Arts Fishing Club’s storytelling shines in “New York Heat”
If you’re on the hunt for more indie folk-rock music to add to your daily rotations — Arts Fishing Club is the band for you. Their new single “New York Heat,” released on May 29, explores the beautiful intricacies of living life, telling stories with soothing guitars and rustic, raw vocals.
Hailing from Nashville, Arts Fishing Club has released numerous albums and EPs since their debut ten years ago and have toured consistently around the country. The band is passionate about storytelling and being bold in life, which frontman Christopher Kessenich displayed when he hiked 1,600 miles from Maine to Tennessee for his very first tour with a different group in 2015. This dedication and passion is what fuels the Arts Fishing Club we know today, and “New York Heat” is just a glimpse into the new music they are set to release this year.
The song is bubbling with keys and drums right off the bat, giving listeners a taste of the band’s indie-folk roots and inspirations. Kessenich’s vocals come in like a warm hug, giving the song a familiar, reminiscent vibe of a coming-of-age movie scene. The variety of instruments on the track blend together perfectly to create a soft, dancey melody that lifts up the vocals, giving the song the emotional push it was searching for.
“You’re dumb, you're young, you're alive / So let this city set a fire / Give it up, give on in / Let her take you for a little spin / You got time,” Kessenich sings in the chorus.
As a whole, this song explores living life carefree of worries for the future or of the past, but instead tells you to focus on being present in the moment. The repeated “you got time” is an inspiring and motivating way for Arts Fishing Club to tell listeners, and themselves, that there’s a long life ahead to do anything you set your mind to, but at the same time, life is too short to worry about your past mistakes. In the first verse of “New York Heat,” listeners paint the picture of a couple dancing in the street, feeling happy in each other’s presence and getting ready for their very first kiss. The second verse has Kessenich looking at his past, even when he says to himself to “don’t look back.” These hyper-specific lyrics highlight Arts Fishing Club’s niche in lyricism, showing how they deep dive into the human condition to find parts of being to dig up and flesh into a song. Watching a couple dance lovingly on the street is a pure symbol of the happy, carefree life Kessenich sings of wanting to achieve.
Arts Fishing Club excels at creating a swaying melody, similar to those of Gregory Alan Isakov and The Head and the Heart. Their use of instruments in “New York Heat” is fairly simple, with sounds of guitars, keys and drums swirling around, but it's that simplicity that brings out the raw, visceral emotion in the lyrics. The bridge’s instrumental break slows the track down a little to just light guitars and drums before picking it right back up into the ethereal atmosphere topped with Kessenich’s vocals that listeners fell in love with.
“Young love is finding her feet,” is the last lyric sung in the track, circling back to the dancing couple we met in the first verse. This lyric shows that life is a lively circle full of love, heartache and joy, placing emphasis on the little things in life outweighing any negatives. This gives “New York Heat” a heart-whelming end to an already magical song.
Arts Fishing Club continues to make their mark in the music scene with each release, creating unique, poignant art that captures the soul and essence of what it means to be alive. “New York Heat” deserves a spot on everyone’s summer playlist.
Catch the band on tour: here.
Keep up with Arts Fishing Club:
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