But with all the excitement, has also been lots of changes and new experiences. Pursuit of Anything highlights many of these changes, with songs about growing up and growing apart, coming of age, and coming to terms with where you are in life. We caught up with lead singer Campbell Burns for a candid chat about his growth as a musician and songwriter, the hardships and rewards of the Holy Grail Tour, and the experiences that inspired Pursuit of Anything.

Norther Transmissions: I wanted to start off by talking a bit about your upcoming album, Pursuit of Anything, which is coming out on October 2nd. What was the process like of putting that album together?

Campbell Burns: There were a lot of different chapters and periods. To go back chronologically, I started after the No Place Like Home tour. I was in LA and I was writing a lot of songs on piano because I wanted to get away from my guitar for a minute. I knew that the direction for the next record could go down two paths. It could have been more in the indie-pop vein with songs like “Midwest” and “Next Exit”, but that would have felt a bit predictable and honestly kind of boring. I really liked “Off Season”, but I felt like it wasn’t executed as well as it could have been.

It almost felt like an experiment. I wanted to lean more into that and reference records like Pet Sounds by the Beach Boys or the production styles of Motown records. Kind of this Phil Spector-y, Beatles-esque sound, trying more lush arrangements and instrumentation and not worrying too much about how we would pull it off live. It was a fun process. It honestly came about very quickly; it only took, maybe a year, a year and a half to get everything down.

We went back and forth a lot during the recording process. I went to Sydney to record a majority of the album with the guys, and then I would do finishing touches in New York. We also did some additional tracking in Melbourne, which was great. It was fun to sort of globetrot and record in all of these different studios and get these different sounds. There were a lot of people involved that made it all possible as well, which I’m very grateful for.

NT: You mentioned you started in LA and then were in New York and then in Australia – did you find that the location where you were recording had an impact on the sound of what you were producing?

CB: Not necessarily the general sound, but I think it had an impact on the mood when we were recording. When we’re in Sydney, we’re at home, it’s comfortable and familiar. Then when I was back in New York, that’s my new home and I really love being here. The studio I was working at is just two blocks down the road from me, so that was really convenient.

It would be really cool to get more conceptual and record in a cathedral in Europe or a castle. And I’ve always enjoyed going to smaller towns and recording. There’s a town in California called Idyllwild, and we have a friend up there who has a studio. It was really enjoyable going up there and doing that classic cabin in the woods approach, where there’s not really any distractions and you’re surrounded by nature. You can really just focus on the music.

NT: I find being in spaces where you have the ability to engage with other forms of artistry outside of just music can really help too. Do you have any other artistic mediums that you would say you draw on when you’re looking to produce new music?

CB: Outside of writing music, my only other real creative practice would be photography. I love taking photos and I’ve been taking photos since I was maybe 12. I had a red Olympus digital camera and I would take it with me everywhere and take photos. Now I’ve got a Fuji camera that I really love. I take that with me everywhere and take photos of my friends. I love documenting people’s processes or taking it on tour and capturing moments, you know, a very slice of life approach. So that’s really fun. I don’t know if that really informs the music, but it is nice to do something that is adjacent.

NT: Yeah, I think it can even act as an indirect influence on the creative process. I wanted to touch on the lyricism of the album because so much of it seems to be about personal growth. What was the story you were trying to convey through this album?

CB: A lot of the album is centered around coming of age with turning 30 and going through this process of growth, rediscovery, feeling lost and existing in a void, if that makes any sense. Especially because I feel like musically it was a record I always wanted to make when I was younger, but I didn’t necessarily have the ability in terms of writing or producing. But now with confidence, I can say that I do. And this record showcases that.

I was just noticing that my life and everyone else within the band, all our lives were diverging in all these different but beautiful ways, and we still connect through music and by being best friends over 10 years. But it’s interesting seeing how everyone is growing up and some people are settling down and getting married, having kids. I myself am in New York and single and trying to produce and write songs and really chase my career.

