THEM COULEE BOYS
No Fun In The Chrysalis
THEM COULEE BOYS
Change, etc. (3:11)
Up Close (3:51)
As Long As You Let Me (4:23)
Mornings (1:13)
Mountains (4:18)
Tomorrow, Tonight (3:41)
I Can’t Turn It Off (4:07)
I Need A Friend (3:26)
Ghosts (In 4 Parts) (6:49)
Harvey & Margie (3:10)
I Am Not Sad (4:18)
No Fun In The Chrysalis
Stream “No Fun In The Chrysalis” below:
Release Date: Feb. 28th, 2025
"No Fun In The Chrysalis” Release Timeline
OCT 29 - Album Announce // “I AM NOT SAD” Single Release
JAN 09 - “UP CLOSE” Single Release
FEB 04 - “AS LONG AS YOU LET ME” Single Release
FEB 25 - “CHANGE, ETC.” Single Release
FEB 28 - “NO FUN IN THE CHRYSALIS” Album Release
Other Press
“You Gotta Hear This” - BLUEGRASS SITUATION
“I Am Not Sad” Single Premeire
“Them Coulee Boys New Single Tackles Ups and Downs of Mental Health - VOLUME ONE MAGAZINE
“I Am Not Sad” Single write-up
“[Them Coulee Boys] are bound by brotherhood and music and a common shared history. This album makes me think of forgiveness and love and brotherhood. It made me think how wonderful it must feel to make music together with your best friends.”
Recent Press
“I have fallen in love with who {Them Coulee Boys] are, and how they treat people, and how they carry forward as a band to bring happiness to the world that deserves and needs it. Their art is important to me...it was effortless mastery.”
“Warm and twangy ode / appreciates a moment / of pure contentment”
Album Bio
Hailing from Eau Claire, WI, Them Coulee Boys are back with a new album, No Fun In The Chrysalis, an expansive new collection that finds the band picking up where their 2021 release, Namesake, left off. The band’s co-founder, Soren Staff, wrote about his ongoing struggles with self-worth and anxiety on “I Am Not Sad,” the first single from the album. The band is once again working with Grammy-winning producer Brian Joseph (Sufjan Stevens, Humbird, Bon Iver), whose production on Namesake shepherded the band beyond their folk-grass, Americana roots to “go electric.” No Fun In The Chrysalis was recorded at The Hive in the band’s hometown of Eau Claire. The album has a warm, comfortable sound that is both intimate, and celebratory. Them Coulee Boys have built a loyal live following through their own relentless touring and as support for Trampled by Turtles (Dave Simonett produced 2019’s Die Happy), Los Lobos, Old Crow Medicine Show and Band of Heathens., They were Wisconsin Area Music Industry’s “Bluegrass Americana Band of the Year” in 2021.
No Fun In The Chrysalis captures what has been a signature of their dynamic live shows, an ability to sing honestly about their feelings and emotions and it has endeared them to a growing base of fans and friends.
Watch “I Am Not Sad”
'I Am Not Sad' is the last song on the record, and captures the theme of accepting change this record focuses on. I’ve struggled with my mental health my whole life, dealing with depression, anxiety, and issues with self worth. I’ve embraced those issues in my songwriting, hoping to shine a light on things that we all go through from time to time. We have plenty of songs that talk about these issues, but this one is the first that accepts them. The song is built around the phrase “I am not sad anymore, at least not today.” It’s a celebration of the happiness in the moment, while acknowledging that there’s times when it’s harder. It’s about being thankful for the good times, and letting them stack up on one another for when the bad times come. It’s a declaration, a moment of catharsis, while knowing that it won’t always be like that. Sonically it starts sparsely, with elements of the band being added with each verse, like confidence growing in one’s self as you begin to believe. It’s self assured, with strummed mandolin and piano a backdrop for growth. When the bridge lyrically introduces the idea that these positive feelings might not last, the musical interlude represents the choice to embrace that realization. An ethereal, almost dream-like backdrop sets up the catharsis of the last verse. When the last verse hits, it invites all the good feelings back for a triumphant jam. It’s loud and snarls in the face of the hard times. It’s meant to soar, and it does. "Fun fact: the last verse features a nod to Bob Dylan, with the phrase “dance with one hand waving free” lifted from “Mr. Tambourine Man” because his song “Ring Them Bells” served as the basis for this song’s chord structure.” —Soren Staff, Them Coulee Boys
“I Am Not Sad”
The music video for "I Am Not Sad" is a collection of footage from our time recording No Fun In The Chrysalis. Shot on a vintage Super 8 video camera, it also features film photography depicting the recording process. We wanted a literal snapshot of that moment of the sessions, and our lives in general. You see the full spectrum of time in the studio: intense focus to silly shenanigans. It’s key to have both, capturing a polished but real sound. It also features some shots of our family, which felt important as we have grown as a band. A daughter and a mother both found a way onto the recordings. In all, the methods of recording give the video a feeling of genuineness that aligns with what we hope to accomplish as a band. Sincerity, in everything we do. It was shot and edited by our friends RT Vrieze and Christopher Bartlet at Knorth Studios here in Eau Claire, WI.
Video Description
Promo Photos
Photos by Kenzie Trezise
Photos by Arik Elstran