PREMIERE: Footballhead Unveil New Single “Tightrope”

In October, Chicago quintet Footballhead released “Habits,” which landed on our Best Songs of the Week roundup. Now, Ryan Nolen, Adam Siska, snow ellet, Liam Burns and Robbie Kuntz are back with the massive, energetic alt-rock track “Tightrope.” Merging late-’90s pop-punk with a harmonious dream-pop-inspired attitude, the melodies of Footballhead are gorgeous and full of bliss. Nolen is the shepherd, and his guidance is what makes “Tightrope” so monumental. “I can walk to you right now, another wave that shakes the ground,” he sings. “Little side note that ripples true when it’s profound, not gonna lose when I look down.”

“Tightrope” will be on Footballhead’s upcoming debut album Overthinking Everything, which was originally released back in June but was taken off the internet. Now, Tiny Engines will give the record its full release in March. “I remember writing the intro riff in my old living room in January of this year,” Nolen says of the song. “The motive for ‘Tightrope’ was to make it “heavy” but within a pop context. This song ended up having a lot of peaks and valleys for it being sub-2 minutes. I remember I had the bridge and snow (ellet) suggested the tapping part over the top of it which became my favorite part. This song is the blueprint for Footballhead going forward in my eyes.”

Watch the TJ Martell-directed music video for “Tightrope” below.