The visual for Inland Isle’s new single is a beautiful animation created by illustrator Ryan Stolp. The image of the blue bay nestled between wooded hills with a backdrop of mountain peaks looks like the perfect escape and is a good fit for the summery folk-rock sound of ‘Biggest Fish’. It’s a song about accepting what you’ve got and the sense of safety and contentment that results from this approach to life: “I think about the ocean // And all the creatures fighting in the surf // Think I’m happy here floating // Here in the water on my own turf.” There’s a lightness to the song, matched by the brightness of the instrumentation, the uptempo rhythm and the catchy melody that could serve as a soundtrack to your summer.
Based in Jackson, Wyoming, the group is newly formed and features Pat Chadwick on vocals and guitar, lead guitarist Dusty Nichols, Leif Routman on bass and drummer Shawn Fleming. Their four-part harmonies are a key aspect of their sound, honed during vocal-only band practices in which instruments were left at home (they brought wine instead). ‘Biggest Fish’ is taken from Inland Isle’s newly released debut album ‘Time Has Changed Us’. It’s an intriguing album that, away from this single, seeks to address what it’s like living in America today. Upheaval, uncertainty and political and social divisions have had a profound impact on the USA in recent years. Through music, Inland Isle attempt to measure and document how people’s lives, relationships and communities have been affected. It’s an ambitious and very promising debut and marks them out as a band to keep an eye on.
