Songs That Matter Right Now | Lemaitre - Fast Lovers
Patience is a virtue, but speed is a drug.
I discovered Lemaitre shortly after they released their EP “1749” in early 2016. I’ve been following them ever since. When they announced the release of a new EP in late 2018, I wanted to hear it as soon as humanly possible. I thought about buying a tent from Walmart and pitching it up in front of the nearest record store. I’d fill it snacks, a few books, and layers of coats and jackets to keep busy and warm against the briskness of late autumn. I could keep a clock on hand to watch it tick ever closer to the store’s opening. It wouldn’t be that bad.
The only problem was that Lemaitre doesn’t produce physical releases. Using the power of the digital age, the Norwegian duo has abandoned the traditional methods of music distribution. They first found their footing on websites like SoundCloud and YouTube, allowing listeners to download their music for free. Just as their first singles were released, Lemaitre launched their new single, “Fast Lovers,” online only. No CD, no vinyl, nothing to be found in a brick-and-mortar store. So I’d be camping outside for nothing.
It’s such an analog way of getting music in this day and age. Why camp when you can stream? I chose to go that route instead. I sat in front of my computer, comfortably warm in my college dorm, constantly refreshing Lemaitre’s YouTube channel page. Once the clock struck twelve, the video appeared and I clicked immediately. Instantly. And I wasn’t the only one listening to this new single. Lemaitre clicks a single button and their music goes around the world. It’s a wonderful aspect of the present to be able to share your excitement with so many people at once.
But, as with all good things, there are drawbacks to the instantaneous nature of the Internet. When I clicked the video for the new single, it took a little while to load. But here’s the thing: I wanted it that second. What was this waiting that I had to do for my music? I wouldn’t have any of it. So I refreshed. And refreshed again. And then restarted my browser and then it worked. Why was I so bothered by this minute moment of inconvenience?
Fittingly, “Fast Lovers” speaks on this very issue. Ulrik Lund, the lead singer of the band, states that the song “is about people’s...hang-up about being happy right now, and the idea that happiness is immediate.” Social media allows us to present the ideal version of ourselves to the public. We see the best of everyone on their Instagram profiles, in their Snapchat stories, anywhere that people advertise their lives. Feeling down? Post a selfie with the caption, “felt cute, might delete later,” and wait for the likes and support to come rolling in.
“Now she’s fucking happy, but struggles every day
Everybody’s perfect, but everything is fake
So, some say we are fast lovers”
These digital galleries are inherently fake. Rarely do people make their issues public. While it might be nice to have a convenient way to look at the “Best Ofs” of your life, it can take a toll on your mental health if you find yourself struggling. “Why can’t I be happy right now,” you might think, “if all my friends are having the times of their lives?”
The song takes a more extreme approach to instant gratification: drug addiction. The subject of the song, only referred to as “she,” cokes herself up to escape her problems. Few things give such euphoric release as drugs. That release becomes addicting. Users will take hit after hit to live in that state for as long as possible, but all trips come to an end, and the endings are often hard. It’s no way to live, but addicts will chase that feeling anyway. They don’t know how else to get that rush. It’s unhealthy and unsustainable.
Social media isn’t as immediately dangerous as cocaine, but over time, it has the potential to inflict significant damage to one’s mental health. And it isn’t just social media. The Internet offers many services for instant summoning: information, entertainment, shopping, selling, learning, creating. If you want something, there’s probably a way to get it online. It’s all just a few clicks away. That’s great for improving productivity, but it kills our capacity for patience. A 30-minute wait for the doctor doesn’t sound that bad, as long as you have your phone with you. Take that away and 30 minutes sounds like eternity.
Some issues in life don’t have that aspect of instant gratification. That once-in-a-lifetime vacation will cost a few thousand dollars, but wouldn’t it be nice to add another vinyl to your collection instead? A pay raise is in order now that you’ve been with your company for a few months now, right? Should you move to a different company if you don’t get it? You should really be at the gym right now, shouldn’t you? Okay, one more game and then you’ll go. Why pursue any long term goals when you can feel a smidge of satisfaction in the short term?
Lemaitre owes much of their success to the Internet, but sometimes, you have to bite the hand that feeds you. With a respectable level of notoriety, the duo takes a hard, honest look at the platform on which they began, and they aren’t fans of what they found. It has benefited them but it’s harming others. Instant gratification is so easy to obtain but so necessary to delay. The next time you receive a text message, the next time you get an email, the next time someone likes your post, wait a minute before opening that notification.
