Nick Zawisa of Breakup Shoes Talks New Single "Get Lost," Tour, and Upcoming Album
Photo courtesy of Breakup Shoes // @breakupshoes
This interview has been edited for clarity & conciseness.
Phoenix-based indie band Breakup Shoes, consisting of vocalist Nick Zawisa, drummer Matthew Witsoe, and guitarist/bassist John MacLeod, returned with their new single “Get Lost” on March 3. The mellow track that combines innocent, romantic lyrics with a breezy indie-pop instrumental was released right in time for the impending warm weather. Most known for their tracks, “Unrequited Love (& other clichés)” and “Nicotine Dream,” Breakup Shoes plans to deliver a full-length album this summer. I had the opportunity to ask Zawisa a few questions about “Get Lost,” their upcoming album, and spring tour with alternative band, Phoneboy.
Alexa Maddi: I absolutely love “Get Lost,” because it’s the perfect summer song to drive to with the windows down! What can you guys tell me about this new track? Since it’s your guys’ first single until the upcoming album, what made you guys choose this as the first single?
Nick Zawisa: I appreciate that! We chose "Get Lost" as the first single because we felt that it's a catchy, fun song. It stands out as the most pop-leaning tune and a lot of the other tracks on the upcoming album tackle heavier subject matter, so we thought starting with a cute love song would be a good way to ease our listeners into the world of the record. But honestly, that might be a bit of revisionist history; it just had the right feel and we were all in agreement. We're also really stoked on the strings section of this song, so we wanted it to have its own moment to shine.
AM: [You] wrote “Get Lost” while on a trip up to a cabin in Northern Arizona with [your] partner, which is super sweet. What was this songwriting process like overall? Did you write any other songs for the upcoming album there?
Zawisa: The songwriting process was pretty simple, really. All of my favorite songs that I've written tend to come together pretty quickly; so we had just gotten settled at this cute little A-frame cabin, poured ourselves some gin and tonics, and then sat out on the back porch to enjoy the weather. She was reading across from me while I noodled on an acoustic, and it was just a really serene and beautiful moment, so I started jotting down lyrics in my notebook to the progression I was playing, and 15 minutes later, I had a song. I brought it back to Phoenix to show the boys, they added their parts to turn it into a full-band composition, and that's the story of "Get Lost.” I didn't write any other songs while I was up there, just some chord progressions that I really ought to revisit.
AM: Where did the idea for the music video come from? What was it like recording that?
Zawisa: I can't take too much credit for the music video; that's all Braxton Apana (aka Beewax). I love the work he's done for other artists so I sent him the song, told him that it's a pretty straight-forward love song and that the only idea I had was to visually tell the story of the song, and he ran with it, making it seem at first like it's just a standard romance plot; only to break the fourth wall and create room for a fun and unexpected concept. Working on the video was an absolute blast, we were just goofing around for a lot of it and we're really hyped with how it turned out.
AM: Speaking of the upcoming album, what new elements can we expect? Are there any specific themes we can expect with the new album?
Zawisa: The new record focuses around the theme of anxiety and our attempts to escape it. The songs range in topics from work burnout to losing friends, with a couple of tracks that celebrate the love that has helped lift me out of many ruts. Along with writing about the woes of growing up, the album is sonically a bit more grown up, straying away from the formulas of our older tracks in favor of some new arrangement and instrumentation styles. Some tracks lean into our pop punk-adjacent roots, while most stay in the dreamy indie-rock realm that we love.
AM: You guys are going on tour in a couple of weeks and will be playing in Boston in late May! How are you guys feeling about it? Will you be playing new songs?
Zawisa: We're always stoked to get back on the road. We all love touring; being in a new city every day, meeting people, and getting to perform every night. It’s the best. Ever since our first tour just before the pandemic, we've been constantly wanting to get back out. And we will be playing a couple of new songs! "Get Lost" and another new one from the upcoming record.
AM: Is there anything else you would like to add about the upcoming album or tour?
Zawisa: We're just really excited to share the new album with the world. I'm usually very hard on myself and feel self-conscious to release new music, but I feel really confident in this group of songs and I can't wait for people to hear them. And come say hi at a show, we'll be at the merch table!