The lively alt/indie-pop New Jersey trio The Happy Fits have released a video for their latest single "Around And Around" ahead of their upcoming third studio album, Under The Shade of Green, available for pre-order now. In addition to new music, the band will hit the road this fall and winter across the EU and UK, with U.S. dates soon after.
The cinematic, eccentric video for the band's latest track "Around And Around" picks up where their previously shared "Do Your Worst" video (shown later in this article) left off. Both directed by Joe Lee and Christian Strevy, "Do Your Worst" set the scene, imagining a world where pineapples are made illegal by the U.S. government. The trio begins illegally distributing them, making significant profits, leading to a run from the "Drug Enforcement Administration".
Instead of coming up with an ending to the madness themselves, however, the band asked their own dedicated fans to decide the outcome for them through the Choose Your Worst Adventure contest on social media. The fan-chosen conclusion takes the story further in the "Around And Around" visual, showing the rambunctious trio in their factory, packaging and distributing the fruit until an undercover FBI agent, disguised as a factory worker, where they get caught and sent to do community service.
The band was thrilled to get their fans involved in the riveting saga. Calvin Langman (vocals/cello) says, "After making ten music videos for our last album, and three for this upcoming one, our fans have become pretty accustomed to our zany antics. We thought, “Wouldn’t it be fun to let THEM choose how the music video ended for once?” We had around 2,000 votes in our Choose Your Worst Adventure contest on how to end the ‘Around And Around’ music video–it was so awesome that so many fans are invested in our stories!"
"Around And Around" is the forthcoming album's opening track, one that sets the tone and speaks to how life, in the midst of a pandemic and beyond, can often feel like an endless loop–mirrored by the track's magnetic circular guitar riff written by guitarist Ross Monteith years prior. Explaining how the track came to be, Langman adds, "It works two-fold to me; during the dog days of the pandemic, it felt like the world was just going around and around and nothing changed. Yet, there’d come months or weeks when it felt like the world was changing so rapidly and violently that I couldn’t keep up."
The single is available here. Under The Shade of Green is available for pre-order here.
After overwhelming turnouts at both Napa's BottleRock Festival and Milwaukee's Summerfest, the band will be trotting across the pond to Europe and the UK this fall. The Happy Fits will hit Glasgow, UK on October 17th, Manchester and London the following two days and finish in Berlin on October 22nd. The Happy Fits are quickly gaining traction with over 1.8M monthly listeners on Spotify, 28.4K YouTube subscribers and 9.7M YouTube views. The 2021 What Could Be Better Tour saw 20+ sold out dates from LA to NYC.
Shortly after, the trio will kick off a lengthy full-length tour through November and half of December stretching from the East, to West, and Southern U.S. Beginning in Burlington, VT on November 8th, the band will head through the Midwest, then across the West including three dates in California, and South including three dates in Texas, before concluding in Philadelphia, PA on December 18. Find a full list of dates below, with tickets on sale now via thehappyfits.com/tour.
The third studio album, Under The Shade of Green, is a moment of processing the last two years for each of the three band members, and invites listeners to join them. In typical Happy Fits fashion, however, the band blends serious subject matter with inescapable hooks and melodies, beaming instrumentation and unparalleled charm.
More than ever, the last two years have exposed colossal systemic failures throughout the world and \ Langman (lead vocals/electric cellist) says the album created space to better understand his role within it. "This album is how I’ve been processing the trauma of the past two years, from the pandemic, to climate change, to the rise of fascism, to BLM, to finding my place in this broken world. As there aren’t many who are left unshaken, I hope everyone can find something dark in here to relate to."
Monteith (guitarist/vocals) adds that in addition to their processing, it offers a place of refuge, healing and cathartic release. "It ranges from small anxieties to existential crises. It was written as a sort of therapeutic way of releasing these emotions that, seemingly, a lot of us have dealt with. It is a reminder for us to stay positive, overcome bad habits, and conquer our fears."
This time, the band's creative process on the album lasted almost six months within the walls of their Brooklyn studio. Together five days a week, they were able to bounce ideas around, work on demos and hone their sound like never before. Luke Davis (drums) says in addition to giving the cello a spotlight in a new way, the band has evolved their sound to fit who they are today. "From the catchy melodies to the insane guitar riffs and cello parts, we have expanded our sound in a way that wouldn’t have been possible for us in the past. While still having The Happy Fits feel, a lot of these songs have very driven instrumental melodies."
After the pandemic hit, Langman, like many, deeply struggled both with facing the reality of moving back in with his parents, and with confronting problems within relationships in his life. The track allows Langman to release any excess pain and negativity he had been carrying. Explaining what inspired the track, Langman explains,"There was this overall feeling of disappointment I had for someone I once really respected. Everyone has their empathetic boundaries, and when you reach yours and have to cut off a person, it doesn’t feel good any way you slice it. I needed this song to channel all this negative energy into so as to not let it come to a head."
The Happy Fits - Under The Shade of Green Tour Fall/Winter 2022
Oct. 17 - Glasgow, UK - Attic
Oct. 18 - Manchester, UK - Night & Day
Oct.. 19 - London, UK - Colours
Oct. 22 - Berlin, DE - Pratchwerk
Nov. 8 - Burlington, VT - Higher Ground
Nov. 9 - Hamden, CT - Space Ballroom
Nov. 11 - Washington, DC - Union Stage
Nov. 12 - Pittsburgh, PA - Spirit Hall
Nov. 13 - Columbus, OH - Newport Music Hall
Nov. 15 - Detroit, MI - El Club
Nov. 16 - Indianapolis, IN - Deluxe
Nov. 18 - St. Louis, MO - Delmar Hall
Nov. 19 - Chicago, IL - Metro
Nov. 20 - Minneapolis, MN - First Ave
Nov. 22 - Denver, CO - Summit Music Hall
Nov. 23 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Complex
Nov. 25 - Portland, OR - Wonder Ballroom
Nov. 26 - Seattle, WA - Neptune Theatre
Nov. 29 - San Francisco, CA - August Hall
Nov. 30 - San Diego, CA - House of Blues
Dec. 1 - Los Angeles, CA - The Fonda
Dec. 5 - Dallas, TX - Trees
Dec. 6 - Austin, TX - Scoot Inn
Dec. 7 - Houston, TX - White Oak Music Hall
Dec. 9 - Orlando, FL - The Plaza Live
Dec. 10 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade
Dec. 11 - Nashville, TN - Basement East
Dec. 13 - Carrboro, NC - Cat's Cradle
Dec. 16 - Boston, MA - The Paradise Rock Club
Dec. 17 - New York, NY - Webster Hall
Dec. 18 - Philadelphia, PA - TLA
