The Beths have kept themselves busy since the release of their fourth studio album, Straight Line Was a Lie, in August 2025 — their first for new label home Anti-.
After an extensive North American tour last year to support the record, the New Zealand indie rock favorites returned to the States this past summer for a co-headlining trek with Spoon. Lead vocalist and guitarist Liz Stokes and lead guitarist Johnathan Pearce sat down with Ferndale Radio before their show at The Fillmore Detroit in June to reflect on Straight Line Was a Lie.
Stokes did a lot of writing for Straight Line was a Lie while she and Pearce were staying in Los Angeles. One interesting approach Stokes had was using a typewriter to craft the lyrics for the album.
“For the most recent record, I tried a thing where I read Stephen King’s book On Writing,” Stokes said. “It was like, ‘Oh, I’ll try that.’ So, I just wrote 10 pages a day for a couple months, just like stream-of-consciousness stuff. And then from that, I had…all of this fodder which I could use…when I went into song writing proper.
“Typewriter’s old school — physical pen and paper’s also pretty old school — which is the previous way that I was doing it as well. A lot of journaling and a lot of like free writing and and kind of just seeing what comes out.”
Watch the interview in the video above, where we also talk about how Stokes and Pearce still challenge themselves creatively, the greatness of radio and more.
The Beths wrap up their latest U.S. tour dates in California this week before heading to China for a couple of shows to close out October.
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