“Best of friends! Peas in a pod! Hot rods and campfires, a raft made of wood! Come now, and bear witness to the supple intersection of life and loneliness, as represented by an assortment of hand crafted vibrations sure to conjure up unbridled feelings of nostalgia for many tender moments to come.”
If this doesn’t get your motor of intrigue runnin’, nothing will.
This is the sentiment behind longtime Nashvillians but exciting new band, Passion Fruit Boys, who are here to show that they’re different from most indie rock bands these days… and trust me when I say they make it all look “easy”.
Passion Fruit Boys is made up of Duncan Shea and Conor Belcher, who describe themselves as “a two person motorcycle club who believe in the ambitious spirit of pop music.” Shea has been writing and playing music with many an “underground” heavy-hitter in the scene for the past decade plus, including Music Band, Becca Mancari, and Those Darlins. Belcher is no stranger to the scene himself, as he’s been an avid songwriter and former frontman of the band Kinship.
The longtime friends who moved south from Ithaca, New York, some eleven years ago always noodled together, but knew they just needed to sit down, put pen to paper, and combine their seasoned sonic abilities. After just a few minutes of sitting together and writing, they had their debut single “Easy,” which was officially released last week via Telefono Records.
To put it simply, “Easy” sounds like something out of an 80s coming-of-age film or a Modern English album. The nostalgic feeling the single gives off is infectious, and should be a part of any kind of “Spring/Summer 2022” playlist you might have. Despite the upbeat driving sound, the lyrics discuss the convoluted ending of an already damaged relationship, but neither one of the partners wants to really let go.
Passion Fruit Boys continue to tap into the days of yore nostalgia with their fun DIY-style music video for the debut single. The old school video is shot at various friends’ houses and locations in Nashville, and features the duo fixing up each other’s motorcycles, excitable dogs, curious toddlers, and the two just doing life together in a swift succession of clips. The music video also doubles as a lyric video, with the lyrics being printed off in the classic VHS camcorder font.
With the release of their sparkly new single, this two-person motorcycle duo with a penchant for catchy, quality music is proof that trying something new is always worth the risk, but perhaps rarely as easy as they make it look.
Photo by Angelina Castillo
