The Power Of Compromise: Flipturn Interviewed
Flipturn have been going from strength to strength since releasing their debut album ‘Shadowglow’ in 2022. The Florida five-piece played their first European shows last year, including two at London’s MOTH Club, and released second album ‘Burnout Days’ in January – days after appearing on Jimmy Kimmel Live.
Dillon Basse (vocals), Tristan Duncan (guitar), Madeline Jarman (bass), Mitch Fountain (guitar, synth) and Devon VonBalson (drums, percussion) are a tight-knit bunch, the former three founding the band in high school and adding the latter two after they went off to college.
Ahead of a busy spring and summer, as well as more European shows towards the end of the year, CLASH caught up with them all to see how they’re getting on, how the new album went down with fans, and what they thought of the UK.
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What’s the reaction been so far for ‘Burnout Days’?
Mitch: It seems that everyone really enjoys it, which is great! We’ll be able to tell more once we start playing shows on tour. That’s when we find out what songs people enjoy the most.
What are your favourite tracks from the album right now?
Mitch: I love ‘Swim Between Trees’, ‘Right?’, ‘Burnout Days’, and ‘Window’, those are my top favorites, but it switches daily!
When did you start working on the album, and has your creative process changed as you’ve gotten a little older?
Dillon: We started working on the album during the summer of 2023. We took a trip to the outskirts of Asheville, North Carolina for a two-week writing retreat.
As far as our process goes, I’d say it’s been pretty consistent as we’ve grown as a band. I think the only thing that’s changed is our taste and our ability to play off each other when we’re writing.
What’s it been like to work together for so long? How do you resolve any disagreements?
Madeline: Thankfully we don’t have too many disagreements, but over everything, I think we all know the power of compromise. If there are two different ideas for a song section, we’re typically able to find a nice middle ground or combination of ideas. My bandmates are my family, so if there are any stupid tiffs, they get squashed pretty quickly!
What was it like to appear on Jimmy Kimmel Live?
Madeline: It was such an amazing experience! I’m a huge fan of the show, so I was trying to manage my expectations going into it, but the day truly lived up to all I hoped for it to be!
Everyone was so kind and took great care of us. We received so much love from our hometown too, so it was great to know that we had people cheering for us on the opposite coast of the country.
You’ve got a busy spring lined up, are you ready to hit the road?
Devon: So incredibly ready and excited! A lot of these new songs we have are my favourites to play now. I get chills picturing certain moments of this show that we’ve crafted and I can’t wait to perform this new album for people!
How did you find your UK shows in November – and how does it feel to come back later this year?
Tristan: They were honestly so fun! The UK treated us really well and we just loved the time we had over there. I know we’re all so excited to be back there in November and super stoked to be playing at the O2 Forum.
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Words: Adam England
