‘Keeping Up Appearances’ features the talented Matt Barus (Terrible Sons) and explores feelings of being misunderstood, particularly as people pursuing something creative in a public way.
“Most of the album was complete, and I had been talking with Matt about the idea of writing something together,” says Fisher. “We got talking about life and our experiences of people close to us being misunderstood, particularly artists. That theme is prevalent in ‘Keeping Up Appearances.’ Many lyrics were lifted straight from the text conversation. The track evolved from voice memo to voice memo, with everyone contributing.”
The track is accompanied by a beautiful music video, shot at Te Atatu Peninsula and directed by Mike Braid.
“The music video was filmed at a spot where I go to clear my head and try to hit the reset button,” says Fisher. “I had been craving the feeling of painting somewhere without constraints. Art and music have become an extension of my everyday life, as I have recognised its value for well-being and how much of my identity is wrapped up in it. The cobalt blue paint marks in the video are taken from my notebook when I draw marks above words to help me understand, kind of like a musical shorthand. The blue relates to the colour scheme in Facebook Messenger, where so much of the communication around this project (both song and video) has been from start to finish. It was an intentional decision to work and evolve the treatment as a way to continue the timeline of the writing process into the visuals.”
‘Keeping Up Appearances’ is the second track off the Goodshirt frontman’s upcoming album with The Response, Art School Dropout, and clearly holds a special place in his heart.
“This song feels special to me as it represents getting to know some dear friends through the most natural language we speak - music,” says Fisher. “The track explores the dangerous line of comparing yourself to other people and falling into depression, but also conveys a sense of picking yourself up and keeping going.”
‘Keeping Up Appearances feat. Terrible Sons’ releases all streaming platforms Friday July 21st via Aotearoa New Zealand indie music label Bigpop Records.
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