The pandemic showed us that distance needn’t be a barrier to creating great art. Most artists have gotten back to collaborating in person, but it’s refreshing to see some still making use of the technological tools at their disposal to create exciting new works. Thanks to Zoom, Aussie band The Buoys and Norway’s Sløtface have teamed up for their fabulous new single “Fight Back Time.” If you love acts like Wet Leg and Teen Jesus & The Jean Teasers, I know this will be right up your alley.
“Fight Back Time for me is about feeling way too caught up in everything you’re doing when you have too much going on, and desperately trying to grab some pieces of your life back so that you feel in control.” Explained Haley Shea of Sløtface, who wrote the bones of the song with collaborators and producers Michael Champion and Paul Whalley. She ended up shelving it, but found new inspiration after connecting digitally with The Buoys.
“Zoe [Catterall, The Buoys’ vocalist] and I met up on Zoom from our wildly different time zones and I instantly felt the connection. We had so much in common when it came to the theme of the song, and it felt extra fitting to be having that conversation early morning my time, and late evening Zoe’s time,” Haley recalled. “We bonded over the struggle of making time for everything as a working musician and songwriter.”
“Time is a concept I write about a lot! Balancing your day job with a hectic touring schedule is no piece of cake and it was really cool to talk at length about this with Haley at the end of my working day in Australia when her day was just starting in Norway,” Zoe added. “I feel like we’re all trying to fit in what we want to do around our responsibilities while also making time for family and friends. What’s left in the end is a dose of exhaustion and the feeling that sometimes time is getting away from you and that’s definitely what resonated with me the most.”
It may have started online, but Sløtface has been enjoying time in Australia meeting The Buoys in person and participating in songwriting sessions with local artists this month. It sounds like we’ll hear a lot more Aussie collaborations from Sløtface in future. Until then, follow them on the socials to see all their local adventures.
Photo credit: Jess Gleason