterations of all of that onto more contemporary art shapes is all there. All this beauty absorbed by Gallego's storytelling, and translated with his beautiful vocal countenance that feels effortless in the way he translates a vulnerable openness to his lyrical poetry feels magical. Also kudoas to the entire production flourishes includine the wonderful blend of soaring guitar punches (love the guitar playing choices here) and mellotron-esque tones that feel so nostalgic.
I have said so many times before that I consider music to be sonic Rorschach tests and each person who listens to any particular song hears them differently depending on their relationship to music and how deep and wide their tastes reach. Listening to "Miserable chillers" and I can't help but feel psychic connections, artistic impressions to XTC (circa "Skylarking" album) and Spoon (circa "Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga") in terms of some of the instrumental cues and sounds. There is something I cannot exactly put my finger on but, in terms of the harmonic shapes, I feel steps backward that might even eventually lead to old school The Kinks or even 50's British dancehall culture whether Gallego knows it or not, ha. This is to say that unknown secret connections do exist when songwriters put pen to paper, at least, I think so.
Great track.
"Bikeman" is from Miserable chillers upcoming 6th album "Innocent Victims" dropping April 3rd (2026).
-Robb Donker Curtius
LYRICS
I'll be the bike, man:
the basket and the bell
the breath before I fell.
Open skin up to the air
my mouth to taste the day.
Turning and spinning around,
stopping and spinning around.
The dangling legs
moving the floor
pushing with my lungs.
I turn the blocks into the verse,
I always stop for cars.
Got my wheels on the line.
All the wheels are aligned
I've always been turning
round and round, I just found out.
Wake up of all my senses.
All of my senses.
A place is happening
closer still.
Turn my head round to what's coming.
Turning and spinning around
Stopping and spinning around
I'll be the bike-man
the basket and the bell,
the breath before I fell.
Open skin up to the air
my mouth to taste the day
Keep my wheels on the line..
all the wheels are aligned
The Chicken Wheel will take you to the AP Go Fund Me- and any amount is so appreciated!
THE FACTS AS WE KNOW THEM
https://soundcloud.com/miserable_chillers
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCz27c6IZxHzkcL7yEz29PwA
https://miserablechillers.bandcamp.com/
https://www.instagram.com/miserable_chillers/
https://www.facebook.com/miserablechillers
Long running music project of NY-based composer and artist Miguel Gallego and various collaborators
Miserable chillers, musical project of multi-instrumentalist Miguel Gallego, single "Bikeman", upcoming album "Innocent Victims", indie rock, alt pop, psychedelic pop, jangle pop, adult contemporary, New York,
Miserable chillers, musical project of multi-instrumentalist Miguel Gallego, single "Bikeman", upcoming album "Innocent Victims", indie rock, alt pop, psychedelic pop, jangle pop, adult contemporary, New York,
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