BOIL is “acollection of five songs that span a bunch of different influences and sounds, but we wanted to be very intentional in creating some sonic through lines that tie everything together,” says Portland-based indie rockers FORTY FEET TALLabout their new rage-filled EP BOIL, (Out now via Magnetic Moon). Launching from where their previous album A Good Distraction left off, BOIL progresses the band forward in a new genre-bending direction. “The EP captures where we’re headed well, I think. It’s a lot more post-punk oriented and energetic. I think it holds a lot of anger that so many people are feeling while still being playful and fun,” explains Forty Feet Tall. While that album was focused mainly on the effects the pandemic and the political climate had on the band, this EP harnesses the adrenaline and angst that being cooped up has created.
Already an audience favorite, lead single “BOIL” starts off taut and tense, escalates quickly, and explodes a few seconds past the one-minute mark. Memorable riffs turn somersaults over relentless grooves on “Big Red Bus” and “Nic Cage.” At any moment, you may think of Archers of Loaf, the Killers, Pavement, or Pixies. Keep listening and uncover more surprises: the curious coda of dreamlike “On & On & On,” and the subtle dynamics within “Chin Up.” Forty Feet Tall is a band that consistently creates songs that are sharp and focused regardless of tempo or volume. “We’ve been playing these songs live for so long without a way for people to listen, so this just feels so good to have a place where people can go to get to know us without seeing a performance. But come see a show. Always come see a show,” Forty Feet Tall expresses.
Starting out further down the Pacific Coast in SoCal, Forty Feet Tall began with a childhood friendship between Los Angeles natives Cole Gann(lead singer/guitar) and Jack Sehres(guitar). They started out playing a benefit to save the rainforest, but by graduation had built a following big enough to play on stages including the Troubadour, Roxy, and the Whiskey. College took Jack to San Francisco and Cole to Portland, but the band continued to perform even as they focused on their studies. Forty Feet Tall then released their self-titled album in 2014, followed a few years later by the Red Dressed EP. Bass player Brett Marquette came aboard in 2017; later adding drummer Ian Kelley which solidified the band. Forty Feet Tall’s hard-edged, expansive sound drew attention from television and movie music supervisors. Having songs featured inShowtime’s Shameless, several MTV spots, in the Paramount feature Drunk Wedding, and even an Arnold Schwarzenegger flick (Killing Gunther).
For what’s to come with Forty Feet Tall, the band already has many more hard-hitting songs ready to be unleashed, Forty Feet Tall explains “We originally recorded ten songs at Trash Treasury so the plan is to release more singles and a second EP in December. The more the merrier.”
Forty Feet Tall is Cole Gann (vocals/guitar), Brett Marquette (bass) Ian Kelley (drums), and Jack Sehres (guitar). The new EP BOIL was produced by Cameron Spies(Radiation City, Night Heron.) BOIL is released now via Magnetic Moon.
