POP SONG REVIEW: "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gotye vs "We Are Young" by FUN

Todd compares "We Are Young" by FUN to "Somebody That I Used to Know" by Gotye
Support Todd on KZbin: / toddintheshadows

[@cameronlingo2969]

My dad really enjoyed "Somebody That I Used to Know" so I bought him the album. Upon listening, he concluded "Somebody That I Used to Know" was actually one of the weakest tracks on the album.

[@V4Now]

So the single did its job.👍🏾

[@qazmko22]

Man... the rest of the album must be REALLY good then! I'll have to check it out.

[@f.f5771]

Alright that’s it you’ve convinced me I’ll give my review in an hour

[@f.f5771]

Sorry for the late review, had shit to do. Pretty good waste of 41 minutes, liked the vibe. Really liked save me, and easy way out. Overall the track that I’m probably gonna put on a lot of my playlists that I never knew of before is smoke and mirrors. Idk something about it just kinda did it for me yknow? Anyways Making Mirrors is a good 7/10 liked the and genuinely surprised me about all the gems I found on it. Didn’t even know Gotye had another album post the success of STIYTK. I might check that out next

[@f.f5771]

Sorry for the late review, had shit to do. Pretty good waste of 41 minutes, liked the vibe. Really liked save me, and easy way out. Overall the track that I’m probably gonna put on a lot of my playlists that I never knew of before is smoke and mirrors. Idk something about it just kinda did it for me yknow? Anyways Making Mirrors is a good 7/10 liked the and genuinely surprised me about all the gems I found on it. Didn’t even know Gotye had another album post the success of STIYTK. I might check that out next

[@vard000]

Todd predicting the Indie-ing of pop music is really incredible to hear in 2019.

[@chadlong1109]

Bilbo Baggins Yeah, the indie-ification of pop music lasted like 18 months. It’s been trap bullshit and mumble rap for like 5 years now.

[@taylorfrench6722]

It's really strange that Todd can predict overall trends (the end of club music, indie music, Taylor Swift's career, even talking about trap in 2014 before it got super big), but he is also notorious at making wrong predictions.

[@taylorfrench6722]

@@chadlong1109 Indie Rock as a genre is not nearly as popular as it was in 2012, but the music charts now are generally less dominated by the music industry and are more determined by what the public wants to listen to. The music industry a decade ago would have been far less accepting of artists like XXXTentacion and 6ix9ine because of the awful things they did, or Billie Eilish and even Post Malone because of how weird their music is. Even Old Town Road wouldn't have become popular then.

[@jonavandenbrand2011]

Jack Antonoff from fun is now a quite influential producer, so he wasn't all wrong

[@fartemis]

more like the popping of indie music lmao

[@wheals]

"I hope these guys don't turn out to be flashes in the pan" Oops...

[@nate567987]

a one hitter and a 2 hitter sad

[@YouCanCallMeXoe]

fucking... Toddstradamus...

[@reallynotyourbusiness1659]

Gotya views here on YT Would suggest no.... Radio yes.... Making more money off YT

[@RegebroRepairs]

Gotye has done nothing after Making Mirrors, apparently he is now entirely busy re releasing the works of an obscure french electronic music pioneer... Making Mirrors is awesome, btw. He should have more hits.

[@krzie18]

Well Jack evidently wasn't

[@callalily0004]

I totally forgot that both of these songs were on glee. God glee is a relic of the past now

[@prometheustv6558]

Calla Bassett Bigg At least it gave us Grant Gustin.

[@beautifulmidnight]

Thank fuck.

[@artbk]

Yeah, and "our MTv" now is Tik fucking Tok, of all things...

[@MarianelaAyelenlourdesSajama]

even more now in 2024...

[@rileytrawick18]

The story of "We Are Young" gets a lot weirder when you find out it started out as a Kanye song of all things. No, I'm not kidding. The instrumental was made by Jeff Bhasker for Kanye and Jay-Z's collab album Watch the Throne and was apparently made into a finished song, but was cut from the final album at the last minute for unknown reasons.

[@taylorfrench6722]

Funnily enough, the lyrics would've made a bit more sense sung by Kanye.

[@fourhairstrands8265]

We have so many unreleased Kanye songs, why havent we gotten this one yet???

[@user-nd7ts7bp6g]

The title makes it seem like Todd hates Gotye and has made 3 videos on him (For future reference, this video used to be called “fun vs gotye 3”)

[@judeterry8579]

@@amazingusername2174 10/10 comment honestly

[@ryanb6503]

now it's just a title we used to know when we were younger

[@1MrBryn]

Watching this in 2022 and boy howdy has nothing in pop culture aged worse than Glee.

[@names_are_useless]

Glee sucked when it was new (and I'm glad I was on the right side of history). Shows like Community were right to laugh at it back in 2011.

[@MsAngrybutterfly]

I enjoyed Glee for about 3 episodes right at the height of it's popularity and quickly lost interest like everyone else, but breaking out into song with a random stranger at the farmer's market was fun for those 3 weeks.

