Flipturn Talks Growth, Self-Reflection, And Playing At Bottom Of The Hill

Summery and dreamy as they are compelling and orchestral, power quintent flipturn is a delicately complex tour de force. With over 60 million Spotify streams and over a million followers, flipturn consistently impresses, effortlessly amassing endless accolades through their groundbreaking and irresistable indie rock hits.

Following nonstop festival appearances that garnered them acclaim from the Rolling Stone, The B-Side, and more, flipturn's recent debut album Shadowglow and subsequent Shadowglow Tour will have them maintaining this winning stride with showstopping nationwide performances. One of these stops will have them gracing our own legendary Bottom of the Hill on October 9th at 7pm.

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Hailing from the similarly coastal Florida, flipturn's heavenly sound highlights a treasured reverence to this idyllic beachy lifestyle, particularly through the experiences of young adulthood. Listening to flipturn makes you truly feel like the main character of your own vivid coming-of-age movie, inspiring you to reflect on fleeting youth and appreciate your evolving journey.

With the talented band brilliantly consisting of masterful lead vocals and rhythm guitar from Dillon Basse, Tristan Duncan's lead guitar, Madeline Jarman's bass, synth from Mitch Fountain, and drums by Devon VonBalson, we had the spectacular opportunity to chat with them on how Shadowglow came to be and what they're excited for in San Francisco.

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Hello, thank you so much for taking the time to chat! Shadowglow is such a vibrant layering of not only the musical composition, but also as the embodiment of your growth, both as a band and as maturing adults. How did you establish the lyrics, and how did you determine the right sounds to precisely capture these delicate feelings?
Dillon Basse: With every song we write, the lyrics are almost always the last piece added. When we start writing, the songs, the composition, and feel come from us all jamming on an idea that someone brings to practice.

I find most of the lyrics from whatever emotion the music evokes. The album was written during the pandemic where there was a lot of time to reflect and look inwards, so the ideas of self-actualization and that time is always fleeting were big inspirations.

And so with the pandemic stimulating such reflection and self-actualization, do you feel it is vital to create music that evokes optimism, reflection, and youthful cheerfulness in these current times?
Tristan Duncan: I think it’s definitely an important thing, but I don’t think we do it necessarily “intentionally.” Music is so grounded in communication that we just found ways to express the things that we are trying to figure out in this world we live in. I do think we are fortunate to represent some of these emotions with the music we create and just really hope people can find what they need out of it.

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Now here's a fun one: are you excited to play at our historic Bottom of the Hill, and in San Francisco overall?
Madeline Jarman: Yes! We played at Bottom of the Hill earlier this year when we opened for Wilderado, so we’re super pumped to come back for our own headlining show.

Do you have any favorite sites or food spots?

We haven’t had too much time to explore San Francisco in the past, so unfortunately I can’t offer any recommendations. We love to check out local spots when we have the time, so if anyone has suggestions let us know!

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If you could pick a lyric from any of your songs that resonates with you, which one would it be and why?
Madeline Jarman: My favorite line at the moment is from our song “Goddamn”— “If everyone’s fine, everyone’s lying to you. I wanna be happy or distracted, don’t it feel the same?” I think it resonates with me because everyone has their own internal struggles, even if it may not seem like it from the outside or through pictures online.

Lastly, as a dedicated band whose hard work has led to such extraordinary success, I would love to know what advice do you have for other up-and-coming bands looking to establish their identity or grow their audience?
Tristan Duncan: No two paths are the same, but I will say a lot there’s a lot of merit in consistency. We’re still trying to figure it all out, too— but I think we’ve tried to not let our heads get clouded with whatever everyone else is doing. Not to say we don’t take inspiration from people, but it’s easy to let it unintentionally guide the decision process of establishing a musical and social identity.

Creating and sharing is a vulnerable thing, so it’s a lot of allowing yourself to express your thoughts and ideas and holding onto the fundamental thing that drew you in in the first place. This is my roundabout way of saying trust your gut :)

Thank you so much for your thoughtful answers, and I hope you enjoy your visit to our west coast!

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You can discover more about the awe-inspiring flipturn here, as well as purchase advance tickets for Bottom of the Hill with more information here.