Flatfoot 56 are slowing things down on their new EP, The Vancouver Sessions, giving listeners a chance to truly absorb some of their favorite songs and see things from a new perspective. The EP, which drops on May 25th, finds the band stripping down some of their more energetic tracks to create an entirely new listening experience. This, coupled with their new single, “How Long,” which encourages you to take a walk in someone else’s shoes, makes for an incredibly powerful listen.
In fact, 2018 is all about trying new things for Flatfoot 56. From exploring new sounds to becoming more connected with their fans, this year promises to be a great one for the band. Read more about their upcoming EP and listen to “How Long” below!
Interview by Shannon Shumaker
The Prelude Press: I want to start off by talking about your new EP, The Vancouver Sessions. What inspired you to revisit and rework some older songs for this release?
Tobin Bawinkel: We had been asked by an old friend who is a producer to do some music with him in his studio in Vancouver. The idea was to revisit some of the faster songs that you couldn’t really hear the lyrics to well on based on the way they sounded. We thought to ourselves what would it be like if we just re-visited the songs and change them up with a different kind of sound. It’s important for a band to explore different sounds and ideas. I think this one turned out really sweet!
The Vancouver Sessions features a new song, “How Long.” Can you tell us a little bit about this track? What inspired it?
This track is kind of an expression of frustration with the way the world is right now. There’s a lot of people expressing their arguments and opinions and stepping into hate speech regularly. It gets really old when you hear everyone’s opinion and yet they have taken virtually no time to get to know you or anyone else that they are talking about. We have become a nation that doesn’t know who we are and are crying to be known as individuals. Because of this, we act out and demand recognition. Everyone is an expert and no one goes outside to walk in each others shoes. That’s what the song is about.
Our main hope is that they listen closely and hear something new from the songs they might not of heard before. I’ve already had some emails back from people who have listened and some have been blown away by what the songs are talking about. These people have been listening to us for years but never understood what the songs were about. That’s exactly what I was looking for. I want them to listen from a different angle. A new perspective.
Do you have any shows coming up or tour dates in the works?
We are planning on a bunch of dates in August and September. Our bagpiper is getting married in May so we wanted to give him some time with his new bride.
What does the rest of 2018 hold for Flatfoot 56? Do you have any other big plans or goals this year?
We really want to do a better job connecting with our fans. We have always been a road dog band but have never mastered this internet thing. We want to expand our reach and platform better then we have done in the past.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with us! Is there anything else you’d like to add?
Can’t wait to see you at some shows.
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