You know what they say about assuming, right?
When COIN burst onto the scene with their smash single ‘Talk Too Much’ — one would assume that the Nashville-based indie synth pop outfit had found the blueprint for their career.
You know what they say about assuming, right?
The success of ‘Talk Too Much’ lead the band on a path of self-examination, and self-discovery. It was a road that saw them re-evaluate their songwriting process, collaborate with from Foster the People, and also amicably part ways with their longtime bassist. Through this time the band was able to craft a record — which has already spawned the hit single “Simple Romance” and the newly dropped “Cemetery” — and fuel their biggest headlining tour to date.
We caught up with COIN before Thanksgiving to talk about their journey, and what lies ahead.
In the press release for your upcoming record you guys said, “We were so tired from touring and so sick of our approach to writing. We just wanted to do something different.” Can you talk about what it was about your previous approach to writing music that frustrated you?
That’s an interesting question. I don’t think there was anything frustrating exactly about the previous approach, it was just getting a bit too far from home and sometimes even unnatural the way songs would materialize. The more we collaborated, the more we realized that we’d grown so much as writers and didn’t need to be in certain sessions anymore. Collaboration is very important for perspective; so, we’ve focused those relationships more carefully on this album.
We were mostly sick of ourselves overthinking the process or second guessing what came out naturally. This album was about getting back to that gut feeling — the intuitive chemistry between the three of us that we built the band on.
Mark Foster and Isom Innis of Foster the People produced your new single ‘Simple Romance’ – talking about working with these guys and how their producing vision shaped this song.
We did 3 songs with Mark and Isom, and the experience was wonderful and very much a perfect fit. You don’t often get to work with members of another band, in your genre, that also understands the importance of getting on a stage and delivering a performance. We love working with other songwriters, of course, but sometimes they forget that we’re going to take these songs on tour, and the goal is for a couple thousand people to scream the words back. The idea of a band (our band, specifically) can get lost sometimes.
Mark and Isom know this feeling very well, and they helped make what COIN already is a priority. From cutting a crunchy and spirited live drum performance in the corner of Isom’s loft to recording group vocals at Mark’s house to really make the chorus of Simple Romance feel like something worth singing along to, they really understood how to make what we are already doing even better. That’s the best type of producer brain, in our opinion. We’re thankful for them and the creative process we shared but are mostly happy to have gained them as friends.
Once this record was completed — how did you guys feel coming out of the process? Did you feel inspired to go back on the road? Did you see yourselves in a new light musically?
We’re learning so much more about what COIN is, what it has been, and also what COIN can be with every month and every new song. It’s inspired us to tour even wider next year and has also cracked the code for us creatively as songwriters and, in Chase’s case, even as producers. Chase took a huge bite out of the production on this album and watching him do that from his bedroom was so inspiring for Joe and I. We often say we’ve gone all over the world just to come back home and start the band all over again.
Will fans be seeing a new side of COIN — either musically or lyrically?
Yes. Both. Yes. We believe they are already starting to see it with these first two songs… But there’s so much more we’re excited to share.
Your bassist Zach Dyke left the band this year. It’s never easy losing a band member — how does this impact your plans going forward with the new album, and tour dates?
Zachary notified us of his departure to pursue his producing and mixing career well before we started closing in on this album; so, we were well aware and started adjusting, tough as it was, before the new year kicked in. He fulfilled tour dates that we had booked this year, and he even came to Korea and the Philippines with us. It was beautiful sharing that with him. We love him endlessly and he will always be a part of COIN.
You announced your biggest show at the Wiltern Theater in LA in March. How excited are you guys about this?
We’re speechless. We love Los Angeles and saw the opportunity to play this type of show there. We played the Troubadour on our first headlining tour, just a year and a half ago. This is going to be pretty special.
Outside of this, what’s been some of your favorite moments as a band?
This year has been the best year of my life and simultaneously, the worst. It’s been the highest of highs & the strangest of strange experiences. I wouldn’t trade this year of absolute uncertainty for anything.
What’s the thing your’e looking forward to most in the coming months?
We are excited to tour and we’ve never been more proud of the songs that we will be releasing. The feeling of hearing crowds sing back new songs in cities you’ve never played them in is unparalleled.
COIN just announced their new tour with the following dates…
February 5: Orlando, FL @ The Beacham Theater
February 6: Atlanta, GA @ Buckhead Theater
February 8: Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
February 9: New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
February 10: Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club
February 12: Toronto, ON @ Opera House
February 15: Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall
February 17: Dallas, TX @ House of Blues
February 20: Salt Lake City, UT @ Depot
February 23: Seattle, WA @ The Showbox
February 24: Vancouver, BC @ The Venue
February 27: San Francisco, CA @ The Fillmore
March 1: Los Angeles, CA @ The Wiltern
