Behind The Tracks: SUNBURNT - In Front Of Me (Single) (2024)

IFOM was a departure from our normal writing process. Typically, we go in with 80% of the song in mind, theme or music. We love working with Jayden (Seeley) because we always seem to be on the same page which makes the remaining 20% of songwriting a breeze. With this track, we went in completely cold.

After some noodling, Will came up with the main verse guitar riff. The riff had a lonely atmospheric vibe that we all liked. Everything came together quickly after that. The theme was born out of the vibe of that initial riff - a lonely desert highway at dusk, a vast stretch of fading possibility, and a journey into the unknown fast approaching.

We wanted to match the pace of the song to the theme where we could, leading to a driving breakbeat in the verses and transitions. We of course wanted the instrumentation to match as well and emphasized certain guitar effects to give the illusion of space.

Another departure from SUNBURNT’s norm came with the chorus. We felt giving Alex the lead made sense because of his more aggressive vocal quality. Justin’s part too is a little more aggressive than his usual performance. We felt this blend worked well with the song and harkened back almost to a Taking Back Sunday vibe.

We were able to hammer out these elements in a full day at the studio. Luckily, we didn't have an immediate return date on the Calendar. Oftentimes, this can be the kiss of death for a track. A long layoff can burn you out on an idea and before you know it, you’re ready to scrap the idea altogether. Not in this case. Collectively the song grew on us more and week after week.

Eventually, when we returned to the studio a few months later we knew what the song needed…. A Slammin’ breakdown. We felt that this would act as the song’s crescendo - a final burst of energy in an already energetic song. I think the more a band progresses the more you imagine how live parts will go over and that breakdown is one we are looking forward to playing.

The track was mixed by Sam Guaiana. We tagged him for the task as his mixes always capture the emotion and intent of our songs with crystal clarity. In the end, IFOM is something that we are proud of and marks a transition point for us in tone and writing style.