Call Me What You Like (Lovejoy song) explained

Call Me What You Like
Cover:Lovejoy - Call Me What You Like.jpg
Alt:A toy aeroplane on fire in the sky about to crash into the ground, with the plane, fire and surrounding clouds held by strings
Type:single
Artist:Lovejoy
Ep:Wake Up & It's Over
Recorded:2022[1]
Length:3:46
Label:
Producer:
Prev Title:Knee Deep at ATP
Prev Year:2021
Next Title:Normal People Things
Next Year:2023

"Call Me What You Like" is a song by English indie rock band Lovejoy. It was released independently through Anvil Cat Records and AWAL on 10 February 2023, as the lead single from their third EP, Wake Up & It's Over, which was released on 12 May 2023. It is their first original song since 2021. It debuted at number 32 on the UK Singles Chart.

Background and composition

Notably "heavier than their previous album" with a "bass line that thrums viciously",[2] [3] the song was described by Sima Shakeri of the Toronto Star as "an upbeat self-deprecating tune about the anxiety and desperation of an uneven relationship".[4] A press release called the song a "punchy lament about a confusing relationship".[5] Frontman William Gold stated upon its release: Gold's vocals switch "between honeyed crooning and frenetic monologuing" throughout the track. Dave Brooks of Billboard noted the song "demonstrates how much progress the group has made", citing their "surprise hooks, lyrical bridges and stop-on-a-dime change-ups" in helping find the band's voice. The writer praised the frontman's approach to songwriting, continuing "he refuses to melt into a floor puddle with a kitschy breakup song".[6] Upon the release of the full Wake Up & It's Over EP, Gold stated that it took a while for the lyrics to "Call Me What You Like" to be written, saying:

Bassist Ash Kabosu said the song was originally called "Hemlock", being written "about drinking poison (metaphorically)" and having "very different verses".[7] [8] Frontman and lead singer William Gold stated the song was also referred to by the working title "Awake Forever".[9]

In 2023 the band recorded a Simlish cover of the song that was featured in the Horse Ranch expansion pack for The Sims 4.

Music video

A music video was premiered on YouTube alongside the song's release on 10 February. It was directed by Gold and bass guitarist Ash Kabosu. Online publication The Honey Pop praised the video for encapsulating the song's meaning, starting "with a seemingly normal plane ride" before it "escalates into utter chaos".

Personnel

Lovejoy

Production

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2023)! scope="col"
Peak
position
Australia Digital Tracks (ARIA)[10] 41
Canada Rock (Billboard)[11] 49
Lithuania (AGATA)[12] 90
New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ)[13] 5
US Hot Rock & Alternative Songs (Billboard)[14] 25
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[15] 14

Year-end charts

Chart (2023)!scope="col"
Position
US Rock Airplay (Billboard)[16] 39

Release history

Region! scope="col"
DateFormatLabel
Various10 February 2023

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 12 May 2023 . Lovejoy have dropped their much-anticipated new EP 'Wake Up & It's Over', and yes – it has a surprise . . 12 May 2023.
  2. Web site: Aera . 12 February 2023 . We're Calling Lovejoy's New Single, 'Call Me What You Like' Our New Favorite Song . 13 February 2023 . The Honey Pop . en-us.
  3. Web site: McCarthy . Neive . 10 February 2023 . Lovejoy have returned with an explosive new track, 'Call Me What You Like' . 12 February 2023 . . en-US.
  4. Web site: Shakeri . Sima . 10 February 2023 . Depeche Mode return with vintage goth-pop single, plus new music from Maddy Hicks, Lovejoy, Linkin Park and more . 12 February 2023 . . en.
  5. Web site: Major . Michael . 10 February 2023 . Lovejoy Release New Single 'Call Me What You Like' . 13 February 2023 . . en.
  6. Brooks . Dave . 10 February 2023 . British Indie Rockers Lovejoy Announce 20-City U.S. Tour . 12 February 2023 . . en-US.
  7. 1713379652557733968 . AshKabosu . watching through some year old rehearsal recordings& its so interesting to see how our songs developed over time CMWYL used to be Hemlock & had very different verses (missing the new titles lyrics) Parts of Coronado were used to make a song called Choke which then became Warsaw" . Ash . Kabosu . 2023-10-15.
  8. 1713381414073233501 . AshKabosu . it was about drinking poison (metaphorically) . Ash . Kabosu . 2023-10-15.
  9. Web site: Gold . William . 2023-02-13 . Awake Forever . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20230421064322/https://clips.twitch.tv/OptimisticFlirtyAnteaterBabyRage-SeDKQULjAmp06-EJ . 2023-04-21 . 2023-04-21 . Twitch.
  10. The ARIA Report: Week Commencing 20 February 2023. The ARIA Report. Australian Recording Industry Association. 20 February 2023.
  11. Canada Rock: Week of September 23, 2023 . . 2023-09-19.
  12. Web site: 2023 7-os savaitės klausomiausi (Top 100) . . lt . 17 February 2023 . 17 February 2023.
  13. Web site: NZ Hot Singles Chart. Recorded Music NZ. 20 February 2023. 18 February 2023.
  14. Hot Rock & Alternative Songs: Week of February 25, 2023. Billboard. 22 February 2023.
  15. Rock & Alternative Airplay: Week of August 26, 2023. Billboard. 10 December 2023.
  16. Rock & Alternative Airplay Songs – Year-End 2023. Billboard. 10 December 2023.

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