[@linkinboss2]

I mean, the JW cameo is right there 😬

[@Unownshipper]

@@linkinboss2 You beat me to the punch. But redirecting away from that landmine and returning to Glee, I blame Ryan Murphy and his short attention span. His tactic is to build up a series for one season (maybe two), let it get popular, and then let it spin off the rails by passing it off to someone else so he can pursue his newest passion project.

[@A_Dopamine_Molecule]

The Gotye song would've made a good One Hit Wonderland episode... He had a ridiculously popular hit but most people don't even remember him anymore.

[@TheFuri0uswc]

That's because je didn't make any more music after that

[@dopo666]

@@TheFuri0uswc He kinda did. he plays drums in another band that the name escapes me. But Gotye is the side project for him.

[@tegantalks9612]

Now he’s just somebody that we used to know…

[@blue_shiner]

@@dopo666 That would be 'The Basics' - one of my all time favorites!

[@666froggy]

I think now he collects old proto-synthesizers and does archival work for preserving early electronic music

[@tegantalks9612]

Also it’s funny how Todd picks on Carly Rae in this considering he now basically bags on all of us on his year end lists for not listening to her enough.

[@eliasmg9144]

Even funnier considering no one saw e•mo•tion coming back in the day

[@anonymousinkproductions8624]

16:10 Todd actually got a prediction right. People want more depth in music and got it since about 2016. In fact, Todd complains about the heaviness of music later on ToddInTheShadows. Good job, Todd

[@rileyk5228]

…you feel music got deeper since then???

[@anonymousinkproductions8624]

@@rileyk5228 I mean, when songs songs about drug addiction and suicide were top ten hits in the late 2010s and definitely weren’t subtext, I’d say so. Whether or not they’re good at it is a different story

[@sketchycat6223]

@@rileyk5228we went from pop songs about clubbing, partying, drinking, & promiscuity topping the charts, to jaded hiphop or indie music about the exact opposite. Sure there were still- and always will be- upbeat songs on the charts, but there’s definitely been this sort of attempt at deeper emotional meanings in songs in recent years. I don’t think Logic’s 1-800 song, where the title is literally the suicide hell hotline, would have ever charted 10+ years ago.

[@familyguyfreemoviedownload8314]

more than a decade later, somebody that i used to know still throws me. it’s the only indie-ish hit i can remember in my time as a music listener that didn’t feel like it shaved off any of its weird edges for commercial accessibility. it’s a shame that he didn’t have any more success but it makes sense. who was the big winner from the brief 2012 indie boom? imagine dragons, which makes sense because they’re the ones who make the most agonizingly normal music ever made. gotye couldn’t make imagine dragons-style mush if you put a gun to his head and ordered him to do it

[@MoonShadowWolfe]

Todd was kinda right, he just jumped the gun; these bands were the unsuccessful early adopters of what would be popular a few more years down the line. I don't think that often happens with two at once.

[@timothy4097]

What were they adopters of?

[@micahwright5901]

Gotye just dipped after dropping two amazing albums and I respect the heck out of that. He’s the Calvin Coolidge of music. Kick butt and then decide to quit on your own terms.

[@chesspiece4257]

@@timothy4097pop music is full of indie rock and more depressing

[@phastinemoon]

I’ve always had the feeling that “We are young” is the feeling of the last party after graduation. High school graduation, specifically. This is the last time you are hanging out with your high school friends and gf/bf and it also probably the last chance you’ll have to make up after a fight, and when it’ll possibly matter, but you’re also supposed to be pumped up because you’re all about to go out into the world and become an adult.

[@fl4re163]

Gotye's name is actually a really interesting story. He's born Belgian, and they speak 3 official languages there (mostly cause of the location). Dutch, French and German. his Birth name is Wouter, which is essentially the dutch version of the name Gauthier. That "au" sound and the "ier" sounds are super hard to pronounce in English, and after moving to Australia, his mom would struggle to speak the name in English. so Go-tse-yay became more like GOT-ee-aa and the name is kind of making fun of bad french speakers.

[@Zabe_B]

so todd was right, it really isn't a word! that's funny

[@TheDastard]

I'd rather have people mispronouncing my name as Go-Tee-Yay instead of Goat-See-Yay. Deep internet lore knowledge required to get that joke.

[@Jonbutter]

i'm still annoyed at fun. for underutilizing Janelle Monáe's talents in what could possibly be the most boring bridge to a song i've ever heard. it's like if you hired Gordon Ramsey but all you had him do was spread butter on toast.

[@heymistercarter.]

And the weird thing is: of the four artists listed in these songs, she's the one who went on to have the biggest and most successful career since. She's been in movies, released quite a few successful albums in the meantime, she's doing great.

[@killapositionz2]

@@heymistercarter. Nate Ruess just quit he could probably still be a very successful singer. Jack Antonoff started Bleachers and just produced Taylor Swift's album so he's doing pretty well too.

[@idrk3707]

SERIOUSLY. she could've added so much more you can barely tell she's on the song

[@EmyrDerfel]

Super Furry Animals had Paul McCartney on a song, his instrument being "eating celery".

[@MattMcIrvin]

Watching this 7 years later is very strange. What the structure of "Somebody That I Used to Know" reminded me of was "Don't You Want Me" by the Human League. The woman comes in in the second verse and reveals that the guy's whining is a bunch of bullshit.

