Duels are a five piece band from Leeds, England.

The band, which con… Read Full Bio ↴Duels are a five piece band from Leeds, England.

The band, which consists of core members Jim and Jon Foulger (guitar and vocals respectively), drummer James Kirkbright and bassist Jon Maher, have recently been joined by ¡Forward, Russia! guitarist Whiskas. Additional Duels members include, or have included, Katherine Botterill on keyboards and backing vocals and violinist Lesley Turner.

They create dark and often anthemic new-wave pop with sinister undercurrents to craft a unique, vibrant sound, while recalling legendary artists such as Wilco, Robert Wyatt, David Bowie and Pulp along the way.

Their first album, 'The Bright Lights & What I Should Have Learned' was released in August 2006 to widespread critical acclaim and after extensive touring, Duels commenced work on their second full-length release, the self-produced 'The Barbarians Move In'.

Recorded in a converted barn on the North Sea Coast and showcasing a darker, more organic sound, Jon Foulger suggested the album is about "nature fighting back". It was digitally released via duelsmusic.com on Valentine's Day 2008, with a UK physical release on This Is Fake DIY Records on April 28th.

The band are currently working on their third full-length album, details of which can be found on www.duelsmusic.co.uk

Duels have opened for Kaiser Chiefs and former Blur guitarist Graham Coxon, and have toured the UK and Europe with The Rakes.The band played the Radio1/NME Stage at the Leeds/Reading Festivals and opened the main stage at T In The Park in 2006.

Pressure On You
Duels Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She wakes me in the morning
And our day will there begin
She thinks to tell me over breakfast
"You roll your cigarettes too thin
And where were you last night?"
"Well you know I had to work late again"

We're not eating right,

See we're beginning to look thin
You look just like your mother
My grey eyes are growing dim
Sure I'd like to fight you
But I only have the strength to give in

There's pressure on you
Pressure on me
Pressure on you
Pressure on me
(I don't feel it)

So we drive into the city
Though I want to grab the wheel
I resist all my temptations
I resist all that I feel
You drop me at the lights
I am ejected, dejected but free

No-one looks as pretty when they're standing in the rain
You may say you love the city but our feelings always change
Maybe I'm just like you
I just have it so easy you see

There's pressure on you
Pressure on me
Pressure on you
Pressure on me
(I don't feel it)

Now there's a crack in every window
There's a fault in every frame
I want to change everything
But I want to stay the same
My God, you used to love me!
Or at least I believed that you did

There's pressure on you
Pressure on me
Pressure on you
Pressure on me
(I don't feel it)

I don't feel it

I don't feel it
I don't feel it

Overall Meaning

The song "Pressure On You" by Duels is a contemplation of a deteriorating relationship. The opening lines of the song describe a typical morning where the singer's partner wakes him up, and as they sit down for breakfast, she tells him that he rolls his cigarettes too thin. The singer then imagines that she is questioning him about his whereabouts, to which he replies that he had to work late again. The next lines suggest that they are not taking care of themselves and are becoming thin, and that the singer is getting old as suggested by the line "my grey eyes are growing dim." It seems that the couple is going through a rough patch, and the singer is feeling the pressure of their relationship.

In the second verse, the couple drives into the city, and the singer feels a strong temptation to take over the wheel. He resists and explains how he feels dejected but free as he is dropped at the lights. The reference to the couple's love for the city indicates that they are most likely from a suburban or rural background, and their relationship began to deteriorate when they moved to the city. The chorus then repeats four times, stating that there is pressure on both of them, but the singer doesn't feel it.

The third verse suggests that the couple has lost its spark, as there is now a crack in every window, and there's a fault in every frame. The line, "I want to change everything, but I want to stay the same," indicates that the singer knows that things are not great, but he doesn't want to change his situation. The final lines repeat the chorus three times, with the singer repeating that he doesn't feel the pressure.

Overall, the song is a poignant exploration of a relationship going through a rough patch, with the pressure building up on both partners.

Line by Line Meaning

She wakes me in the morning
The day begins with her waking me up.

And our day will there begin
Our day starts as soon as she wakes me up.

She thinks to tell me over breakfast
During breakfast, she considers telling me something.

"You roll your cigarettes too thin
She thinks the cigarettes I roll are too thin.

And where were you last night?"
She wants to know where I was the previous night.

"Well you know I had to work late again"
I had to work late as usual so that explains why I was not around last night.

We're not eating right,
Our eating habits are poor.

See we're beginning to look thin
We are now starting to look thin and unhealthy because of our poor eating habits.

You look just like your mother
You resemble your mother.

My grey eyes are growing dim
My eyesight is getting worse.

Sure I'd like to fight you
I want to argue with you.

But I only have the strength to give in
I don't have the energy to argue, so I give in.

There's pressure on you
You feel a pressure.

Pressure on me
I also feel pressured.

Pressure on you
You still feel pressure.

Pressure on me
I still feel pressure.

(I don't feel it)
But we both deny feeling the pressure.

So we drive into the city
We drive to the city.

Though I want to grab the wheel
Even though I want to drive the car.

I resist all my temptations
I resist my urges to take control of the car.

I resist all that I feel
I refuse to act on my feelings.

You drop me at the lights
You drop me off at the traffic lights.

I am ejected, dejected but free
I feel rejected and sad but at least I am free from the temptation to drive.

No-one looks as pretty when they're standing in the rain
No one looks good when they are standing in the rain.

You may say you love the city but our feelings always change
Although you profess love for the city, our moods towards the city are always changing.

Maybe I'm just like you
Perhaps I am similar to you.

I just have it so easy you see
I may have it easy compared to you.

Now there's a crack in every window
Every window has a crack in it now.

There's a fault in every frame
Every frame has a fault in it.

I want to change everything
I want to change everything around me.

But I want to stay the same
But at the same time, I want to remain who I am.

My God, you used to love me!
You used to love me so much!

Or at least I believed that you did
Or at least, that's what I thought.

I don't feel it
However, neither of us feel the pressure anymore.

I don't feel it
We both deny feeling the pressure.

I don't feel it
The pressure we once felt is now gone.

Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: JAMES WILLIAM RICHARD FOULGER, JONATHAN EDWARD PAUL FOULGER, JONATHAN PATRICK MAHER, KATHERINE SARAH ALICE BOTTERILL, TIMOTHY JOHN MARSHALL

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

To comment on or correct specific content, highlight it

TRACKS