A lot of the album is also about the experiences of all of our lives, collectively and individually, as a band. “Lucky Forever” is about Jake and Joey, respectively, their marriages and witnessing that. “Holy Grail” is feeling like you’re always chasing something within the music industry and you can never exactly be content – you’re just existing and figuring it out.

NT: I feel that it’s a very universal experience, the idea of growing up and seeing everybody start going their own ways.

CB: Yeah, it feels like you’re leaving high school again, which is obviously a feeling I never thought I would necessarily experience again. Turning 30 as well, there can be the societal pressure that you need to get married and settle down. It’s been funny to navigate.

NT: I think that speaks really well to many of your songs on this album, especially that pressure to settle down and those feelings of uncertainty. Is there a song on the album that you feel really resonates with this feeling?

CB: I feel like that’s the album overall. “Last Call” really feels like, I’m running out of time because I’m witnessing so many people in my life go through these significant milestones that I feel like I should also be achieving.

NT: “Last Call” is your last single coming out for this album specifically. Why “Last Call”, “Holy Grail” and “I See Myself In You” as the three singles?

CB: I wish I could tell you. “Holy Grail”, we had a strong idea visually for that song. It felt like a good introduction to the album. Then, we just went back and forth on these different songs and this was the selection we came up with. There’s an additional track that will have a music video when the album drops, but there’s no particular rhyme or reason. It was really just that visually we had ideas that suited these songs and got artistically and emotionally the point across to fans. At least I hope they do.

The first two are a bit slower, very lush and almost orchestral. Then “Last Call” is very much a throwback song because it’s just guitars. There’s so many guitars. I’m really, really proud of that track. I also just love songs that are sub two minutes and very catchy. This was my attempt at doing something very quick, almost like a palate cleanser.

NT: I was curious about that song being about a minute and a half just because it’s significantly shorter than the other songs.

CB: It’s kind of the point with the lyrics in terms of running out of time. If the song went for double the length or longer, it would overstay it’s welcome. The lyrics are very much in theme with the whole timing of the song. It’s meant to be very frantic and panicked. It should feel like a panic attack. As I get older and write more songs, I’m trying to pay more attention to having intention with lyrics, title, and arrangement rather than just writing a song.

NT: Throughout the album you can feel that intention in the lyrics and titles and even in the visual elements of “Holy Grail” and “I See Myself In You”. “I See Myself In You” I know is based on one of your personal experiences with your family, and I wanted to talk a bit about what that song and the video mean to you.

CB: The song is based loosely off a conversation I had with my parents while I was in Sydney before I returned to the US. I was going through something particularly difficult with a friend, and the conversation was so grounded, and it was as if I was talking to my best friends.

It’s interesting to think that my mum and my dad have gone from this role of a caretaker into being these older, wiser friends of mine because we can talk about anything now. I’m not a teenager and trying to hide some of the shenanigans that I’m getting up to anymore. It’s now more that I’m an adult, they’re adults, we’re on the same playing field, and I’ve realized that they’ve also gone through so many similar experiences that mirror my own.

It did make me pause and think as well, am I one day going to have the same conversation or a similar conversation with my own child? Will I be a father and talking to my kid and history will repeat itself?

NT: I felt that this was reflected in the music video as well. When you were putting together that visual, what was the thought process of having the other chess players grow older throughout the video?

CB: That was our director’s idea, Patrick Linehan, to have the players get older as the game progresses whilst I stay the same age. I just pitched to him that I really wanted to play a game of chess. I love chess. I’m terrible at it, but I like the game a lot. And he referenced a really famous game from the 1980s, the Game of the Century. We’re recreating that game as we play.

We’re jumping ahead in the game, but people are jumping ahead in terms of age as well. Then there’s that moment where the band’s behind me as I give up my last piece from the checkmate and hand it over, and you see all of them.