[@jwharton4575]

That’s quite a good point

[@messinalyle4030]

For that matter, I think the song by "Fun" is also about an abusive asshole, only without the woman's point of view.

[@agonzalez7095]

2012 todd shocked glee would become the successor to MTV yet here we are with an app where people put 5 seconds of a song over random video's doing what MTV and glee did but in 2022

[@Rollermonkey1]

The instant I heard the Gotye song, I knew it would be big, but not because of the instrumentation. It's the lyrics. The "story" is pretty universal.

[@tara5742]

I decided to check out Todd’s playlists and now I have to binge all these. Holy crap this channel is God tier

[@zozzy4630]

Todd: These guys better not be flashes-in-the-pan... Gotye: And now I'm just somebody that you used to know

[@tommyinthewell]

Fun broke up and Gotye went on hiatus, while setting up a label to preserve the work of Jean-Jacques Perrey. Still flashes in the pan, but at least this time not because their next albums flopped. That said, Gotye is apparently releasing a new album soon.

[@zozzy4630]

@@tommyinthewell I know! I can't wait to hear it; his other stuff is underrated, mostly because it was overshadowed (for good reason - "Somebody That I Used to Know" kicks ass - but still)

[@thevarietychannelofyoutube4769]

Little did he know that Somebody That I Used To Know would go onto influence the sound of late 2010's pop music

[@elijahfordsidioticvarietys8770]

Both songs are true classics of the early 2010s.

[@rivermundcatradora7061]

dang, ten years ago. watching this is a trip for me, who was a teen at the time. i liked both songs, listened to all four artists, liked them a lot, then they kinda mellowed out in my mind. fun kinda broke up after they made it big, although their lead singer did make it big one more time with a certain pink duet, and one of the other guys....i'll get to that. janelle monae is probably the only one who's had the opportunity to burst back into the spotlight of my mind, what with her later albums, her acting career, and even her politics, but anothe reason i don't like "we are young" as much now is because it does her a massive disservice. i hear gotye went into hiatus, and only just got back into making new music -- i think i might relisten to the album with "somebody that i used to know" sometime soon, i really liked it. and while i liked kimbra's voice, the moment i saw ads for her music on this platform -- on youtube -- was the moment i tuned her out, as i found the concept just too tacky. but yeah, that other notable fun member? i think their guitarist or something? frickin' superstar producer jack antonoff. if ever that band gets featured in one hit wonderland, they're gonna get the same treatment as the buggles (coincidentally, another band i liked as a teen, listening to their first album and really digging it, then never really giving them much thought afterwards).

[@SirLightsOut99]

The story of Gotye goes a little bit further than a simple hiatus. He’s probably one of the most hard-core guys in the history of pop music simply because of how he’s handling his one hit. Dude drops somebody that I used to know, a song that is so creative and unusual that had he made more like it, he probably could’ve changed his era of music entirely, but instead he decided to take his one hit and dip. You barely ever see him around anymore unless he’s doing a live show with some other indie band that he’s a part of. Not only is his music video unmonetized, but he won’t let anybody use it in big budget movies or commercials of any kind. Its use in independent films is perfectly acceptable however. Dude had every single opportunity to change the landscape of pop, but he just gave the whole industry the middle finger and then fell off the face of the Earth for years. I aspire to have that level of charisma.

[@TheJapanmonte]

Ironically both bands sadly disappeared after these hits. Wish they both made more music

[@loganbass9969]

BigBearMonte fun persisted for the rest of 2012 because of Some Nights, their second and almost as big hit. I think the main reason they fell out of the limelight was because they went on a permanent hiatus after they got big.

[@kaimactrash]

Gotye has a solid discography at least, I'd love more, however, I love everything we have from him.

[@DestinyKiller]

@@loganbass9969 I liked SomeNights much better than We Are Young

[@loganbass9969]

@@DestinyKiller Oh me too. Fun was a pretty good band. If you miss them, check out the guitar player’s band Bleachers.

[@DestinyKiller]

@@loganbass9969 I will, thanks!

[@olivercuenca4109]

I always thought We Are Young was about someone trying to confess infidelity but chickening out and deciding to try and have a good time until everything collapses because his lover (the one he's cheating with) has shown up, and his friends (who were meant to be the support group when he gets dumped as he fully expects to be after he admits to what he's done) have all gone off to get high. Also I don't know why I thought this, but I always interpreted the sunglasses asking about a scar to be about a cop or FBI agent asking about because he's on the trail of a criminal with a scar. I didn't think that was relevant, more of a vignette of what's happening on the periphery, and maybe meant to imply that everything's about to go to hell even more and that it's probably best to just enjoy the moment whilst it lasts.

[@messinalyle4030]

Someone else I talked to had the theory that the scar that the cop in the sunglasses was asking about was actually the girlfriend's (physical) scar. Maybe she decided to keep silent and protect him at the last second? I don't know.

