UTG PREMIERE: Good Old War – “Tell Me What You Want From Me” (Acoustic Video)

Philadelphia folk-pop duo Good Old War are set to release their fourth full-length studio album next week on June 29, via Nettwerk – their first without longtime drummer Tim Arnold.

Today, we’re excited to premiere an impeccable, bare-bones rendition of Broken Into Better Shape‘s lead single–possibly Good Old War’s biggest song to date–“Tell Me What You Want From Me.” Performed at the Mobli Beach House in Venice, CA, the setting is perfect for this stripped-down version, which allows a generous focus on the duo’s signature vocal harmonies. You can view the video below where you’ll also find a quick Q&A with vocalist Keith Goodwin, the band’s upcoming tour dates, and the lyric video for “Tell Me What You Want From Me.”

Broken Into Better Shape is now streaming in full over at Pandora, so take advantage of the chance to get several listens in before the album comes out next week. There’s still time to pre-order the LP through the band’s webstore, Amazon, or iTunes.

UTG: What specifically about “Tell Me What You Want From Me” stood out for you guys and resulted in it becoming the lead single?

Keith Goodwin: I think the size of it. The first time we heard the chorus hit it blew our hair back and we knew we were on to something.

UTG: And what can you tell me about this acoustic performance for the song?

KG: We wanted to get acoustic recordings of the album to share with our fans. Since we put a lot more instrumentation on this record than any of our previous records, we thought it might be nice to show the song at its core. It just so happened that the acoustic videos we have made have all been in the places we’ve spent the most time creating and rehearsing. The “Tell Me What You Want From Me” acoustic video was filmed in Dan’s living room where we do a lot of rehearsing.

UTG: As far as I can recall–and I could certainly be wrong–this is your guys’ first time utilizing a crowdfunding platform like PledgeMusic for GOW. How was the experience for you on this album cycle and could you see yourselves taking that route again in the future having now experienced it?

KG: It’s been a really positive experience. The thing we like the most about it is getting to share the whole process with the people who helped us make it. So far we have been really close with our fans, especially at shows, and this platform let us give them a closer look into how the record was put together, and that is something we have been wanting to do for a while. We would definitely like to continue to put up cool pre-order packages and give inside looks of this process again in the future.

UTG: From an inside perspective, what effect on your music and the band in general has Tim’s departure had? Is there anything about Tim no longer being a part of the band that you feel might show up on this record and make it stand out from the others?

KG: Tim not being there pushed us to try things we haven’t tried before. We figured without him we could pretty much do whatever we want. Up until now we’ve always tried to stay true and stick to what the live band sounded like. This time around we didn’t know what the band was going to sound like until the album was complete. It was a fun challenge.

UTG: Now that the album is set for release, you guys will be on the road for over a month this Summer. What are you looking forward to the most about this tour?

KG: Getting out and sharing this new music we’ve been working hard making over the last couple years. We are planning on staying on the road as much as possible. Spreading the word.


Good Old War Summer/Fall tour dates:

July 12th @ House of Blues Cambridge Room in Cleveland, OH
July 14th @ Varsity Theaterin Minneapolis, MN
July 15th @ Wooly’s in Des Moines, IA
July 17th @ Bluebird Theater in Denver, CO
July 19th @ Grand Targhee Resort in Alta, WY
July 20th @ Kilby Court in Salt Lake City UT
July 21st @ Neurolux in Boise, ID
July 23rd @ Tractor Tavern in Seattle, WA
July 24th @ Doug Fir Lounge in Portland, OR
July 27th @ The Independent in San Francisco, CA
July 28th @ The Roxy Theatre in Los Angeles, CA
July 31st @ The Kessler Theater in Dallas, TX
August 1st @ Sam’s Burger Joint in San Antonio, TX
August 2nd @ The Parish in Austin, TX
August 4th @ HOB Bronze Peacock in Houston, TX
August 5th @ Parish @ HOB in New Orleans, LA
August 7th @ Terminal West in Atlanta, GA
August 8th @ Saturn in Birmingham, AL
August 9th @ WRLT Presents @ Third & Lindsley in Nashville, TN
August 11th @ Local 506 in Chapel Hill, NC
August 12th @ Visulite Theatre in Charlotte, NC
August 13th @ The Hamilton in Washington, DC
August 15th @ Pinelands Music Festival in Millville, NJ
September 18-19 Toronto Urban Roots Festival (TURF) in Toronto, ON, Canada
September 20th @ Soundstage in Baltimore, MD
September 21st @ The Met in Providence, RI
September 23rd @ Rebecca Cohn Auditorium in Halifax, NS
September 25th @ L’Imperial Bell in Quebec City, QC
September 27th @ Algonquin Commons Theatre in Ottawa, ON
September 29th @ London Concert Theatre in London, ON
September 30th @ House of Blues (DNA UNTIL 7/13) in Cleveland, OH
October 1st @ Deluxe @ Old National Centre in Indianapolis, IN
October 2nd @ Bogart’s in Cincinnati, OH
October 7th @ Majestic Theatre in Madison, WI
October 8th @ The Ready Room in St. Louis, MO
October 12th @ HOB in San Diego, CA
October 14th @ HOB in Anaheim, CA

Brian Leak
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