It’s very beautiful. The reaction and response that we’ve gotten from fans has been really sweet.

NT: Is there a song on the album that you’re the most excited for people to hear?

Burns: I think a lot of people are going to like “Lucky Forever”. I feel like that’s going to be a wedding song for a lot of people, not to toot my own horn. Outside of that, I feel like a lot of long-term fans are really going to like “Last Call” and “Yesterday”, because those songs feel like songs that could have been on Changes. I think the album is going to draw in a lot of new listeners too. I feel that it appeals to people like my dad, who are approaching their 70s to more Gen Z audiences.

NT: I wanted to get into a bit about your tour as well, because that wrapped up last month. What was your experience with the Holy Grail Tour like? What do you think you’ve taken away from the experience leading up to this album release?

CB: Honestly, that tour was brutal, physically and mentally, but I had a great time when I was on stage. I think it’s good to be transparent and honest rather than just say, ‘oh, it was the best, I loved it.’

That tour was difficult in the sense that we did key cities in North America night after night. And it went for two months straight. We had a small break in New York, but even then, we were working on music videos, we were doing photo shoots, we were doing live sessions, we never really had any downtime. Once we hit Southeast Asia, then leading into Australia we all just suffered a lot of fatigue.

Despite how tired and burnt out we got, I’m glad the tour wasn’t any longer and that the shows were so successful and that fans knew all the lyrics. It’s really special. We haven’t done a run like that in so long either. It’s been a year and a half since we’ve really toured so we’ve been out of practice for a minute. But once you’re on the road, you get to this point where you hit a wall and then you just think, ‘oh I can just keep going now.’ Because despite how chaotic it all feels, there’s this weird sense of routine to it all. It almost, in a weird way, becomes comforting.

I don’t really know how to articulate it; it’s this weird feeling where I love this and hate this at the same time. There are moments where I just want to be at home and cook dinner for myself or sleep in my own bed. But then once you’re on stage and you’re performing, you’re like, ‘this is fantastic. I love music. I love life. This is the best.’

To answer your question, I would be lying if I said, ‘it’s all easy and beautiful, and you never have to work a day in your life.’ There are a lot of real challenges. But there’s still this constant back and forth. I’ve been back in New York now for two weeks, and I’m like, ‘wait, what do I do if I’m not touring?’ I’m kind of just hanging out. This is what I wanted when I was on tour, but now I’m like, ‘damn, I’d really love to play a show right now.’

It’s a very funny lifestyle to lead.

NT: So what do you do in between shows, or in between tours, to feed that desire to be playing on stage?

CB: I’m a songwriter and producer, so I work with other artists while I’m on my off-season between tours. Otherwise, I’ll go to the gym, or I’ll paint Warhammer miniatures, or play Magic the Gathering with friends. I’ll go out, just hang out with people, meet people, just keep myself busy with side quests and random stuff.

But after a certain point, if we don’t tour for a long period of time, we’re a little bit disconnected with each other as best friends and from the band. When we’re on tour, it feels really good because we’ve reconnected with our whole sense of purpose. But sometimes we just need to get the band back together and spend quality time together outside of the tour.

NT: You’re all also in different places right now too, which I can imagine makes things challenging. What has it been like for you in New York?

CB: I’ve had probably some of the best days of my life and worst days. I miss home all the time. But there’s also a new life to be made here. And I think it’s important to be outside your comfort zone and challenge yourself a little bit. Then we have this opportunity to be a US-based band, which I don’t take lightly. Not many people get to that point. I decided I wanted to just try my best and see what happens.

Overall, it’s been great. But it’s definitely a pretty wild transition to make because you’ve got to build up that community all over again and make those friends. It’s a funny process when you’re in your 30s, especially when people are now starting to diverge and go into different life paths. It takes time to build that life. You have to trust the process and keep trying over and over and over again.

Pre-order Pursuit of Anything by Vacations HERE