A few months ago I was privileged to chat with Chris Johns and Bryn Nieboer of Stay Inside about the band’s new album, Ferried Away. After releasing two beloved records (2020’s Viewing and the 2022 EP Blight) with No Sleep Records, the Brooklyn-based quartet released their second full-length independently – from the artwork to the videos to the physical copies Stay Inside has been completely in control of this release. It’s also the band’s most complete album to date – pushing their creativity and songwriting to new levels resulting in a nine-track 35-minute journey that’s both intimate and universal. It’s one of 2024’s most essential records – one that has a staying power beyond a typical press or release cycle. Below, we discuss some of the background behind the writing and conception of the record, releasing the record on your own, and more. And you can catch Stay Inside on a few tour dates with Arcadia Grey this week.
After such a lengthy build-up how are the vibes leading up to the release of Ferried Away?
Chris Johns: I personally have never really been excited about releasing music except this has been a lot of work but fun. It’s one of those things where it’s just like, well, this is my entire life for the past couple of years. So it’s nice that it actually will exist.
Bryn Nieboer: I feel like I’ve always been excited to release music, but it’s always been frustrating because I’ve always allowed myself to have ideas around what releasing a record could mean or what could happen from it. And this time I feel like it’s very clear what’s going to happen, which is like it’s going to be out and there’s people who want to listen to it and that’s good and there’s nothing. That’s all. I don’t have any other, I feel like in a way I’m less excited and more just relieved that I’ll feel like finally it’s out. I’ve never had to wait this long either with Viewing, right? We had it done and then we were like, ‘fuck it, we’re just going to release it.’ And then there was a little waiting to work with No Sleep and then it was just, it was out and then it was crazy when it came out, but it was like, I don’t know. This one is, I think people will enjoy it and that is what I want to happen, so I just want to see, I just want it to be out already because like you said, it’s been a while.
Yeah, “A Backyard” dropped last summer so yeah it’s been quite the buildup – how’s it felt doing this on the independent side of things this cycle?
CJ: Great. It’s endless work that I complain about every day to Bryn.
BN: That’s true.
CJ: And our vinyl are showing up at my apartment on time.
I got that email.
CJ: Yes. Yes. I saw you on the list. And it’s been really fun to just be in complete control of the whole process and do whatever we want all of the time, and that’s how it used to be and that’s the most fun way to do it.
BN: Yeah, it’s cool to have a lot of, it’s more work to run all the marketing ourselves and run all of these interviews at the same time, though we didn’t have interviews last time, so it just feels like more work in general. I feel like we are doing more press and we’re doing more shows, and even if we weren’t doing it all ourselves, it’s like it would be more stuff to do, but we’re also doing it all ourselves and it’s a lot of work. So I don’t know. The control is fun – but just leaving it all up to us, it’s a little more stressful.
Yeah, that’s a good point. I remember around the time when Viewing came out, I remember, I think Chris (from No Sleep Records) just sent me a link to listen to it. It definitely felt like came out of nowhere and then people were like, oh, this shit is sick. So there wasn’t this anticipation for Viewing because no one was anticipating it. And now people love that record so in turn there’s anticipation for Ferried Away. From your perspective, how do you feel like the reception to these new songs have felt compared to reaction to Viewing?
BN: Good? I think there’s definitely been people mentioning that it’s different, which I think it’s less different than I originally thought when we started writing some of these songs. I was like, this is a different band, but I have a really closed-minded view of stuff like that. And working with Chris on this record has really been like, we can do whatever we want. It’s still kind of going to sound like us, is what I’ve kind of learned. And I think people pick up on that. It feels like lots of people have been like, although I’ve seen a couple comments being like, is this the same band? They sound really different on their last record. And it’s like, well, we were going through different stuff and I think it’s reasonable to sound different, but I think if you listen to the record as a whole huge departure, it is a difference in tone. But I think people like it. I mean, people seem excited about the songs, so yeah.
CJ: Yeah. It’s funny to be a few years into this and kind of understand the process of writing an album more and know that these packages are reflections of yourself over that period of time. So once you get a little bit more of the time to reflect, you realize, oh, that’s what was going on in our lives that year we did that. And I think when I was a kid, you’d hear some band you liked do their next album. They’re like, why are they trying to do this? And there’s just, we weren’t trying to do anything. This is just like, this is what happened.
BN: This is who I am, man.
When I saw you guys live a few months and you played a couple of new songs live, I could feel like the energy shift in a good way. There was an excitement from you all on the stage playing those songs and I was observing people in the crowd and they were getting into it too. It took a second, but as it picked up, they’re like, this shit is sick. But I could noticeably tell going into when you play “A Backyard” or “An Invitation” live, you were having a blast up there doing it.
BN: Yeah, new songs are fun. You’re excited about the new stuff that you haven’t figured out completely. There’s still stuff to improve and you are not tired of it.
CJ:Someone said to us at a show last weekend, what was the wording? It was like, it’s weird that you guys like to have a good time.