[@PreludeInZ]

You know, it's funny, I always come at music as a writer because that's what I am. I'm not musical by any means, and part of what I've liked best about your channel is hearing songs that I know reframed in a way that makes it easy to understand and identify the musical structure, because I know jack shit about sampling and influences or about the way pop charts work and why and when it's weird when songs like this come into the spotlight. What you know about music impresses the hell out of me, because it's the toothpaste to my horror novels, but I'm still a person who needs to brush my teeth every day, and it's nice to know a little more about how and why the toothpaste works. That said, I understand lyrics better and more clearly than I understand music, and I don't intend it as a criticism exactly, so much as just the idea that maybe there's a degree of literary understanding that helps parse lyrics like this (especially from bands like these) in terms of what they mean and how they fit, and maybe especially how they fit into the larger structure of a song. If you honestly can't tell where he was going with this, I hope you don't mind my taking you at your word and trying to explain it. I know the song is old and so is the video about it, but it's nearly 1AM and while I probably have better things to do, for some reason I wanted to do this. Again, I don't mean it critically at all, just sort of to try and add a dimension that might be appreciated. Because the funny thing is, you do actually get it. He DOES start out trying to write a song about one thing, but his drunk/high friends came back, and the whole song shifts along with the chorus into what people who are young are supposed to be doing. It's a song about going out and pretending things are okay, when you know they really aren't. The verses are confessional, the tries to excuse whatever truths we learn in their course. The whole song actually kind of hangs on the phrase "I need to get my story straight". It identifies the singer immediately as an unreliable narrator: this is not an accurate reflection of events. It is a story. And this story isn't going to come out in a straightforward manner. It's a story that he needs to order in his own head in a way that doesn't necessarily reflect truth or reality, "need to get my story straight" means that we are hearing an editorialized version of events. He has deliberately left a lot out, and he's trying to frame this rendition in a way that explains what HE thinks is actually important. He's also not singing to HER. He's singing to us as his fictionalized version of her, because if he had the stones to articulate these things clearly within their relationship, then their relationship would be over already, and they'd both be better for it. The verses/chorus of We Are Young are built in a muddle around someone who's done something wrong, and whose relationship is failing, and he knows that, and is trying to excuse/explain it for his own benefit. They're out with people who aren't in any state to perceive the actual truth about them. Someone external to this whole situation ("some sunglasses", immediately trivialized/dehumanized, and treated by the narrator as dismissively as YOU seem to treat the narrator) has noticed that he has hurt the person he's supposed to love, and when it's brought back up again, he's internally listing all these justifications for why it should be okay now, despite the knowledge that it really isn't. They both know he hurt her. There's no moving past it, it's just there. It's implied that he's not even really sorry, he just wishes it hadn't happened because he can't ever really apologize for it, and it won't get better. In the end of the verse, as he moves into the chorus, he's basically saying he'll do the bare minimum at the end of the night, and bring her home. It doesn't make up for everything else, but it's what will happen. It's an old an established pattern. That's what lovers do, and they are lovers. It's the pinnacle of that justification, he muddles into the bombast of the chorus and fact that it doesn't matter, because tonight they're young, and tonight they're doing all the things that are expected of young people. They'll set the world on fire, and it doesn't matter because of how brightly they're burning. The second verse comes back to the fact that their relationship is on the rocks and has been for a while (months old scars/maybe we could find new ways to fall apart), but neither of them are moving on to anything better or even just terminating the problem, they're just existing in the intermittent moments provided by the sentiment of the chorus (evidenced by the seizure of the excuse provided by the return of their friends, raising a toast to pretend there's something worth toasting)---nights out in bars, where they're expected to be young and alive and stupid and nominally in love with each other. It's about being aware of problems and not addressing them, and just dwelling in the impermanence of "tonight" with the excuse of being young. When the third verse hits, it's the closest look we get at what he really feels and really wants. He's got something on his side, he isn't entirely in the wrong here---and he wants someone to take care of him with the same dedication he's just performing by rote. He's not calling for her, he's calling for "someone". Nothing got any better tonight, he's just fantasizing about the prospect (the angels never arrived/but I can hear the choir), and he wants to believe that this is reason enough to believe that there's someone out there who might come for him. but the end of the song falls back into the same pattern established earlier in the chorus, by the time the bar closes, and she feels like falling down, he'll bring her home. And they'll both continue on as they have been. It's an extremely dark sort of song, really, about what we'll settle for. Anyway, I don't know if this is at all interesting or helpful to anyone. I don't actually know if Todd even reads comments, because most savvy creators probably know better. I'm sure anyone interested has already had these ideas explained in a better forum. I just happened to feel about thinking about it tonight, and wrote it all out for the hell of it. I don't know much about music, but I know some things about lyrics, I guess.

[@Stalker-fm1wn]

this was genuinely amazing! can't believe you had the dedication to type it all out but the song makes so much more sense now

[@theletterm1787]

This was a great critical analysis! Thank you so much!

[@aishaedris3255]

Thank you, I never thought about this song that deeply, you must have put a lot of work into this

[@esobelisk3110]

this is a very good comment, and I’m moderately sorry for being the 70th like

[@patrichickman8718]

disappointed this wasnt the gotye song being analysed 😂 interesting though!

