Floatie are a quartet from Chicago who are friends that have been making music together for a number of years. They’ve now been signed by Exploding in Sound, who will release their debut album Voyage Out on March 26. Ahead of that, they’ve shared a single called “Catch A Good Worm”, with vocalist Sam Bern (they/them) saying:
“Two options could never represent the complexity of human expression. I think a lot of people could benefit from not having predetermined expectations of themselves in place upon arrival. Sometimes the pressures of challenging these patterns make me think this is how I was born so that is who I’m meant to be. When the reality is I can work towards being whoever I want.”
While grounded in the daily trials of outdated societal expectations, “Catch A Good Worm” also has a conceptual bent that is hinted at in the above quote and comes to the fore in the song’s arresting ideas. With a tightness that can only come from years of understanding, Floatie present a taut stop-start rocker where Bern’s visions float, seemingly serene but actually charged with fear and frustration: “A pretty worm, that saw its own reflection / If there are two, then who am I replaced with?” Later, they provoke a chilling reflection of their discomfort as they describe “Bright lights spreading vast and wide / Beings at the gate / Rewind and cut off their supply / now we can escape.” Throughout, the quartet’s tense and rhythmic interplay tickles and challenges, remaining thrilling without ever overshadowing their singer – and it all adds up to making “Catch A Good Worm” a continuously thrilling listen.
Floatie’s debut album Voyage Out comes out through Exploding In Sound on March 26. You can find them on Instagram and Bandcamp.