BN:They did. They don’t like fun. What’d you say? People don’t like fun anymore.
CJ:Yeah. I don’t know. Or maybe they’re surprised to see us having fun, but we’re just hanging out.
And you can tell you’re having fun in all the videos that’ve been released. “A Backyard” is exactly what you said. You’re having fun. I particularly love the video for “Sweet Stripe!” It’s so cool how that concept and how it was shot and just kind of tying the theme all together of the record. I love the moment on the roller coaster where that random person flips off the camera. That’s a great moment. And then the video from “My Fault” has a really cool concept as well too. What went into the planning behind the different concepts?
BN: Well, our first video that we made was “Fracture” back with Blight. We’d made one video for Ivy, but that was during the pandemic completely by the label. They made it so we didn’t really have much involvement in it. So the first one we made was “Fracture” and one of my best friends is a editor director for, he’s a professional, it’s his job. And I was like, ‘Hey, do you want to make a music video?’ And he was like, ‘yes, of course.’ And he was sort of willing to work with us on keeping the price manageable because he’s my friend. And so he did “Fracture” for us and it was crazy and really ambitious and because he’s a crazy person, and so when we started thinking about the Ferried Away rollout, we were like, it’d be good to have music videos and what if we just do them all with sort of all one thought with Steven Mlinarcik. And he was down and had three different ideas that he wanted to do, and I was like, we want him to do ’em less story conceptual mostly and more vibey, but three different vibes. And so he came up with a bunch of ideas and we talked a lot about it and it took a long time. And then we did three videos. So they’re all mostly his ideas what would happen and how there would be different through lines throughout all three videos and references to each video. He loves to hide hidden shit and things. He’s the king of that. So all that work is him. We had influence and say in what we wanted it to be, but it’s mostly Steven
Each visual embodies the vibe and the tone of its respective song extremely well. As much as I love an ambitious video where the visual doesn’t seem to match up of what the song’s about, it is just also cool to have that through line with all three of them.
CJ: But Byrn’s a real hard ass about having a seriously thought out concept for the points, the mood, the ideas that we’re trying to get across from that, which really pays off for me. And I think the whole storyline of the feelings and everything that we’re going through when I said earlier, these are packages of some sort of reflection of a time period and that we and whoever is listening is going through. And once you can better explain the idea of the album and those feelings, you hand it to your friend and they get you so they get it.
BN: Yeah, I am a hard ass about it. I definitely push everybody to make it more than just straightforward. I’m just like, how can we layer this with meaning and metaphor so that it can blossom like a flower if you want to look into it.
And you can definitely hear that throughout the record because each track does a really good job of seamlessly segueing into the next track. It’s very much a record. I would recommend that people just dedicate 35 minutes and just listen all the way through because I feel like you’ll get the most out of it – especially a record like this, I love how it flows. The track list order feels very purposeful so I really love the sequencing of Ferried Away and how it flows seamlessly through its nine tracks.
CJ:Thank you. Thank you. Yeah, I think, and I hope if people actually can put 35 minutes aside, which is a lot to ask to on something that it’s really a different experience in that way than hearing a song or two. So I think every band says that where it’s like you got to hear the whole thing. It’s different that way, and I am that person here.
I remember mentioning to you a few months ago how “Bon Zs” is a perfect album opener. I love how it just kicks off in high gear immediately and then track two “Learn to Float” is all vibes and slows the pace a bit. And adding the horns from Matt Hull (of Really From) on tracks like “A Backyard” and more takes the song to a higher level. Like on a song like “When’s The Last Time” and that part where it gets kind of menacing sounding, the how those horns just slice in, it’s so sick, and that’s classic Stay Inside to me – it’s not necessarily the screaming or the breakdowns but that tone and mood it sets and takes the listener into.
CJ: Thank you. Yes. That was originally the first track on the record, but we had to switch it to “Bon Zs” because we wanted to stunt on the math rock haters that say, we can’t do math. I’m going to show them early on that we like 5/4 time as well.
Yeah, I just think the four songs you chose to pre-release do such a good job of showcasing the different tones and styles throughout the record. The whole record is truly unique. I don’t think one song sounds alike, but they’re all very much Stay Inside tracks just set in different styles and signatures. I’m assuming all of that was super intentional, the way you released them in the order you released them.
BN: We argued about it for a long time. That was definitely a lot of discussion about track listing, specifically about track sequencing was kind of…I feel like there was a couple months there where it was really agonizing and we were all sort of just trying to figure out how it was supposed to go. Because remember was we had “A Town To Give Up In” first for a while. I don’t know. We had a lot of different options.
CJ:So we’re big fans of the Microphones and the classic album, The Glow, Part Two, and just kind of wanted the first few songs to feel like that with kind a thesis statement and a progression and flow to show, ‘oh, you’re three songs in. Clearly, this is one long piece.’
