Beach Fossils - Somersault
Beach Fossils are an indie-rock band hailing from Brooklyn, New York City.
Somersault is their third album, released in June of 2017 – and it is one of their strongest, with a guest appearance from Slowdive member Rachel Goswell on the second track Tangerine.
The album opens with ‘This Year’, with an instrumental which is reminiscent of ‘60s rock bands like The Beatles and The Kinks – similar to its predecessors, the uplifting riffs mask the dismal lyrics.
In an interview with The Fader magazine, frontman Dustin Payseur states:
“On Somersault, I'm seeing things that I could be doing better. Where I've failed. I'm seeing where I could be a better person. I think it's really important to admit that. Not even in art, but to yourself. Saying, "these are the mistakes I've made". Critiquing yourself the same way you would another person. Friendships are just as important as any romantic relationship. The way that you choose certain people around you and who you're associating with on a regular basis and how you interact with each other … that's huge.”
‘Saint Ivy’ and ‘Social Jetlag’ contain a sprinkling of the flute (criminally underrated instrument, in my humble opinion). ‘Saint Ivy’ was written the day after the presidential election in 2016: ‘The One Where Donald Trump Becomes President’ - Payseur speaks for a lot of the American population through the lyric “I wish that there could be another way, but I know that you’ve made up your mind”.
Mid-way through the album are standout tracks ‘Sugar’ and ‘Down The Line’.
‘Sugar’ opens with a “One, two, three” which progressively slows to a rough speed of 0.5 before the lo-fi instrumental kicks in, and eventually Payseurs’ tranquil singing voice and lyrics which overflow with brutal and honest self-expression and awareness. Not to mention, the outro is extremely satisfying.
‘Down The Line’ explores themes mentioned in both ‘This Year’ and ‘Saint Ivy’, e.g., mental health, showing up for others, and the political climate in America circa 2016 (which is still relevant even seven years later).
When speaking to The Fader magazine, Payseur stated:
“It’s a lot about myself, I guess. It’s about me facing depression head on. I was trying to work on music and I was feeling so fucking low. Just like, in the dirt. I couldn’t get anything to happen. My creativity was completely zapped. I was kind of breaking down. I hadn’t really been sleeping. I started working on this song, and I really liked how it was feeling. I put lyrics down. I did the whole song really fast. It was one of the only songs on the record that I did in one or two sittings. I realized if I just kind of faced how I was feeling, I could use it to my advantage. I could let it out.”
Payseur also spoke on his use of the term ‘A-C-A-B’ to Bandwagon magazine:
“For me, there’s a lot of fucked up stuff going on in the US, especially by the police, and people are speaking out against it and becoming aware of it. There’s a lot of abuse of power, it’s important for people to speak out against that abuse of power because you have to keep the police force in check. They can’t just do what they want. They can’t murder people and get away with it. Something has to stop.”
Unironically, the album closes with ‘That’s All for Now’ and Beach Fossils would not release another studio album with new material until 2023’s Bunny which was released in June (also worth checking out, as well as the rest of their catalogue).
Beach Fossils are a band who excel in what they do – constantly evolving, successfully.
Somersault is a modern classic.
