The Front Bottoms’ Brian Sella talks you are who you hang out with ahead of Wednesday’s Grinders show

The Front Bottoms. // photo credit Jimmy Fontaine

Fresh on the heels of the 10th-anniversary celebrations for their breakthrough third album, Talon of the Hawk, indie rockers The Front Bottoms are heading out on tour in support of their new album, you are who you hang out with, which releases Friday, August 4.

Ahead of The Front Bottoms’ stop at Grinders on Wednesday, August 2, we spoke with lead vocalist and guitarist, Brian Sella, about the new album.

The Pitch: Does having a new album coming out on the heels of the 10th anniversary of Talon of the Hawk make you look at what you do differently?

Brian Sella: No, not really. Everything is always new and a blur. You just kind of go about doing it and hope for the best. Sometimes you get lucky.

How is making the switch from playing that album in its entirety to focusing on all of these brand-new songs, especially when — as in the case with the KC show — folks might have heard some of them yet?

The most important thing is the performance and entertaining the people that come to see you play. That’s always how we take it. I’m in a constant state of writing, always trying to come up with new creative stuff so everything sort of blends into each other creatively. If you have the luxury of going with the flow, you should do that.

Whose dog is barking on “Emotional,” the first track on you are who you hang out with, and what made you use that, because it is awesome?

That’s me barking like a dog.

The album’s front-loaded with the first three singles, which really sets the tone, but the end of you are who you hang out with is almost like the inverse. Was your intention to get people stoked, then make them get in their feelings a bit?

It was not our intention. We really do feel like it’s really up to people that are listening to the album to take it how they want it.

“Fake Gold” addresses the idea that the band’s name was going to be Mass Shooter. Given that you went with the Front Bottoms, have you considered the possibility that naming things might not be your forte?

I think that naming things IS my forte.

The Front Bottoms plays Grinders KC on Wednesday, August 2, with Kevin Devine and the Goddamn Band. Details on that show here.