[@WaterAce168]

So happy I can finally recognize the outro as the community reference it is. We all get wiser with time

[@jesseflood]

I thought Gotye was an obscure Sting or The Police song I hadn't heard of before as I first heard these 2 songs at an outlet mall where they play modern and classic songs. They're both excellent pop songs.

[@harryeast95]

What Police song do you think Somebody That I Used to Know wounds like? Or did you mean that you thought "Gotye" was the title of a Police song?

[@kevintyerman1906]

@@harryeast95 Listen to a few of his other songs, he has a very similar voice to Sting at times. There is (or was) a site called "Gotye is the son of Sting" based, I assume, on the parallels of their voices.

[@wafflesorbacon]

the way glee pushed songs the way tiktok does now

[@tegantalks9612]

Honestly everyone cites Lorde as the turning point for pop music in the 2010s but you can already hear the seeds of the sound that would be dominant by 2019/2020 as early as 2011 with Foster the People and 2012 with Gotye.

[@GregoryMandara]

I've never explored the comments sections of "pop videos" before. You people sure do have a lot to say about ideologies. Haven't found one comment yet about music.

[@PreludeInZ]

you know, I got to thinking about your decision to pair these two songs together, and then it bugged me how little time you actually spent with the lyrics, because they're actually both pretty similar in theme when you really grind them down to a fine powder. I sort of glossed over the gotye parts on my first listen through. I came late to the song and though I do enjoy it, I enjoy it more for the sincerity of the original artist's response to the response to it, in the form of his own remix: Somebodies (kzbin.info/www/bejne/paHKZYl9q96caa8), which is glorious and touching and just so goddamn heartening, when you think about the joy and a privilege of a creator whose been given such an incredible outpouring of responsive love from the people he's influenced and inspired. I am especially fond of the tutorial guy chosen to hang the whole song around. He makes me so incredibly happy. It's funny how contrary that runs to what the song is actually about. But the song itself is, like We Are Young, about a relationship on the rocks. I think these kinds of numbers by indie bands are substantially more nuanced than what the average pop hit about schmaltzy true love or even messy breakups. They tend to be much more gritty in examining the faults of the people involved, and they really remove any rosiness from the depictions of relationships. Love is not a reality "always, forever". Sometimes love is an impulse, or a mistake, or something that just dies in the dark, gradually starved of light or oxygen or just good old fashioned mutual affection. Unlike the narrator in We Are Young, this is the narrator reflecting on something he perceives as an injustice towards him. He's being honest about his own complicity in the reasons the relationship failed---he was never really in it for the long haul. Like We Are Young, there was resignation in this relationship, but unlike We Are Young, these two individuals have the sense to end it. You're not incorrect in the reading that this guy's a dick. That's the point. The singers in these kinds of songs are not infrequently the villains of their own narratives. Sometimes it's grayer than that, but it's not uncommon for the protagonist not to be a hero. The song isn't about the artist, necessarily. It may be about an aspect of the artist's life or relationships, taken to an extreme. Or it may be a character created specifically for the song. It's a narrative that conveys an emotion, or a message, or an idea. (Ask me what I think "Some Nights" by fun. is about sometime.) I guess maybe indie artists don't usually have the same sorts of readily identifiable personal details or grievances to air in song a la Taylor Swift and/or Kanye. Anyway as the song continues, it begins to be about the depth to which the narrator really misunderstood how incompatible he and his partner were. He assumed that he was the one staying in the relationship for his partner's benefit, that he was never really that into her, and now he's offended that actually she's better off without him. Actually, when she said they would still be friends, she was just cushioning the end for his benefit. She wants nothing further to do with him, because she's happier to be rid of him. Her lyric (unlike the one given to Janelle Monae in WAY, which is an overly simplistic rendering of the singer's perception of the minimum of what his lover must want/need from him "carry me home tonight") is deep and honest and raw about the reasons she didn't like being with this guy, and it fundamentally identifies the meaning of the title: the "somebody that you used to know" is the singer's perception of his partner. It's what he thought she was, and he was always, always wrong. She was so careful in her thoughts and her actions around him to cater to that perception, and when they broke it off, she was genuinely freed of an incredible burden. She had no reason to continue to pretend, hence his shock at the suddenness of the difference. The way the chorus comes in almost cuts her off, and demonstrates that this narrator doesn't care and never cared, and doesn't understand and will never understand. This poor woman has been gaslit ENDLESSLY by this asshole, and he's still constructing an alternate reality around her, only now she's no longer there to be subjected to it. Anyway, I did it again. Sorry. This is not what I was supposed to be doing tonight, but here I am again.

[@eyobalamerew1180]

Damn, that must've been quite the night for you, Z!

[@jeppyjep]

I just found your comment and i absolutely love it. The thing that i like about this Gotye's song is that the song tells the same story but from both POV. The guy thinks that he's not in the wrong and its the girl's fault, saying that he felt lonely in her company, while the girl counters him in the second verse, revealing that it was him that screwed her over. I rarely see something like this. Normally in a breakup song, its usually from one person POV, whether its a girl or a guy. But here, we get to see both POV, and it feels realistic and believable. Breakups do end like this sometimes.

