B-Side Guys

Return journeys often prove more melancholic than departures. The salt-stained memories of adventure begin to fade against the mundane backdrop of familiar surroundings—a dissonance that London’s Firestations captures with remarkable precision in “All The Way Back Down Here,” released in early March as a preview of their forthcoming album Many White Horses.

What distinguishes this track from typical post-adventure reflections is how bandleader Mike Cranny transmutes maritime exploration into sonic architecture. Though technically a solo venture with contributions from bandmate Laura Copsey (flugelhorn, flute, vocals), the song maintains the immersive qualities that have defined Firestations’ output since their 2014 debut. Yet here, those qualities serve a more intimate purpose—recreating the psychological afterimage of Scotland’s western coastline through field recordings and instrumental choices that evoke both distance and proximity.

The production merits particular attention. Warm and textured without feeling overworked, it creates a cocoon-like listening experience where acoustic foundations support more ethereal elements. This approach aligns perfectly with Cranny’s stated intention for the song: wrestling with “how strange it was to be back home surrounded by all my stuff, and hoping that it would be possible to keep the spirit of the journey alive.” The tension between material comfort and experiential memory becomes the song’s emotional engine.

Nestled between acoustic folk and slowcore, with dream pop textures providing atmospheric weight, “All The Way Back Down Here” occupies a liminal space that mirrors its thematic concerns. The deliberate pacing suggests both the rhythmic motion of waves and the measured steps of someone reacclimating to solid ground. This duality extends to the compositional structure, which seems to drift between focused songcraft and more impressionistic passages—never fully committing to either approach.

For a band previously championed by BBC 6 Music’s Marc Riley (who dubbed their track “Small Island” as “a perfect pop song”), this release signals a willingness to explore less immediately accessible territory. The nautical expedition that inspired Many White Horses has clearly influenced not just the content but the form of Firestations’ music—allowing more space, more silence, more contemplation than their earlier, more traditionally structured work.

“All The Way Back Down Here” ultimately succeeds as both document and doorway—chronicling a specific experience while inviting listeners to reflect on their own returns and the cognitive dissonance they often entail. When the full album arrives on April 25th via Lost Map Records, we’ll discover whether this single represents a lone shore excursion or the beginning of a new creative voyage for the London ensemble.