Interview: Jim Hewitt of Lost Film On The Band’s New Album ‘Keep It Together’

Photo by Ben Stas

Since 2014, Jim Hewitt has been creating a cozy, humble space for his music as Lost Film, a lo-fi helping of indie-pop perfection with enough long sighs curling up with jangled guitars and a soft glow of synths in its sound to make the doldrums feel very bit like home. On the Western Mass band’s third full-length and best album yet, Keep It Together, Hewitt and his close company peak out from beneath the surface of what these last few years have weighed down on all of us, and come out sounding more brighter from the doom and gloom by finding small joys in everyday living.

+rcmndedlisten caught up with Hewitt through e-mail to talk about leaving home in favor of a wintry cabin to record the album, breaking old patterns this time around, his inner emo coming out more audibly than ever, and how Lost Film’s music naturally fits into sweater weather.

+rl: This is the first time that you recorded an album outside your home in Easthampton — this time holed up in a cabin in New Hampshire during a blizzard. How did leaving your “natural habitat” of being a bedroom indie pop outfit and situating yourself outside your usual surroundings impact what we’re hearing here this time around? 

Jim Hewitt: I’ve tried studios early on in the project and in past bands and it just doesn’t work for me. The pressure of having the meter running while trying to create something special tends to spoil it, and it’s of course more comfortable to take risks doing it at your own pace and at home or with close friends. But having done that before, I try to mix it up and not repeat myself. Past albums have been recorded in 30-minute stints in the basement whenever I have time, but for this one we really immersed ourselves by staying in the cabin and getting nearly everything recorded in a weekend – I think it made it really cohesive that way. Also having a great friend and experienced engineer in Matt doing the production made a nice leap in fidelity without going too hi-fi.

+rl: As the album bio points out in reference to the aforementioned blizzard, “you wouldn’t know it” based on the way this listen naturally cultivates a warm, sunny glow to it. Thematically, its insides don’t quite match its outsides either, with its existential melancholia being presented like comfort food. Is that a mindset that remains fixed in your songwriting regardless of the weather? 

JH: I took a lot longer between albums this time around so the songs were written between a four year period. Originally I was planning to put something out late 2020, early 2021 but the world shutting down obviously shifted things a bit. I’ve looked outward for lyric material for the past two records but back to the desire to avoid repeating the past – wanted to be more honest and introspective and personal with this album.

+rl: In the past, many have been quick to draw up parallels between Lost Film’s sound to that of the lo-fi ripples of artists like Beach Fossils and Wild Nothing, but from this view, Keep It Together is more so evolved as an intersect between where your sound once ventured and the more power pop-flavored emo rock of Oso Oso. What is your relationship with emo? 

JH: This might be the first time emo has come up in an interview – finally. I’m obviously a big fan of Beach Fossils and Wild Nothing and having started playing around the same time, the influences are definitely there. But growing up, emo bands are what hooked me on going to shows and buying CDs, and becoming a part of the whole “DIY” community. Being in that world while high school when bands like Saves the Day and Bright Eyes were at their peak ingrained emo into my songwriting DNA so I’m glad someone finally picked up on it.

+rl: This also is a quintessential autumnal album. How much did the onset of a New England autumn inform your decision to release your new album during the season (because it was spot-on)?  

JH: If there’s one thing that people have said to me about my music is that it is fall music, so at this point I’m just leaning into it. Maybe it’s because I’m a Libra or because I live here but I of course love autumn and the timing always lines up for the releases. The mixture of nostalgia and slight melancholy with pop hooks maybe ties into it too. Everyone loves coming to look at the bright colors of the changing leaves but probably don’t think about how that’s just the leaves not getting enough of what they’re used to in the Summer and are essentially dying.

+rl: I was able to see Lost Film open for Wild Pink a year ago and it already sounded like the pieces of Keep It Together were coming together then. You’ve played some fun shows leading up to its release recently opening for the likes of Sweeping Promises and Temple of Angels, but what does the rest of the year hold for the band? 

JH: Playing with the live band we have now definitely shaped how the record came out and am super grateful for that. At this point in the project, it’s the best it’s sounded and most fun. That said, juggling a day job and a young family – I don’t have it in me to play every show we get offered. Helping out touring friends by setting up a show or opening for a bigger band we like is the best since it gives an extra sense of purpose. We’ve been lucky enough to be a part of some great shows with bigger crowds in the past six months especially. So for the rest of the year, I think we’re just gonna wait and see and let the new record find people and if a band we like comes through – probably try and open for them.

Lost Film’s Keep It Together will be released September 15th on Relief Map Records.