[@becauseimafan]

Yes! I found your other analysis! 😁 Thank you for sharing both of them, they were great and fascinating reads!! When Todd said then the woman comes in and punches him in the balls, I laughed and thought that's when it becomes a favourite song for me. And then later he said the build-up to that moment was maybe too long/slow, I gotta say, I agree - unless I'm just swimming in the feelings the song gives me and I'm playing it on repeat, then it's just long enough to get to that moment 😂 And your explanation & analysis of her part in the song, it explains _why_ I have so many feels during it! You have given me food for thought - thank you, you star! ⭐😁 I hope you have a great day!

[@becauseimafan]

P.s. Also thank you for sharing the info and link to "Somebodies" on Gotye's channel, it was so good!! I'd only accidentally come across 2 covers of his song (the Pentatonix one, and the group that all played on 1 guitar? Oh, duh, it's "5 People 1 Guitar!" by Walk off the Earth 😆). Anyway, thanks for sharing about that video too, it's great 😁👍

[@Uhohlisa]

Yeah I feel like Todd missed exactly what you said.

[@jmckenzie962]

"I hope these guys don't turn out to be flashes in the pan" Ah yes, Toddstradamus strikes again. On an unrelated note, it's interesting to see how everyone bashed on Call Me Maybe back in 2012; I think that song has actually aged really well since.

[@nicwinsteadart5330]

It still jams and I get really nostalgic to all three songs when I hear them I think back to my junior year of high school. But what you call Carly Rae Jepsen a one hit wonder even though she does still come out with music from time to time and make the odd TV appearance like her commercial with Lil yachty?

[@BigBadBuzzPlaysMC]

@@nicwinsteadart5330 No, she had a top 10 duo hit with Owl City

[@galactusholmes]

I think the "fun." song was written as a sort of retirement plan. Everyone knows pop music recycles every 20 years or so. In 20 years, the only part of the song that will be needed to sell it to middle aged milenials is "we are young", and they'll buy it by the pallet, crying and reminiscing about lost youth and all that nostalgic garbage that keeps the pop world flush with cash.

[@IMAMONGUS]

I feel like when millenials hit retirement age they'll be way more insufferable than any boomer

[@radioactivehalfrhyme]

“We Are Young” = spork. YES! This observation gave me one of those incommunicable moments of clarity they say you can only get on ayahuasca.

[@sketchycat6223]

These might two of the best indie pop songs to ever grace the charts.

[@loganbass9969]

I would love to see Chamber Pop come this close to the mainstream again.

[@dusty2080]

Wasn't Arcade Fire a huge band?

[@simplechronology2605]

Here we are, a whole decade later, and neither Gotye nor fun. have released a follow-up album. So much for the trend of rock reclaiming the charts. Frankly, at the time, I thought both of these songs had novelty written all over them. Surprised Todd missed it, but I guess he has two candidates for One Hit Wonderland...

[@regularguy2006]

i'd call fun. a like 2.5 hit wonder. Some Nights and Carry On both got a lot of traction at the time and nowadays

[@Unownshipper]

You can't blame the man for trying to be optimistic and hoping for something new/different. Wishful thinking.

[@marcbrown6582]

Neither of them were rock

[@wsatjohn]

I do love that no-one seems to mention that someone i used to know basically remixed baa baa black sheep

[@SemiIocon]

Back then I liked both songs, in hindsight gotye's song is way better. Sucks that he stayed a OHW.

[@onecoolnerd]

"These guys better not be flashes in the pan or that was a giant waste of time." Welp. Jack Antonoff is still relevant.

[@PeterABarta]

The vibe of Somebody I Used to Know has a very similar "he said, she said" vibe to the Human League's Don't You Want Me?

[@rubyrogers239]

I remember hearing gotye on the radio a bunch on my way to school, so obviously nostalgia has a huge part in my opinion especially as an Australia. However i think that song, and especially the rest of his work are such art that depict the world around him in such a beautiful and sad way. I get why his other stuff isnt as popular, hearts a mess is my favourite song by him and its like 7 minutes long with about 1 minute total of chorus and 2 other minutes of verses, but i wish he got more of a chance then just a one hit wonder.

[@tyde4610]

even though pop music might not have gotten this specific brand of indie, it definitely isn’t as mainstreamy as it was

[@jamesanthony5874]

Just felt the need tonight to let you know that while i enjoyed your chanel even aside from the songs themselves, your chanel expanded my musical tastes significantly, and i genuinely appreciate that

[@hx0ad5]

i must be extremely out of touch with pop culture because there is not one single cell in my brain that would've thought to classify either of these songs as "rock" before i heard people calling them that. somebody that i used to know is definitely noticeably weird to be at no1, but we are young never even vaguely registered as something that might be unusual for the charts back when it came out. (i'm not saying other people are wrong and i'm right, i'm just marvelling at how confusing i find the entire concept of Pop Music in general)

[@marcbrown6582]

Neither are rock. Todd In The Shadows has always called a lot of things rock that aren't

[@sammyi2505]

Eyes Wide Open is probably playing at my funeral. Does it fit the occasion? Not really. But I want to leave anyone who mourns my loss with a sublimely good song before I'm gone for good.

