“As cliché as it sounds, we just want to play our music to as many people as possible before we keel over and die,” grins Tim Bell, guitarist of Nottingham quintet Catch Fire, a posi pop-punk proposition formed earlier this year from the ashes of local heroes, Layby; “We have a burning desire to write and play music. It’s really as simple as that. I don’t think any of us can see ourselves doing anything other than this.”
Debut E.P The Distance I Am From You boasts bangers such as infectious as lead single and future floor filler, “Bad Behaviour”, and the soaring, emo-tinged “Anaesthetic”, alongside 2 further tracks. Here drummer Ash gives context to the offering and a taster of what you can expect, track by track…
The Distance I Am From You is a collection of songs about being in a relationship that you don’t feel wanted in and feeling distant from everyone around you. It’s also a wake up that you need a big fat slap in the face to remind you that life is too short to waste all your time and money on someone who simply isn’t worth it. We’re all absolutely hopeless with relationships, but at least that gives us songs to write, eh?!
We wrote TDIAFY over 6 months and we couldn’t be happier with how it turned out. We worked our asses off to make these songs what they are, and it brought us closer together hearing back what we’d worked so hard on for so long. We wanted a sound that was angsty, warm and powerful, that captured the emotion and the messages that we wanted to get across, and we think Seb Barlow did a pretty sweet job helping us do just that.
Track 1: Introspective Pt. I: This song is one of our personal favourites. We wanted to open up the EP properly whilst telling a story throughout it, which is why we decided to write a two-part song which would sit as the opening and the closing tracks. Musically, this one is the most interesting, with a bit of everything; a fast paced intro, palm mute sections, a tempo change and a big ending. We really wanted to commence the EP with an emotional bang, whilst showcasing what we’re about, so we really went all out with this one. Lyrically It’s about feeling insignificant in a relationship, and that you can’t help but feel like the other person would be happier without you, which inadvertently makes you unhappy and feeling inadequate. Yes, that’s right, a pop punk song about a girl. It’s one of our most fun songs to play live too, it really hits home towards the end, and the hairs on the backs of our necks start to stand up playing it.
Track 2: Bad Behaviour: “Bad Behaviour” is our most unique song, and also was the most challenging to write. We chose this one as our single for two reasons: 1. It was the most popular, and 2. It represented our sound and direction the most. We wanted to write something that we felt we hadn’t heard before, and that was interesting to listen to. Something fresh and exciting, that felt personal to us. We spent a long time figuring out how to make it authentic and constantly tweaking it to ensure it was the best song it could be. “Was it me or depression that broke you down? ‘Cause I get the impression that it was me somehow.” This line from the chorus, means a lot to me as it’s derived from a very negative period in my life, and I’d bet my life that there are loads of people in the position I was in. My advice: “Stay posi and get rid ASAP.” You can see the video for “Bad Behaviour” below.
Track 3: Anaesthetic: “Anaesthetic” is the first song we ever wrote as a band, and it’s the one that we all get stuck in our heads and sing in the shower (separately of course). It means a lot to us because of this sentiment alone, and it’s always our warm up song when we practice. It’s one of the most upbeat and relatable ones from the EP which make it fun to play live too.
Track 4: Introspective Pt. II: This is the second half of the first song, and the closing track of the EP. This song is acoustic song, and aptly it’s also the last song we wrote together for TDIAFY. It came together quickly, Miles and I writing it together one night in around 45 minutes. It was one of those that just came to us so naturally and when we showed the rest of the guys at practice, they all instantly fell in love with it. Tt’s also a good conclusion to the EP as it gives the story some closure. But, I guess you’ll have to listen to it to find out exactly what it’s trying to say…
Catch Fire release The Distance I Am From You on February 5th 2016. Pre-order now:
Stream another new song, ‘Introspective Pt I’ on YouTube now.
Catch Fire: facebook | twitter
