An ode to the music and lyrics of the Front Bottoms ILLUSTRATION BY: Matt Fabrizio
Nobody quite evokes nostalgia in music for me like the Front Bottoms.
Sure, other bands may be connected to my memories, but the Front Bottoms has the power to invoke memories of experiences that I haven’t even lived.
The Front Bottoms, an indie folk duo out of Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey, formed in 2006 when Brian Sella, the lead singer, and Matt Uychich, the drummer and Sella’s childhood best friend, started writing music. Since then, they have released seven full albums, multiple EPs and rerecordings of their early songs.
The band is well known for Sella’s lyrics, telling relatable and human stories, with a simple musical backing. The indie-folk group can make even the most mundane memories sound like the most important issue.
In “Hooped Earrings” from their self-titled album, Sella tells a story about his friend who is trying to come out to her unsupportive mother. He uses the entire second verse to comment on a rash he noticed on the back of her neck, just above the neckline of her shirt, and how that is the only thing he remembers. He makes it out to be an important detail when in reality it has little relevance to the situation at hand. In creating moments out of small details, their songs feel truly real rather than stories made for music.
Sometimes, a band or song can come into your life at the exact right moment, the Front Bottoms was that for me. They first appeared in my life when the COVID-19 pandemic struck in March of 2020.
I was not a very social person, so when I grew apart from past friends, I turned to music. I often posted what I was listening to on my social media, and one day, a mutual friend suggested that I listen to the Front Bottoms. Their music immediately caught my attention, and I connected with and fell in love with a new band immediately.
Their music sounded, unlike anything I had heard before. It was just two kids writing about parties, breakups and their lives. It was honest, too. They weren’t exaggerating or looking at anything with rose-tinted glasses, either. If they were the bad guy in the story, they didn’t try to cover that up. It was genuine. Since starting to listen to their music, I have attended three of their concerts and begun learning to sing and play their songs on guitar.
Their music doesn’t have to be instrumentally complex, since they are incredible lyricists. Whatever they write about feels like the most important thing in the world to them. Through this, their music can resonate with such a broad audience. For that, I thank them. I thank them for evoking nostalgia and allowing me to reminisce on the young adult experience, even through memories I have yet to make. I thank them for coming into my life at the exact right moment, and, even though it’s in a very roundabout manner, for shaping me into the person I am today.
Most importantly, I thank them for making simple yet powerful music to this very day, which impacts their listeners in such a deep manner through their work. They are absolutely worth the listen.