Adam Baxter’s fourth single from his upcoming socially distanced album, Connections, offers a solid bit of advice, especially considering the year we’ve endured. “As Long as Nothing Gets Hurt” may sound like something an exhausted parent might tell their sucrose-fueled children, eager to run amok (to be fair, it seems that most everyone falls onto one side of that divide or the other right now, depending on their level of coping skills), but it’s a great reminder that everything is fun and games until someone loses an eye, regardless of your age.
Tapping musicians from across Newfoundland (Clare Follett, Chloe Gale, Stuart Gallant, Paul Heppleston, Rick Water and Jordan Young), Baxter pulls together a folk-rock jam with a lyric video featuring drone footage captured by Brady Huxter of their native province, all with a strong message. With the events of the last year testing the limits of what people can endure, several conflicts coming to a head, and more time to spend tossing out a super-abundance of opinions on the internet, Baxter advocates for one thing: tolerance.
“I advocate for and support your happiness regardless of sexual identity, gender identity, political views, religious beliefs, etc.,” says Baxter, “as long as nothing or no one is getting hurt in the process.”
“Social media is plagued with lots of opinion posts on what other people do with their lives. They judge other’s gender identity, sexual preference, political views and religious beliefs. It made me really sad because there are so many good and kind-hearted people out there that are members of different communities. I felt the good people deserved a song.
“In my opinion, everyone deserves to be happy and live their best life, as long as they aren’t being mean or hurting anything or anyone.”
The song also showcases Baxter’s further endeavours into producing music for the sake of his own enjoyment. He points out that the song’s line about “dancing in the rain” is a metaphor for being carefree and also free of judgement, but the chorus hammers home the happy independence Baxter has found with his career:
“So live and let live by your design,
Dance to your tune your heart will shine,
The only light you need is you,
‘Cause as long as nothing gets hurt I’m good.”
Which doesn’t sound like a bad way to live at all, so long as we can trust everyone to get along and wear a mask.
Adam Baxter’s Connections is set to be released in August 2021.
Upcoming Dates:
03.26.21 – Gander, NL @ Joseph R Smallwood Arts & Culture Centre