Flat Mary Road | photo courtesy of the artist
Flat Mary Road shares “Mandate” ahead of new album The Score and The Heartbeat
West Philly indie rockers Flat Mary Road have announced that their forthcoming album The Score and The Heartbeat will be released on April 26. They’ve shared its lead single “Mandate” ahead of the release, along with an accompanying lyric video.
The new lyric video is as much of a team effort as Flat Mary Road’s music. Edited and designed bassist Dan Papa and set to his photos of the Philly streets and skyline, the video also features drawings and animations by vocalist/guitarist Steve Teare. It’s sonically more folk-inspired than much Flat Mary Road’s previous work, with Teare leaning into a twangy vocal that’s balanced out with the band’s familiar rock-driven guitar.
“A lot of the songs on our new album are about being a citizen, making sense of history, and trying to figure oneself into a group, or a town, or a country,” Teare said in an email. “‘Mandate’ explores these themes; the lyrics sort of ask the viewer to take a look around, and so the characters in this lyric video are themselves explorers.”
Watch the lyric video below so you’ll be able to sing along when Flat Mary Road plays a record release show at Ortlieb’s on May 17. Find tickets and more information on the XPN Concert Calendar.