[@sleepdeprivedpikachu7235]

the best question is why has jack antonoff had those same glasses for over a decade

[@marcel1372]

Sounds like Peter Gabriel and corpse bride LOL. Very accurate. Glee as MTV really puts the whole early 2010s in a new perspective.

[@aggielonghorn]

Gotye reminds me of Sting, both in look and sound. Gotye's ascent explained.

[@creepydude94]

when I first heard somebody that I used to know, I totally thought it was Katy Perry. I've heard other songs of Kimbra, but her vocals are much more Katty in that one!

[@marcel1372]

It really sounds like her

[@MegaLakona]

The uh crossover part sits a little uncomfortably now.

[@AceLM92]

I'm pretty sure that's why Todd deleted the video

[@lifeatpaddyspub]

Ace Möwick what do you mean deleted this is todd’s channel

[@reekarp669]

What happened?

[@_ninjas555]

@@reekarp669 it has been 4 months so maybe you found out or don't care anymore but the "guest" is unfortunately no longer with us. I guess as of two years ago..has it been that long? Doesn't feel like it..

[@Lamporre]

@@_ninjas555 He was also revealed to be a grooming predator.

[@Geotpf]

I took We Are Young literally. It's a fun (or "fun.") catchy little pop song about a guy who beats the crap out of his girlfriend, but she stays with him because he says he's sorry afterwards. Abusive relationships are so nifty keen! Frankly, I consider it to be one of the most offensive songs I've ever heard. The happy upbeat tone clashes with the fact the narrator should really be in jail doing hard time. Which I guess is the point.

[@Uhohlisa]

Where did you get the beat the girlfriend part from!!?!? The scar is EMOTIONAL

[@tarmoruusu7933]

I always thought that "Somebody I Used to Know" became a hit because of that video where it's being played by multiple people on one guitar. Watching this it took me quite some time get over the thoughts of 'Wait, why isn't this other band mentioned in the title? And why is the title so negative about Gotye?'.

[@bigsweetowl4487]

Btw Gotye is pronounced "Game of the Year Edition"

[@seraphiccandy21]

Wow, a Jew Wario insert. I bet nothing will ever happen that will make that look like a terrible choice in retrospect...

[@quintessence_sailor]

I love both of these songs, they got me into fun. and Gotye, but even more into Janelle Monae and Kimbra. They’re both fantastic artists that I wish got more acclaim.

[@_guavo_]

Looking back at this and all the Glee drama, it's perfect.

[@ViperPilot16]

I really like the instruments in both, but somebody I used to know has that clock like guitar drumming that is addictive. It just sounds like a heartbeat.

[@Lyendith]

That Jew Wario cameo aged doubly poorly, somehow. But yeah, Gotye would definitely make for an interesting OHW episode.

[@thearcheriskind]

I have a lot of nostalgia for Tonight because my first and only good school dance played this song and everyone got up and danced and it wasn't even a little bit awkward.

[@TheDive25]

how does this only have 35 views.. was it re-upload or something? Very strange.. LOve your work Todd. Been watching all your videos.. I started all the way back and have been watching about 10 a night. So great.

[@Karmy.]

It was privated I think

[@rmcf4eva1]

He always has problems with copyright. He probably tried to upload it several times. That's why there's a 3 in the title.

[@nicwinsteadart5330]

And in less than a year become One Hit Wonders together, shoulda waited a good 6 or 7 years.

[@SeanStrife]

fun. didn't. They did get another huge hit with "Some Nights" but are now on permanent hiatus.

[@nicwinsteadart5330]

@@SeanStrife there wasn't really, it's almost 10 years and at this point it's not a Hiatus it was a disbandment.

[@pantherette113]

Glee covering we are young genuinely changed all of pop music because would Jack Antonoff be the producer for every single pop girly?

[@pyrotechnic96]

Yeah I think he still would've made it

[@xSaraxMxNeffx]

listenin to todd treat it like an actual pop song is interesting. I dont think i never had issues parsing the narative; but then i never thought it was a pop song either

[@garethbain9125]

The end of this is kind of tragic in its hopefulness

[@barryschalkwijk9388]

Gotye's " State of the art" is a masterpiece.

[@StormyKopaAMVs]

6:32 I was not aware that Twenty One Pilots existed before 2015. Guess I shouldn't be surprised they blew up a few years later.

[@michaelgraham9774]

It's kinda sad how both these artists showed so much promise and immediately after 2012 ended their creative output.

[@Ballin4Vengeance]

Ok here have dis song bayeeeeeeeeeeeee in 10 years

[@SarahsSeniorYear]

And now Jack Antonoff works with all the cool pop girls and has 14 Grammy nominations and 5 wins.

[@ElizabethHoward]

Ah, man... I love the train wreck that is Glee. I get why many people found it awful, I really do, but... damn. I just love it so much.

[@liamk.6389]

So one historical note is that FUN was meant to be a one hit wonder, lead singer Nate Ruess ahd this weird song called "Some nights" that he couldn't find a home for so he just made a band and an album and we are young happened to land on there as well. nate's still around doing music stuff and being a chill dude

[@ikeekieeki]

yo this "fun." guy is serving John Mulaney in slow mo

[@josephtelegen8754]

Todd is never wrong about anything until now because sporks are fucking awesome.

