Interview: flipturn

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Formed in Jacksonville, FL, flipturn first came together in high school, where they worked passionately to turn garage meet-ups into playing college house shows into headlining sold-out dates for thousands, performing across continents to their rapidly-expanding and deeply-dedicated fanbase. Releasing their debut album Shadowglow in 2022, the band went on to perform acclaimed festival set sat Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Governor’s Ball and sharing stages with names like Two Door CinemaClub, The Revivalists, Mt. Joy, and Rainbow Kitten Surprise.

We caught up with the band ahead of their debut tour.

27 Magazine x flipturn

☑︎~~Devon~~

☑︎~~Dillon~~

☑︎~~Madeline~~

☑︎~~Mitch~~

☐Tristan

This is your first time touring Australia — what are you most looking forward to about playing shows here? Any Australian food you’re keen to try?

○Devon- Really lookin forward to the Sunshine & Heat! Playing cities we’ve never been to before is always so exciting, & I hear shows in Australia have such high energy. I’ve been keen to try the coffee in Melbourne…it’s been hyped up.

Growing up in Florida — is it really as wild as it sounds, and how did that energy shape you creatively?

○Mitch: lots of people call Florida the Australia of the US. Lots of nature and animals and stuff. I’m sure it subconsciously influenced our music.

How did the collaboration with Old Mervs come about, and what was it like working together in the studio?

○Dillon: We have the same booking agent in the US! When we were looking for someone to feature on the track, our agent sent over some of Old Mervs music to check out and we became big fans. We thought their style fit the song perfectly and turns out we were right because Dave absolutely crushed the verse we gave him.

Your sound has been described as “atmospheric, introspective, and dynamic. How do you feel your music has evolved from Heavy Colours to Burnout Days?

○Madeline: I think our music has matured in a lot of ways! We wrote Heavy Colors about ten years ago, so over the years we’ve been able to grow as musicians and hone in on our sound as a band. We like to continually push ourselves with every new album we work on, and I think Burnout Days has some darker tones that I think is a newer feeling for us.

Burnout Days has been called the “culmination of a decade. What personal or creative milestones does this record represent for you?

○Tristan- that’s cool it’s been called that! I haven’t heard it put that way but I am sure it’s quite applicable to what a lot of people are going through nowadays.Getting to work with Chad Copelin on this record helped us achieve a lot of those creative goals we’ve been working towards and having the backdrop of our touring to use as inspiration made it so fun to bring the story into the studio. I think some milestones we’ve reached is just learning to be comfortable in the studio and honing our studio skills to match our live set energy.

You’ve performed at major festivals like Lollapalooza and Bonnaroo — how do you

prepare differently for an intimate club show compared to a massive festival stage?

○Devon- We don’t prepare any differently, every show we play is equally important to us no matter the scale. We always give every performance everything we got.

Australian fans are pretty passionate about music and a little crazy. What is your craziest fan experience?

○Devon: Once had a guy come up to me & ask to sign his leg to get it tattooed…I begged him not to get it tatted but the next day I got a notification in my tagged on instagram & he really did it… now he has my chicken scratch hand writing permanently displayed on him. Legend.

If you could play any venue in the world, what would it be and why?

○Mitch: The Gorge in Washington, it’s a really cool open air venue with a beautiful view

You met in high school, did you ever think you’d be where you are now and what would you say to your younger selves?

○Madeline: I know it’s always something we’ve always dreamed of doing! We love to make big goals for ourselves, and it’s amazing that we’ve been able to achieve some of those dreams. I think I would tell my younger self to keep pushing forward and to continue making music that feels true to ourselves.

Lastly, what are ten fantasy items you would have on your Rider if money was no object-make it as wild as possible. Tell us why you’d have them.

○Dillon:

■ A donkey (it is our sigil)

■ Chocolate milk (it’s a band favorite)

■ Clase azul tequila (it’s a staple)

■ A 24 carrot golden labubu (it’s relevant)

■ A green room full of plants (good for the vibes)

■ A PS5 (pre and post show gaming)

■ Oli pop (it’s my personal favorite)

■ A pre show hype-man (preferably Jameis Winston for inspiration and

comic relief)

■ A barista (we love coffee)