Forty Foot “Melty Brains”

Dublin-based alternative band – FORTY FOOT – have unveiled the official video for: “Melty Brains”.

A fuzzy and distorted montage that sees impassioned performance shots turn increasingly warped as the track rumbles on, the new video was directed by Tom McMahon and shot in Forty Foot’s rehearsal space at Dublin’s Yellow Door Studios (home to the likes of Fontaines D.C., The Murder Capital, Pillow Queens and Thumper).

As guitarist Mark Dillon explains:

“The concept of the video was to capture how we wrote the song, live in our rehearsal space. The visual intent was to make it look like an old VHS cassette someone has stumbled upon, There is a grainy or scratchy effect throughout the verse and once the chorus kicks in the visuals become completely messed up, again mimicking a damaged cassette but also playing on the vocal hook: “my brain / you melt it”.”

Delving into the darker side of Dublin through energetic, distortion-fuelled riffs and infectious vocal melodies, “Melty Brains” is a mosh-ready anthem that takes its name from a piece of Dublin slang used to describe “a situation where someone keeps telling you a really boring story.”

Cementing Forty Foot as one of 2023’s most exciting emerging acts, the track arrives as the band’s fourth release to-date and was recorded at Dublin’s acclaimed Camden Recording Studios (previously host to artists including Hozier, Bryan Adams and 50 Cent). Opting for a one-take approach to complement their fuzzy ‘90s sound, vocalist and rhythm guitarist Sam Coffey explains:

“We all just got in the room and went for it. We had everything turned up so there’s bleed on every track, I did my vocals in the control room so there’s bleed from the monitors too. We wanted to capture how we play it live and channel that energy.”

While the band’s previous releases chronicle the stages of grief and destructive desire, “Melty Brains” is a thunderous yet viscerally honest remark on the lives of 30-somethings that pins together snippets of stories heard amongst the bustle of pubs around Dublin. Blending a psychedelic riff with larger-than-life rhythms and an infectious chorus, Mark adds:

“We grew up in an era where rock bands played live and loud, anything else is weird to us. I love the energy and intensity of live bands and we always try to capture that with our recordings. We don’t like to sit in a booth and layer guitars over each other: we play live with a few amps and every distortion pedal. There’s so much feedback on our guitars, I thought our engineer was going to hate us. But he loved it, he got the vibe.”

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Following the sudden death of close friend and former collaborator, Forty Foot were formed in 2019 by Mark Dillon (guitar) and Sam Coffey (rhythm guitar/vocals). In 2022, drummer Anthony Ross and bassist Keith Ennis joined the band, adding a new layer to their signature sound.

New release “Melty Brains” follows the band’s previous singles “Zeros”, “IDNA” and debut “Drugs”. Pioneering a raw and energetic ‘90s-infused sound that nods to the past while simultaneously plotting a course towards the future, Forty Foot take inspiration from the noise-driven live performances delivered by their musical heroes at the end of the last century.

Having recently completed a run of support slots with October Drift, the band have also attracted praise from a range of tastemaker blogs including GoldenPlec who praised “Zeros” for its “Cobain tinge” and “impressive in-your-face mix”.

-Official bio