‘Gold Rush’ is the debut release from Brooklyn-based indie-rock four-piece The Upsides, and it’s easily one of the catchiest tunes we at Indie Top 39 have heard so far this year! Truly, it’s melodic indie-rock at its finest. Shimmering guitars, smooth and infectious basslines, upbeat drums, and the wide-ranging vocals of Matt Fullam are all on full display. ‘Gold Rush’ has been described sonically as “instant sunshine”, and you’ll find it impossible to argue with that once you’ve heard it. It has a definite surfer-rock feel to it as well, and just conjures up memories of sunnier, warmer days. Recorded at Grand Street Recording in the band’s hometown, and mixed by Grammy-award nominated Jake Lummus, The Upsides have offered up the perfect tune to introduce themselves and their sound to the world. We can’t wait to hear their debut EP which is scheduled for release in April.
‘Gold Rush’ is hands down one of the catchiest tracks we’ve heard so far this year! Remember the name The Upsides.
INDIE TOP 39
What does the song mean to you?
‘Gold Rush’ was written to sort of push back, in a positive way, against everything surrounding us in early 2021. It was still cold, a lot of our friends were either spending time away from the city or had moved out altogether, and people just seemed exhausted. We had been listening to a bunch of sunnier, surf rock bands (a lot of Australian bands in particular) and the chord progression sort of popped out of nowhere one day. Once we found that simple, sparkling lead riff for the chorus it immediately felt like the face of this new project, The Upsides. It feels like it captures the dichotomy between vintage instruments and sounds that we love (we’ve already gotten some Beach Boys comparisons) set in the world of modern indie rock production. We definitely owe a lot of that to our sound engineer, Jake Lummus!
Which Netflix series or movie would you like your music to be featured in?
Dan: Probably Bloodline because I just got finished watching it. ‘Gold Rush’ definitely wouldn’t be the theme track, the show is way too dark, but I could see it on a car radio during a driving scene through the Florida Keys – even as the plot gets more and more sinister.
What are your favourite lyrics in the song?
Dan: Probably the first verse line “sippin’ somethin’ cool on the fire escape with your legs stretched long.” That just paints such a vivid image in my head of an early evening in NYC, watching the world unfold a few stories below.
Please finish the sentence – Music to us is…
A way to stay sane for sure. And a way to get together with close friends (the four of us) and make something we’re proud of. Even if it’s a demo that never sees the light of day, we feel lucky to still live close to one another and pop over to someone’s apartment to work on tunes for an afternoon.
Make sure to connect with The Upsides on Instagram » Facebook »
Now you can listen to all the 39 songs in one place, right here on Spotify!
This coverage was created in collaboration with Musosoup as part of the #SustainableCurator movement.