I think is the coolest Stay Inside song is “An Invitation.” It almost feels like three or four songs within its six minute runtime – a really thrilling and engaging listen. What songs would you say are your favorite off this record? And which ones are you most stoked to play live?
BN: Those are different questions for sure, for me.
CJ: But I have the same answer for both of them. The lead track (“Bon Zs”), which is probably besides my secret unreleased rap albums, is my favorite song that I’ve ever been a part of. It’s like I remember having a demo of it and having it playing on my phone for two weeks straight. I was just like, this is the thing that I wanted to do. And I think we were all very excited about it as soon as we started writing it, but I can’t be more excited to play that song live. And it’s about a good friend of mine who passed a handful of years ago, and I’m really excited to be able to show my friends who knew him about that. None of them know that we’ve written this.
BN: Yeah, for me, I don’t know. I think that my favorite song on the record, I dunno, that’s one of those things where they’re all kind of special, but I am really happy with the way “Steeplechase” came out. I feel like one thing I’ve always liked or wanted to do in my musical career is write a song that is a good closer. And I feel like we’ve tried, we have “Verdict” and “Leave” and we have songs that are trying to be “Dissolve.” I feel like those are all, to me, kind of trying to get at similar things in terms of are they function the same? They’re supposed to be the climax of the story. And I think that “Steeplechase” is the first one where I feel like it’s really kind of successful. It’s really hard to do, but I think that one works for me and I like that. I’m proud of that one. It was a lot of work. It always is, but I think it has the coolest stuff. What I want to play live the most is “Learn to Float,” which we’ve never done.
CJ: I specifically remember showing Bryn the main riff to it and just be saying, ‘Hey, this is never going to be something that we release, but I just wanted to show you this cool riff’. And I was literally hovering my mouse into the delete bin.
BN: It’s true.
CJ: And she was just like, ‘you’re fucking crazy.’
BN: Yeah, that was a song where we were just like, ‘I don’t know if this is going to work’ multiple times. But yeah, “Learn to Float” is the one I can’t wait to play live. It’s going to be so fun.
I like that you mentioned “Steeplechase” because the way record starts and the way it ends is just perfect. It’s like they’re the perfect bookends.
BN: That’s one thing that’s hard for me is with outros, is that I want it to function sort of like a movie more than a song. And that’s probably not the way to think about it. But I think what’s good and what I’m proud of most about “Steeplechase” is that it still functions as a fun song. That is good. I think it’s a good song as well as sort of a very specific story closer.
I’ve really enjoyed diving into the lyrical themes. I know they’re all songs written about someone you have loved or love in your life, and that can be really hard to do as a record, where it can become really insular and people perhaps can’t connect to it. But I feel like the writing on this is – while it’s still very specific to you and your friends and your memories – it’s also very relatable at the same time that people can interpret it and take it and have it help them as well too.
CJ: Yeah. Thank you so much. I remember seeing some kind of cringey, but I dunno, influential is the wrong word, but influential TikTok of Seth Rogan talking about how if you write something very general, you think people are going to relate to it and then they don’t. But if you just take this very subtle niche storyline that you think no one’s going to get, as long as it’s very personal, it’s going to resonate with people more. And I think about that TikTok often.
BN: I think also a thing that helped on this record specifically is I think me and Chris both try or have an inclination towards really personal specific references. Chris is always writing very specifically about things that have happened to him in his life and specific people. And then I’m always writing really flowery prose about those things and sort of impenetrable ways about my life. So I think collaborating, we kind of had to find a place to meet in the middle for what resonated with both of us. So it’s already two different people trying to make something universal to each other. So I think it’s easier, even though there are a lot of specific things in both of our lives, it’s like we’re already sort of making it meaningful to both of us.
CJ: If you hear a three syllable word, Bryn wrote it.
I think the progression the band has made from Viewing to Blight to Ferried Away is really impressive. I believe this record has a last of staying power once you get into it – maybe it won’t fully connect in late February, but once time is spent with it is going to be a lot of people’s favorite records come the summer and year-end time. All I know is that this record moves me and there is always something new that I pick up on and want to go back to.
CJ: Thanks for getting it and liking it. That’s amazing. I remember seeing this interview with Mike Kinsella after LP3 came out for American Football and them just being like him literally saying something along the lines of, ‘I don’t know why anyone can’t see that this record is so far superior to LP1.’ I’m confused why people like that first one and everyone just being like, bro, what the hell are you talking about? But our hateful friend, Kanye West says, ‘if you don’t think that the hottest shit you’re doing is the shit you’re doing now, you shouldn’t be in the game.’ We feel the same way about this. Hopefully this is actually a really good progression. We think it is by far.
BN: Yeah. And I wasn’t always sold on releasing the record in February until someone pointed that out that it’s like, oh, it’s a good idea to let people have the year to get into it and have the summer. What I really hope is that people have fun with this in the summer. And I think it’s kind of a summer record. As my friend Alison – who hears all of the songs first before anyone else – said, Viewing is a winter sad album, and this is a summer sad album. So I hope that people have fun with it.