Short back and sides...

Songs about hairdressers can only surely exist in the world of indie-pop. It can, after all, only be the preserve of the particularly sensitive songwriter to wax lyrical on the subject.

Take Darren Hanlon and Jens Lekman for example. Both have a fixation with a hairdresser and each deals with it very differently. This may of course all be down to their intentions. Darren has romance in mind, but is initially wary of making any kind of move:

"Some days I make it my mission
To drive right past her salon
I prefer to worship her from a car"

Jens's relationship with Shirin, on the other hand, appears to be purely platonic, aside from when he's in the chair:

"When Shirin cuts my hair
It's like a love affair
Let those locks fall to the ground
Or let them stay there"

Darren attempts to stalk the object of his affection, despite advice to the contrary:

"A mutual friend tells me,
"Aww, she won't go for you Daz"
But I say I couldn't care"

It's not as though he's unaware of the risks:

"If I offered my love and kisses
Would she come at me with her scissors?
Love's declaration could be bad for my health..."

The risks in Jens's salon are a little more deep rooted:

"But what if it reaches the government
That you have a beauty salon in your own apartment?
I won't tell anyone!"

Still, at least in the meantime it's all going well, and he gets the cut he wants:

"I show her my passport
What I look like
But she just smiles and lets me know
It's gonna be alright"

The same can't be said for Darren, who doesn't so much as end up in the chair:

"As the town hall clock struck three
I delivered my soliloquy
She wouldn't give the time of day to me
But she gave my pride
A short back and sides"

MP3: Darren Hanlon - She Cuts Hair
(Buy Early Days)

MP3: Jens Lekman - Shirin
(Buy Night Falls Over Kortedala)