Anton Barbeau – “Waiting on the Radio” [Song Review]

“Waiting on the Radio,” the recently released single/music video from Anton Barbeau, is Barbeau’s attempt to recreate a song he heard on the radio when he was three years old while riding in his mother’s green Studebaker.

The song is from his forthcoming double album, Morgenmusik/Nachtschlager, which drops in September.

Chosen from three writing sessions, one in Berlin, another in California, and then still another on a return trip back to Berlin, the songs on Morgenmusik/Nachtschlager reveal an array of stylistic flavors: power-pop, hazy acid-rock, freak folk, unexpected forays into world music and krautrock, fictional advertisements, and psychedelic funk.

Contributing to the song are Colin Moulding of XTC and Andy Metcalfe of The Soft Boys, as well as Donald Ross Skinner (guitar), Charlie Crabtree (drums), Rosie Abbott, Chris Stamey, and Allyson Seconds.

At once dreamy and gently alluring, “Waiting on the Radio” blends hints of The Beatles, R.E.M, and The Byrds into jangly shimmers reveling in washes of folk-rock and psych-pop. The deliciously swaying rhythm features crisp percussion and a finessed, rolling bassline, freeing up gleaming guitars dripping with mesmerizing textures.

Barbeau’s vintage Brit-pop-imbued vocals infuse the lyrics with enchanting shades of wistful nostalgia, giving the song luxurious coloration.

Sculpted with soft, glittering surfaces, “Waiting on the Radio” forms a sumptuous earworm, teleporting listeners to another epoch.

Anton Barbeau in 2023, photo by Julia VBH

Run Time: 4:39
Release Date: July 28, 2023
Record Label: Think Like A Key (USA) / Gare du Nord (UK)