Robert DeLong Goes Folktronic With 'Fool Me Once (Folk Edition)'
(evolve) Alt-electro alchemist Robert DeLong is trading synths for banjo strings with his new release, "Fool Me Once (Folk Edition)," via Roundhill Records. The reimagined track, originally released on his 2025 deluxe album "PLAYLIST OF DOOM: After DARK," was inspired from a live show where DeLong performed the track on his banjo. Adding JD Carrera on pedal steel, the song is a boom-clap folktronic anthem with a side of indie twang.
"Fool Me Once was written on a banjo in my kitchen, recorded on a voice note, and then promptly forgotten," says DeLong. "A few months later during the height of lockdown pandemic quaran-tainment, I produced a fun a cappella version of the song filled with stomping, clapping and singing and people seemed to enjoy it, but again, it disappeared into the feed-ether. As I was putting songs together for 'PLAYLIST of DOOM,' I remembered the tune and made a full-production version, which ended up on the Deluxe record. I wanted to do a version of it live, and without thinking one day I picked up my banjo, and then I remembered that's where it all started. The banjo had accidentally been tuned a half-step too high, which actually suited my voice, and prompted me to record this folk version with my good friend, JD Carrerra, on pedal steel."
"Fool Me Once" lyrically reflects a multitude of autobiographical moments hand-picked from DeLong's life and ultimately tell a story about of hopefulness post-one-night stand for future romance. DeLong will be featured on the popular YouTube show, Jam In The Van, performing the track on Nov. 10.
Originally from Seattle but now based in Los Angeles, the songwriter, producer and multi-instrumentalist embraces a sense of raw honesty that seeps through his cleverly crafted lyrics on his fourth full-length album, "PLAYLIST OF DOOM," out via Roundhill Records. His music has been featured on Spotify's top global playlists ( New Music Friday, The New Alt, Feelgood Indie, Pop Sauce) and in the top five on Billboard's Alternative charts. DeLong has also graced the stages at festivals such as Coachella, Outside Lands, Lollapalooza, Bonnaroo, Reading and Leeds, Ultra, and many more.
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