Tears and/or Smiles for Fears

If you’ve ever seen the movie Donnie Darko, you’re probably aware of Gary Jules’ hauntingly beautiful version of Tears for Fears‘ “Mad World.” Jules did a wonderful job of bringing out the dark side of Orzabal’s songwriting, something that could be easily overlooked when confronted with the group’s MTV-era, hook-heavy new wave pop. “Shout” is similar. It’s not too difficult to imagine the song as a dirgeful ballad decrying all of the horrible things about youth and maturation, but in the hands of T4F it is a fun ditty, a primal scream that leaves you feeling much better after singing along. The line between Tears for Fears and Catharsis for Fears is thin indeed…and the group’s ability to remind us of that on a consistent basis is one of their most endearing qualities.