(Cover art by Lydia Williams)
We've missed St. Paul's Keep for Cheap. It's been just over a year since they released one of the best EPs of 2019 (and maybe all time?) with Get Along. Towards the end of the winter, the band started playing some new songs regularly at gigs. Attendees of those shows were blessed with a version of the band's incredible new single "Forgive Me."
Written by Kate Malanaphy, "Forgive Me" is the natural next step for Keep for Cheap's sound. The twangier elements reach a new level, culminating in a full-on country guitar solo from guitarist Ted Tiedemann. Idyllic lyricism summons uncertain emotions until they burst into clarity through the cloudiness. And my God, the vocal harmonies will always knock me out.
To get to the heart of the new song, we asked Malanaphy a few questions via email — read their answers below. While reading, why not listen to "Forgive Me" on repeat for the rest of the day?
Ear Coffee: Summarize the last nine months or so — what has Keep for Cheap been up to since last March?
Kate Malanaphy: The last nine months have been pretty slow for us. Up until mid-summer, we weren't meeting regularly or getting much new stuff written. But then in July, we were able to get a little studio time in, and I think that got us excited about band things again. Since then, we've been practicing regularly, nailing down a lot of new material, shooting some video content, and prepping to demo an album!
EC: What was the writing like for "Forgive Me?" It's Kate's first time on lead vocals and taking point for Keep for Cheap.
KM: I wrote "Forgive Me" on my own and didn't intend to bring it to Keep for Cheap at first, but Autumn liked it so we decided to try it out - I'm very glad we did! We changed the form and the feel a little bit and the song took on a really nice energy. It's very different from the stuff off of Get Along, but it's a sound we're excited about and that we've carried over to some other new stuff too.
This song was written when I was housesitting. It was only the second day. I had eaten more than half of the homeowners' jar of sauerkraut - yes I like it yum delish (Editor's note: we don't condone this behavior) - and made a hug mess of their bathroom by cutting my hair, and I just had a moment where I was struck by exactly how impulsive I was being. This song is an acknowledgement of that side of myself, and a plea, shouted into the void of the public's ear, for some sort of absolution.
EC: How has the song grown and/or changed since it was first written? I remember y'all playing it at a handful of shows back in February.
KM: The song has evolved quite a bit over its lifespan. At different stages of writing and practicing, it had a 7/8 feel, the harmonies were divided differently, and it was about five minutes long. Even after we got all those more concrete kinks worked out, it took us a while to settle into the dynamics and mood. It used to be a lot louder and crunchier, but it's softened up over time. We'd been playing this song for almost a year and I think it really reached its final form about a month or two before COVID's fist came crashing down.
EC: What lies in the future for Keep for Cheap?
KM: We are chomping at the bit right now to record more music, and have plenty of new songs to put together [on] an album. Our recent songs, written by both Autumn and myself, are some of my personal favorites - they don't quite match the flowery energy of Get Along, but they retain some shimmer and twang, and they have a grounded and purposeful quality to them, which may be creditable to the growth in confidence and perceptivity that I feel Keep for Cheap has gained as a group recently. And of course, like everyone else, we patiently and eagerly await the time when it is safe to perform live again. When that time comes, a tour is in store! Overall, we've got big plans (despite not being able to act on much right now), and we can't wait to keep cheaping on.
Comments
Post a Comment