FEEP deliver sarcastic commentary on modern society through ‘Take a Pill’.
If you ask your grandparents, FEEP is probably best known as the fictional big-headed alien host of WNAC-TV’s ‘60s horror and sci-fi movie series Fantasmic Features. But if you ask your grandchildren, they’ll likely have a different answer entirely: FEEP is their new favorite band out of Boston.
The quartet, described by bassist and co-vocalist Fish as a band “born from a cosmic spark shooting across the void and into your sensory organs,” are set to create a blissfully noisy racket with debut single “Take a Pill,” a swirling, fit of agitated cool that crashes the streams on Friday, September 23. It follows a pair of demos the band quietly posted to Bandcamp earlier this year, and serves as the first official taste of FEEP’s debut album, FEEP Has Landed, set for release later this year.
“Take a Pill” is a bit of a tone-setter, sonically and lyrically, for not only what’s to come, but a tonic for all you’ve already experienced. “It’s a sarcastic commentary on today’s society,” says guitarist and co-vocalist Robert McDonald, “and how we must tone ourselves down in order to belong.”
McDonald says “Take a Pill” was FEEP’s early attempt at writing something a bit more concise, with a direct message, while still keeping the band’s experimental side. The track, which leads off the forthcoming FEEP LP, swirls through hypnotic lanes of kinetic guitar-pop while spinning a pinwheel of indie, post-punk, neo-psych, and garage rock.
“It’s a taste of a lot of the colors on the rest of the album put together in a neat package,” he adds. “Lyrically it shows our more sarcastic nature, with some biting lyrics. It sets a tone of ‘we don’t give a shit’.”
FEEP are: Fish: Bass, vocals Tim: Keys, vocals Alex: Drums Bobby: Guitar, vocals
Though the four players didn’t really have a certain sound in mind upon formation – coming together during the pandemic, when each of the members’ other bands dissolved due to the Covid shutdown – the sound of FEEP was something that developed organically. The dudes holed up in a sweaty practice space during most of 2021 writing what would become the debut album, honing what would also become the vibe of their live show, and soon took to the backwoods of Pennsylvania to set up a DIY space to put the moods to a proper recording.
“It was very casual at first, just a way to play while COVID had stopped gigs at the time,” McDonald admits. “We quickly realized we had something great, and it very seamlessly transitioned in a serious act.”
‘Take a Pill’ production credits:
All songs written by FEEP
All songs recorded by the band in the backwoods of Pennsylvania
Having played out regionally over the past year, from craft beer festivals to dirty rock clubs, FEEP are now ready to pull back the curtain and show off their sounds far beyond the stage. It begins with “Take a Pill”, and carries forward through a wealth of new music and content ready for public consumption. Though the band hopes to continue playing shows across New England and eventually land on some big-ticket far-away music festivals, from Austin’s Levitation to Coachella in California, right now, FEEP are just doing what FEEP wants to do.
“We just like playing together,” McDonald says. “We’re trying to get better everyday whether it’s songwriting, musicianship, recording, whatever. It’s mainly for ourselves. It’s just what we love to work at.”
And as for the band name?
“Honestly it just makes us laugh, so we kept it,” McDonald says.