MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST:
"Never Enough" - that is the name of the new album from the hardcore rock band Turnstile, and fans cannot seem to get enough of the group from Baltimore. Last month they played a raucous free concert for thousands of fans at the city's Wyman Park Dell.
(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)
TURNSTILE: (Singing) Yeah.
KELLY: Izzi Bavis from WTMD in Baltimore was at the show, and this week she joined NPR Music's New Music Friday podcast to chat about Turnstile's new album and how they have kept their hometown roots while becoming one of the biggest rock bands in America.
(SOUNDBITE OF TURNSTILE SONG, "NEVER ENOUGH")
IZZI BAVIS, BYLINE: It's a really big deal for the hardcore scene, as well as just music in Baltimore. You know, Turnstile has been making music since, like, 2010, and they've put out a handful of projects, and this one definitely feels the most introspective.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "NEVER ENOUGH")
TURNSTILE: (Singing) Never let your guard down anywhere you go. In the right place...
BAVIS: I particularly love the song "Look Out For Me."
(SOUNDBITE OF TURNSTILE SONG, "LOOK OUT FOR ME")
BAVIS: It has this very kind of admirable nod to Baltimore in their music video or, like, the movie part of it that they're doing, as well as the ode to Baltimore club at the end of the song, which is one of my favorite parts of the record.
(SOUNDBITE OF TURNSTILE SONG, "LOOK OUT FOR ME")
BAVIS: The thing about Turnstile and, like, the longevity of their career and the different projects they've made is that "Never Enough" and their last album "Glow On" is, like, them kind of stepping into a different role than just, like, we're a hardcore band from Baltimore. They're definitely, like, stepping out.
(SOUNDBITE OF TURNSTILE SONG, "LOOK OUT FOR ME")
BAVIS: I really want to talk more about "Dreaming," which I just think is this song that, when I was listening for the first time to the record, I was like, what is going on?
(SOUNDBITE OF TURNSTILE SONG, "DREAMING")
BAVIS: 'Cause you have these horns, and then it just, like, kind of builds and builds and builds. And the song just takes you on this sonic journey that made me, like, realize that Turnstile is not afraid to take risks, even now that they have, like, you know, more commercial success. Like, they're still experimenting and trying different things, and I feel like "Dreaming" is a great song for them to try that on.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DREAMING")
TURNSTILE: (Singing) When I get to dreaming, then I know. When I get to dreaming, then I know.
BAVIS: Turnstile, the - I mean, it's so apparent in their music, it's so apparent in the way that they talk about Baltimore, but they love Baltimore. They love this city, and that is a huge part of being from Baltimore and living in Baltimore is loving it. And being able to, you know, go off and make these amazing records and go and play these huge, sold-out shows and then come home and hang out at Ottobar and, like, go to Sophomore Coffee.
Like - and that's so apparent when I went to the free show at Wyman Park Dell. And you have kids there. You have families there. You have people who are, you know, coming in from D.C. or coming down from Philadelphia, and it really shows that - how much that they care about music. Like, they're not doing this just so they can, like, make a new album. Like, they're doing this 'cause they love what they do and they want to put their heart and soul into it. And I think that's really apparent with what they did on this album.
KELLY: That was Izzi Bavis from WTMD in Baltimore. And you can hear more on NPR Music's New Music Friday podcast. Turnstile's new album "Never Enough" is out today.
(SOUNDBITE OF SONG, "DREAMING")
TURNSTILE: (Singing) I'm falling out of place, falling out of place, falling out of place, falling out of place. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
NPR transcripts are created on a rush deadline by an NPR contractor. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.
