THE DAMAGE IS DONE

Today’s request comes from me, as this is one of My Top 10 Features Songs.

The Features
“The Damage Is Done”
Live @ 12th & Porter
November 7th, 2003

Today falls not only on a Saturday, when I will probably post other versions of songs I’ve done before, not only after a day when I posted another of my favorite Features songs, but also on the one month anniversary of this tumblr. So to keep the pattern alive, I first wrote about “The Damage Is Done” on May 13th and I will do so again on June 13th.

The history of the song can be read in its previous entry. This version comes from the infamous all-request show and was the second to last time it was played. The recording here is pretty great, with the lyrics and keyboards really shining through more than on the May 2nd, 2002 version. The structure of the song is pretty much the same as when it debuted, except the first half of each verse has been switched out so that the song opens with the song’s popular line (“I know I’m sorry doesn’t help, but it surely doesn’t hurt”). There’s also been a bit of a rock and roll tempo ramp-up and breakdown inserted after the second chorus and before the build-up at the end of the song.

Since this is one of my Top 10, I should go a little more in-depth as to why I love it so much. Pretty much all the ingredients I need for a great song are in here. I tend to enjoy the more rocking Features songs, and that killer penduluum riff definitely rocks. I also tend to enjoy impassioned screaming, and the “No no..NO!” part fills that void, easily. Toss in some amazing angsty lyrics and bam, you have a great song that I’ve listened to at many a rough patch in my life, and many a patch when I just need to rock out. But seriously, the “I know I’m sorry doesn’t help” verse is one of the best sentiments Matt Pelham has ever committed to paper and sang. I love that line.

Also this is the only Features song I couldn’t play on college radio. It says “dick” in it.

OTHER VERSIONS:
Live @ The Boro (May 2nd, 2002)

I love the Features. The world should love the Features. I will hopefully accomplish this with this tumblr. I’m going to try and post a new Features song every day for, well if I go by my iTunes, the next 415 days. Yeah, I have quite a bit of Features bootlegs and demos and I really want to share them, mainly because they’re all too good not to. So, without further time-wasting, I present…

The Features
“The Damage Is Done”
Live @ The Boro
May 2nd, 2002

“The Damage Is Done” was always one of my favorite Features songs, which is obvious since I named this (hopefully maintainable) tumblr after it. With that see-sawing opening guitar riff and the psycho vaudeville keyboard, what’s not to love? This is easily one of the most tense songs in the Features catalogue, which was apparent when Matt Pelham would sing it. His face would get so red! The lyrics, once settled on, are some of the most relevant to me. “I know I’m sorry doesn’t help, but it surely doesn’t hurt?” Great line, sung during a song that has equal parts pleading and passion.

The Features abandoned this song around the start of 2003 when “The Way It’s Meant To Be” and “There’s A Million Ways To Sing The Blues” debuted, both of which would later find their way on their major label releases with Universal Records. The song popped up again, completely unsolicited, in April 2005, but disappeared again. I know drummer Rollum Haas probably enjoyed this song, but Pelham has claimed that he never quite learned how to sing this song without hurting his voice. I’m glad I have three versions, including the song’s debut featured here, of this song in bootleg form so that I can forever enjoy it.

OTHER VERSIONS:
Live @ 12th & Porter (November 7th, 2003)