Brisbane alt-rock four-piece Tape/Off return with their blistering new single Fort Sensible, the title track from their forthcoming third album (out March 7), and announce a national tour in support of the record.
A scathing, high-energy anthem, Fort Sensible encapsulates the band’s distinctive aesthetic— ferocious guitars, tribal beats, and socially conscious polemic. Frontman Nathan Pickels’ anguished refrain, “It gets me down!”, punctuates the track, which twists and writhes through layers of tension before collapsing into silence, a sonic metaphor for frustrated resignation.
“The idea of the song has been floating around for ages, and it’s just venting frustration built up from years of observing the Australian political landscape,” explains Pickels. “It seems like every time there’s a bit of hope – someone suggests an idea with serious merit – you think it’s going to get up, but it gets knocked on the head and you’re just left disappointed. It’s about that hope being crushed and feeling continually let down.”
While the song leans into scathing social commentary, Pickels clarifies that Tape/Off don’t see themselves as a band with a message to preach. “We’re no strangers to social commentary, but we try not to be overt. This is probably the most overt one we’ve done, just because we never want to tell people what to do. I think we probably use the band for catharsis – for ourselves, personally – and we don’t feel like we’re telling anybody what to believe, it’s just us saying, ‘This is how we feel about the situation at hand.’”
Fort Sensible follows the success of previous singles Paris, Texas, Queensland, which hit #6 on 4ZZZ’s Hot 100 – and Flat Earthers, which landed on Double J rotation and climbed 4ZZZ’s Top 20 chart. The band has also gained traction through playlisting support across streaming platforms, cementing their presence in the Australian alternative rock landscape.
With their first two albums, ‘Chipper’ (2014) and ‘Broadcast Park’ (2018), both long-listed for the Australian Music Prize, Tape/Off believe their new album is their most accomplished yet. “I think it’s our best record, for sure,” Pickels admits. “I think it’s probably our most sincere record- it’s not like we’re pouring our hearts out or anything like that, but it’s the closest so far we’ve got to what we want to do both sonically and lyrically. We had the luxury of a bit more time and really got the sounds we wanted.”
“This record features both Cam [Smith – bass] and Ben [Green – guitar] singing on it a bunch as well, which is something that we’ve always wanted. I think the strength of us as a band is actually being a band—it’s not just centred around one person or another. So it feels really nice to nearly have it out there, we’re all really proud of it.”
Fresh from supporting Jeff Rosenstock (USA) and The D4 (NZ), Tape/Off will take Fort Sensible on the road with a national tour hitting Brisbane, Gold Coast, Sydney, Wollongong, Melbourne, and Adelaide.
Fort Sensible IS OUT NOW – LISTEN HERE
‘Fort Sensible’ WILL BE RELEASED ON MARCH 7 – PRE-SAVE / PRE-ORDER HERE
TAPE/OFF
‘FORT SENSIBLE’ ALBUM TOUR
Tickets on sale soon
www.tapeoff.net
09 MAY – Iron & Resin Garage, COOLANGATTA
10 MAY – Soapbox Beer, BRISBANE
16 MAY – The Lansdowne Hotel, SYDNEY
17 MAY – La La La’s, WOLLONGONG
23 MAY – The Crown & Anchor, ADELAIDE
24 MAY – The Gem, MELBOURNE
With thanks to Coolin’ By Sound
