The most surprising thing about the latest offering from Santa Barbara’s Plastic Harpoons is that it exists at all. The quartet announced their debut album last month, and its affecting second single ‘Gettysburg’ looked like it wouldn’t make the cut for the record for a while, certainly not in its original form; it was, however, revived under tragic circumstances, as drummer Bij Firouzan explains.
“Originally a folk song, I wrote it as a birthday gift for two twin brothers who were some of my closest friends that I met in college. It was our first year out and I was missing my life and friends of the last 4 years. I was living at home in Pittsburgh, and that day, the rain was coming down hard through the cold air.
Fast forward a few years and their mother, who was one of the kindest people I’ve ever met, unexpectedly passed away from a rare disease. In her memory, I dug the song back up and brought it to the band, who helped rework and update the musical arrangement and lyrics into what it is now. We wanted the energy to not be sad, but celebratory – that we are grateful for the memories of those no longer with us.”
It’s certainly a bittersweet song, but most tellingly of all it indicates where Plastic Harpoons are headed on the full-length; Modern World arrives on Friday October 21st via Lolipop Records, and we’re premiering ‘Gettysburg’ – tune in below:
