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Fine Forever

by VARSITY

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kattobi
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kattobi I know I know I know know... Favorite track: Shaking Hands.
bernardobarouk
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bernardobarouk I know Varsity since 2017 and after the first time I listened to one of their songs (So sad, so sad) I fell in love with them! I just enjoy so much their music I can't find the words to express it. So when I knew there was going to be a new album I knew I had to go and get it. The delivery was kinda slow because of the Covid-19 outbreak, but it was worth the waiting. So I just want to say: Thank you for existing Varsity, you have a big place in my heart! Favorite track: The Memphis Group.
sssswwww
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sssswwww varsity? more like varshitty. nah but seriously this album is a classic Favorite track: Reason To Run.
steveinsocal
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steveinsocal "…a slickly produced album sees the band further honing a sound which still refuses to be pigeon-holed or conform to expected norms, while sacrificing none of the immediacy of their earlier works… and while their ear for a catchy melody or a wry, observational lyric will earn comparison with contemporaries such Alvvays and Courtney Barnett, you're just as likely to hear influences from 70s soft-rock... not to mention a bright sax solo…"

reclaimingthecolonies-onestateatatime.blogspot.com Favorite track: The Memphis Group.
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1.
Runaway 04:06
Idols in the air Vanish then they disappear How can I worship properly I know it’s not fair Blaming you for something when you’re not here You flip a switch in my memory Runaway I don’t even know your name No ones going anywhere tonight Unless you’re gonna run away But I know that you’re here to stay You make everything okay When you’re around me Penny rhythms gonna take us home We’re taking jackets off, we’re putting pressure on Penny rhythms gonna lead us on  In the back of the van at the top of our lungs Penny rhythms never get old Just take us home Runaway I don’t even know your name You’re not going anywhere tonight Unless you’re gonna run away But I know that you’re here to stay Just another Saturday When you’re around me
2.
Fine Forever 02:58
Times a little Wasted on me Me, you know I’m Happy to be You know exactly where I stand I’m trying to be the bigger man I’ve got it all figured out again And I won’t waste it, waste it I got my fortune for the year It’s saying we’re all in the clear And I won’t let it slip away again I’m gonna take it, take it Times a little Wasted on me Me you know I’m Happy to be Be together Walking around Fine forever We’re gonna live this down We’re laughing at ourselves again It’s nice to not take no offence Yeah, I don’t know what we were thinkin’ What were we thinkin’, thinkin’ Something has finally been released We’re moving subconsciously Not what you want, but what you need  It’s not a walk in the park It’s not a do it on your own It’s not exactly what you thought It’s gonna take a little Times a little Harder to see Hits you in the  Back of the knee Still you know I’m Walking around Fine forever Not gonna live this Time it goes on Now that we’re on the mend Yeah, you know it  Feels like I found my feet again Happier now
3.
Shut-in city Pillars scared of the community Grown up sleaze They log online to find their freaks But nonetheless They’re mowing lawns They’re makin’ beds They’re getting hitched They’re shaking hands No contempt for the former life and rosy glow they all once had But sold it back And I walk around this seedy old town And I ain’t got much to do And I wonder and I wonder If i’m ever going under And I ain’t got much to lose Public parks And public freakouts after dark At the grocery store Nice night for An empty threat slipped underneath your door I’d kill to be your friend And I walk around this shitty old town And I ain’t got much to do And I wonder and I wonder  If I’m ever going under And I ain’t got much to prove I know, I know, I know know I don’t, I don’t, I don’t  And I walk around this sleepy old town And I ain’t got much to do And I wonder and I wonder If I’m ever going under And I ain’t got much to prove Shadows from wall to wall Inside your head Another summer put to bed Lay on your back Insomniac And pray God bless this way of life You say I know, I know, I know now
4.
Would it be okay If I steer the ship today I’m sinking slowly Don’t need no one to hold me Why don’t we let this old girl drown Gave you seventeen Of my best years, guaranteed. Then you found a bottle And a newer model But babe, you did a favor for me Come and say bye to me As I tear up your street To get out from your wrecking line I’m gonna let it die Now I’m hitting my stride I’m the first woman alive To get out from your wrecking line I’m gonna let it die Sold my diamond ring But you can’t buy security I’d rather be exposed Than out here in the cold Suffering for free Would it be okay If I sank this ship today I’ve got a new ride, pal It takes me there I don’t answer to anyone else Come and say bye to me As I’m tearing up the street To get out from your wrecking line I’m gonna let it die Now I’m hitting my stride Cause I’m the first woman alive To get out from your wrecking line I’m gonna let it die You know I have my picture of you You know I have my picture of you You did what you do, you did what you do
