Photo by Sarah Craig
“Forty Paces to the Bottom” compares the height of a fire escape to the length of the downward distance travelled before reaching a necessary turning point in one’s life. The atmospheric layers of treated guitar and Wayne’s tender-hearted vocal set an appropriately wistful mood.
“The song is an attempt to create a narrative out of life’s personal challenges, particularly: financial insecurity, alcoholism, mindfulness, lost love, and indecisiveness. The song has lingered for many years, seeing several iterations in sound and lyrics. What was once a simple folk song, became a song that my previous band, The Warped 45s, occasionally played live, until it eventually landed on the sound that made this record. With each turn, came changes to the lyrical narrative as well. Whether it has found its appropriate finale, I’m not sure, but at some point, it needed to be set loose.”
