Let's just say it: Surfer Blood have had a shitty fucking year. Tragically, their guitarist, founding member Thomas Fekete passed away from cancer in May. He was 27. Nothing can prepare anyone for that loss and there's no doubt that Fekete's imprint and influence is still a presence felt. This is notable in the the grooves and lyrics of new single "Six Flags in F or G"—the first from their forthcoming fourth LP Snowdonia. Premiering below, the song showcases a different swerve from the Florida band. It's a song of two halves, beginning with a guttural riff, layered with spaghetti wiggly guitar lines before segueing into fulsome melodies (is that a female voice we hear?), and the surprising inclusion of a wah-wah pedal. It's melancholic, but there's an uptick in there too. "One of these days / We'll never be apart again," sings John Paul Pitts, closing the refrain."'Six Flags…' is unlike anything we've done before," explains Pitts. "When I was writing it I was listening to a lot of Swell Maps, Can, and The Breeders, all bands that Thom got me into. Even in his absence his tastes and sensibilities continue to influence my writing. We recorded the drums, bass and main guitars at a studio in Miami on an old Studer tape machine, we recorded everything in the red to get some analog saturation on all the basic tracks. Then we spent a night in Michael's warehouse recording guitar overdubs. We used a lot of pedals and effects: there's an amp drop, an octave pedal, and even a wah pedal in the second half. We were going for the guitar tone from T. Rex's 'Monolith' and I think we got pretty close."With Snowdonia out. February 3rd on Joyful Noise Recordings, Surfer Blood have reconfigured their lineup to include high school classmates Michael McCleary on guitar and Lindsey Mills on bass, completed by drummer Tyler Schwarz. Lyrically the record tackles not only the loss of Fekete, but also the breast cancer diagnosis of Pitts' mother and the fallout out from that (her illness inspired the song "Carrier Pigeon"). It's his most autobiographical collection to date, but you'll have to wait a hot minute (or three months) for the rest. For now listen to "Six Flags…" below.
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