5.
Did I see you there Soft psychology Lounging by the pool Staring back at me Do the days add up Or erase the ones before What have I done? Do some more Good taste and great hair You know we’re unprepared To turn it off Living a lie, lying a lot Let’s live on the sun New philosophy Runnin’ down the clock Lap of luxury Aren’t we so unique Look at all we’ve got With money on our minds We never need new thoughts Fine art and great chairs You know we’re unprepared To give it up Living a lie, lying a lot It’s the weight of it all That is making us fall Just take it all away None of it stays If it’s a disaster that they were after Well they got it, I hear the laughter Can’t we pay  To make this go away Yeah, we don’t quite believe it We’re up to our sleeves in it Promises, IOUs, auction house seizing it Take it away
6.
7.
Move Now you’re moving me forward Ain’t it something No ones ever done that for me Push Now you know how to push all my buttons Lying down in low gravity Give it a little while It’s a slow burn Everything will fall into place I turned off the TV And made a speedy getaway  Running for my life Gotta get the show on the road So I’m changing my name Trying to find a way to let go As I circle the drain Looking for a reason to run Or a reason to hide Looking for a star to hold onto This is goodbye Pull Now you’re pulling me back into orbit Feel like a moth to a flame Treat me like I got a disease But it’s worth it To avoid another display Give me some peace of mind for a minute No one said I’m aiming to please You take what you can get You miss the better part of me Running for my life Gotta get the show on the road So I’m changing my name Trying to find a way to let go As I circle the drain Looking for a reason to run Or a reason to hide Look away as I pull the plug This is goodbye I know you It’s too soon Ball and chain You want to Form habits Get static I know you and it’s tragic
8.
One of us Never could just knock it off On the bus Laughing at something we made up We showed our love By sharing cigarettes we bummed Your mom was young Your dad was dumb But anyway I tried To get it right I gave you all my life And now what’s yours is mine And I’m trying to relive But I can’t I got half a mind Gonna take some time I’m not trying to forgive But I can’t Forget about it  We messed up Ripped a stitch and now we’re stuck Real mixed nuts Served with gin and 7-Up And I was you And you are me Made on a California king We had a plan And ripped it up Somehow you stuck But anyway I tried to get it right I gave you all my life And now what’s yours is mine And I’m trying to relive But I can’t I got half a mind Gonna take some time I’m not trying to forgive But I can’t Forget about it You were the punch line Made of tea and clementines Born on a weekend You kinda like it
9.
Heaven Sent 03:43
Hey, don’t you hate Holidays in the United States Hey, don’t you think It seems like you’re burying the lede I run the movie in your head Can you just act like you’re interested We got the means To make you a star of stage and screen Sign on the dotted line Are you a little shy One of the good ones left You might be washed up  But you’re heaven sent I bet Cause  You’re a natural In a leading role  Quick, on your feet I think you can tolerate the heat You’re here to stay We make a new darling every day I run the movie in your head Can you just act like you’re interested Cause you’re a natural  In a leading role You’re a movie star Gonna take you far Big house, nice car Make up your mind Are you shy You might be heaven sent But you’re not dead yet I bet, cause You’re my protege And you’re on your way What do you have to say
10.
Sicko World 05:01
When they gonna find a cure For a dirty mind, for the impure Someone’s gotta help us out Funny how the body fades Cuts and the bruises staking their claim They’re buying up my real estate Hour by hour You know that I’ve been wrong before But now I think I’m done for If anyone can read my thoughts They’d lock me away I’m just another headcase  Chaperone said get some rest Send me to bed back where it began Tying up the loose ends Quarantine is what I need Just give me a good book and break off the key I’m never gonna be clean So help me out You know that I’ve been wrong before But now I think I’m done for If anyone could read my thoughts they’d lock me away I’m just another headcase Sleep all day Creep all night Gentle blue Appetite Really should See someone Sicko world We’re on Sleep all day Creep all night Satin red Appetite I really should See someone It’s a sicko world We’re living on Goodnight

about

From the very start of “Runaway,” the opening track on Varsity’s third album Fine Forever, it’s clear that the Chicago quintet has morphed into something new. While still working in indie-pop tradition that recalls groups like Fleetwood Mac, Rilo Kiley, and Alvvays, the band has taken the recognizable pieces of their sound and reached across sonic boundaries to reframe the genre in their own image.

Varsity have built an impressive catalog in a relatively short period of time, and with their 2015 self-titled debut, 2018’s Parallel Person, and a run of singles collected on 2019’s The Basement Takes all under their belt, the band sought a new approach for their third full-length. To record Fine Forever, vocalist/keyboardist Stef Smith, guitarists Dylan Weschler and Patrick Stanton, bassist Paul Stolz, and drummer Jake Stolz, put their trust in producer Ben Lumsdaine as if he were the band's sixth member. “Ben really helped free our minds and let us focus on playing music,” says bassist Paul Stolz, and the proof is in the final product. Between Lumsdaine’s encouragement and their own willingness to leave behind their music comfort zones, Varsity sound just as confident on the album’s crisp guitar pop (the rousing title track or shimmering jangle of “Shaking Hands”) as they do on its more exploratory cuts (the sprawling “Memphis Group” or the instrumental interlude “Surfin’ Milwaukee”). “Going into it, we just knew ourselves so much better as a band and as a working, collaborative unit than we ever have before. We played these songs so much, they were just in our veins,” says Weschler, who notes that they’d spent nearly three years working on album closer “Sicko World” until it felt totally right. It’s that collective effort that allows Fine Forever to feel deeply considered while still remaining totally and unpredictably human.

That humanity extends to Fine Forever‘s lyrics, where Smith built a series of vignettes that read like a short story collection about the modern world. “I used to be a documentary filmmaker, so narrative nonfiction is sort-of my view of the world,” says Smith. “These songs are all different stories, and I relate to those stories, but I’m not the protagonist.” Throughout Fine Forever, Varsity digs deep into what it means to be a person, without shying away from the ugliness that comes along with it. It’s never prescriptive, but rather textural and evocative, with the band's music and Smith’s lyrics often leaning on one another. “Memphis Group” sees Smith exploring the Italian design group’s rise and fall, while the dynamic arrangement mirrors the shifting story. “Stef is really good at listening to the nuances of the song and writing to that, understanding the song deeply enough to make the lyrics fit with the emotional arc of the music,” says Stolz. It’s something that Smith is conscious of, allowing the band to rehearse the songs to the point where the music brings the lyrics right out of her. The delicate strut in “Reason To Run” is a prime example, the song describes someone trying to muster the courage to leave a negative situation, and Smith notes that its music already told the narrative before she even put pen to paper.

From the title on down, Fine Forever is a pointed declaration of intent. It sees Varsity unified around their vision and achieving a sound they’d always been searching for. It’s a record that defies simple categorizations, taking full advantage of the wide range of sounds and styles that can fall under the umbrella of “indie pop,” all while managing to maintain a welcoming accessibility. “I love when people say they don’t know what genre we are,” says Smith, and the deeper you get into Fine Forever, it’s easy to see why.

credits

released May 29, 2020

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VARSITY Chicago, Illinois

rock \\//\\//\\//\\// pop
www.varsitytunes.com

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msandrin@tourpeachy.com

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