B-Side Guys

Jeff Hartwig’s journey from sharing stages with the Ramones to crafting ambient-tinged indie rock feels less like a career pivot and more like a natural evolution in “Ghosts,” BATTLEFLAGG’s latest single. The track, produced by Daniel Knowles (Sharon Van Etten, Cigarettes After Sex), serves as the perfect introduction to the forthcoming EP Solastalgia, capturing the peculiar grief of watching familiar landscapes transform beyond recognition.

This isn’t just another indie rock outfit with synthesizers – BATTLEFLAGG’s collective approach brings together members of The War on Drugs, Ethel Cain, Japanese Breakfast, and Elvis Costello to create something genuinely expansive. Knowles’ production expertise shines in the way traditional rock instrumentation melds with electronic elements, creating sonic spaces that feel simultaneously intimate and vast. The arrangement mirrors the song’s exploration of solastalgia – philosopher Glenn Albrecht’s term for the distress caused by environmental change in one’s home territory.

Hartwig’s vocals, shaped by years of experience from CBGBs to the Fillmore, carry the weight of witnessed change. His delivery bridges the gap between heartland rock’s earnestness and indie rock’s introspection, while the production’s ambient touches underscore the theme of fading familiarity. The chorus swells with the kind of arena-ready energy that recalls Hartwig’s days opening for Third Eye Blind and Train, but filtered through a more contemplative lens.

For a project born during the pandemic’s isolation, “Ghosts” feels remarkably communal. The Philadelphia-based collective has created a sound that’s both a response to creeping cynicism and a meditation on connection in the face of unstoppable change. It’s fitting that this track leads Solastalgia – an EP named for the homesickness felt while still at home. BATTLEFLAGG has captured something essential about how it feels to stand still while watching the world blur past, proving that sometimes the most personal examinations of loss can create the strongest bonds of understanding.