BASTILLE frontman Dan Smith has revealed why he loves Bournemouth and how the pandemic shaped his writing ahead of their new Give Me The Future tour.
Their latest album, which goes by the same name, was released earlier this month and shot straight to number one.
Bastille we be playing at the Bournemouth International Centre on Thursday, March 31.
Unavoidably impacted by the pandemic, Dan explained how the bands’ process and thinking shifted as they navigated lockdowns, remote recording and a changing outlook on life as we know it.
'There are people out there who are doing their best night and day'
He said: “I think with this album we wanted to be a bit more hopeful about the future.
“It can seem quite bleak watching the news and just living in the world as we do, things in the near and distant future can often seem quite negative.
“But there are people out there who are doing their best night and day, working hard, to try and shift things into a slightly more positive direction.
“I guess we wanted to sort of tip our hats to those people and think of science fiction in the ways that writers and creators imagine more optimistic futures.
“Everyone living through the last couple of years has struggled in so many varying different ways but I think the one thing we’ve all had in common is trying to look forward to a time when things return to some kind of recognisable normality and being able to do things we want to do.
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“In a way we’ve all been confronted with having to think about the future quite a lot over the last couple of years.
“In our music I’m always drawn to writing about the more complicated things in life and we often pick quite strange topics for our songs but despite all that still being there, we wanted there to be an optimistic thread running through the album.”
With this in mind, the album’s exploration and acceptance of the presence gives something which seems in parts melancholic yet irrefutably hopeful.
Dan explained: “And ultimately where it ends, the final song in the album is someone saying to you ‘stop worrying about the future, those things you can’t necessarily control’,” said Dan.
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“It feels really fitting to have made this album digitally and made it through a pandemic and both spent time in the studio when we were allowed to and also doing a lot of remote recording and writing over zoom.
“To then get to have the message at the end of the album be about ‘despite how difficult it can be, trying to enjoy the things that you have and the people around you’.
“I think it will be really fun to then get to play those songs in a room with real people because that’s what we have all been craving so much.”
Looking ahead to the live shows, which see Bastille performing at the Bournemouth International Centre on Thursday, March 31, Dan said: “It is in it’s own way about both celebrating the room that we’re all in together - and hopefully the music that everyone likes - but also with a whole lining of escapism.
“The album is all about transporting yourself via fiction, technology and dreams and particularly in a time where we couldn’t really go anywhere or do that much.
“We had to rely on so many forms of escapism just to distract ourselves and get through the day - so we want the show to be kind of fun and escapist as well so I’m really excited.”
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A regular visitor to Bournemouth, Dan explained that he has family who live in the town so he often gets the train down to visit them and of course, loves to spend time on the beach.
He said: “It’s always really important to us to spend as much time doing stuff locally as much as we can - otherwise what’s the point in being on tour if you’re just spending your whole time in a backstage room?
“I love Bournemouth, I have family from there and I’ve been a bunch to visit them and spend time on the beach - in the summer it’s such a great place to go.
“I’ve got some family who have a little beach hut so it’s always really fun to go and sit outside of.
“It’s such a great town, I love the whole seafront area and the beach - so I can’t wait to head back.”
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