[@piwitiwi]

I just got really nostalgic about the windows phone in the "we are young" video.

[@tomboz777]

Awwwwwkward cameo

[@rensje]

Wait, who is that guy and what did he do?

[@Dogy0909]

Reminds me in one video, Nostalgia Chick/Lindsay makes a joke about being contractually obligated to be in the shitty Channel Awesome movies... lots of these old videos associated with TGWTG have some particularly nasty bits given what we know now (Nowhere near JW levels of fucked up, but still)

[@Blackfoxloki]

@@JimmySteller He didn't groom anybody that's a load of horseshit

[@Tirgo69]

@@Dogy0909 The video you're thinking of is From Justin to Kelly, btw

[@69Kevrod2012]

For the record "Gotye" is the dumbed-down ortographic version of common French surname "Gau(l)tier" as in "Jean-Paul FREAKIN'GAULTIER" for the anglophone world, just sayin...

[@adorabell4253]

ronan pellen but Gaultier is MUCH easier to understand!

[@dubu9881]

Todd pretty much read my mind on both of these bands: indiepop Peter Gabriel vs indiepop Queen

[@ethanderoche9253]

That moment when you're listening to his review and the song he reviews comes on the radio at the same time.

[@VTsiFanfic]

Somebody That I Used to Know is a great song to remind yourself why it's a bad idea to call up an ex. We Are Young is just the song they play at a bar to let everyone know its last call and to gtfo.

[@benoitbrown9400]

Tonight feels like if Paul McCartney and Wings wrote a single for an adult kidz bop album.

[@bigJovialJon]

When is the Gotye One Hit Wonderland video coming out?

[@theycallmeroach1911]

2022

[@hattree]

Now you could do each of these on One Hit Wonderland

[@OttaviaBurton5893]

This needs to be re-titled.

[@BinturongGirl]

I kinda dropped out of existence for a few years starting in 2010, and I completely missed the Gotye song when it came out. Don't think I heard it at all until last year, but The Algorithm kept drip-feeding it to me as snippets on YTShorts, and when I looked it up I was really surprised it was from 2011 (I would have guessed 2021ish). I am playing it to death at the moment, both the original and the cover by Mayday Parade.

[@RWScott986]

I think the popularity of Somebody.. also had to do w/it sounding a hell of a lot like early Police. the vocals very much in line w/Sting's sound, structure very much like something Stewart Copeland would come up with. the only thing missing is Andy Summer's guitar. Eyes Wide Open similarly sounds very much like a Eurythmics track. Easy Way Out sounds like Beck doing a breakdown of Taxman. In Your Light sounds like post-Disposable Heroes Michael Franti...

[@TheIronDuke9]

Everyone calls it a spork but I call it a foon. Go figure.

[@johnenigma8506]

Weirdly enough, this is where things last made sense.

[@royalninja2823]

I'm so disappointed that this wasn't actually the direction pop music went, and instead Royals was what really defined the rest of the decade.

[@moreisallyouneed4175]

Stans undercover date wouldn't be as funny without that chorus playing. Thanks fun. you've been DADDED

[@riverbay6482]

Oh that JewWario joke did NOT age well

[@neverendinglute3125]

we are young is like a situationship song I think But situationship wasn’t really like a term that was around then

[@Tim_the_Enchanter]

It's interesting: I remember "We Are Young" being on the radio every six or seven minutes, but I couldn't remember that the band was called fun. Conversely, I remember the odd name Gotye popping up interminably, but couldn't remember how the song sounded. Probably because I thought it was Peter Gabriel. I would also add that I think hearing an uninvited song too often is a legitimate reason to dislike it.

[@Uhohlisa]

…weird

[@thesuburbansings]

update... There was no change or new wave of thoughtful music...

[@kimifw58]

MTV -> Glee -> KZbin -> Vine -> Vine again -> TikTok

[@woodywyatt557]

Kesha should be pleased with 2019

[@davidthepangolin]

Not to mention Musical.ly was the precursor to TikTok before it got bought... by TikTok’s parent company

[@twininations9597]

Fun fact, We Are Young was originally a Watch The Trone era Kanye West and Jay Z song

[@SergioMach7]

I still think Somebody That I Used to Know is a definitive top charting song of the 2010's. As a whole its great lyrically, even if the subject matter is simple.

[@lisahoshowsky4251]

I just listened to the Podcast One Hut Thunder covering Gotye from a one hit wonder perspective so I thought I’d give this a listen. Definitely a bit odd to be coming to this from the future. Also, the podcast episode is great and does really great service toward gotye and his entire discography and why he’s maybe not really a one hit, especially outside North America.

[@user-xk8gx7rg7j]

14:20 god i love watching 8 year old videos. i actually found this video bc i wanted to see if you did a wonderland video on gotye

[@TheHappySpaceman]

11 years old, actually! Todd had originally posted this on Channel Awesome in 2012--this was a reupload.

[@Clown_Wizard]

Some Nights by fun. is the most blatant, unapologetic attempt at trying desperately to sound like Queen, so thanks for calling them out on that!

[@johnd5931]

Funny thing is, both of these are one hit wonders. It certainly was not a trend.