Our Origins feature series gives artists a space to share the influences behind their latest release. Today, POP ETC reveal everything that went into their new Jason Schwartzman collaboration, “Slips Away.”
Six years since their last album, indie trio POP ETC are set to return with a brand new LP, Over The Moment. Today, April 28, they’ve released the first single, “Slips Away,” which features spoken-word contributions from actor Jason Schwartzman.
For over half a decade, POP ETC (fka the morning benders) have refrained from releasing a full body of work, instead tiding fans over with regular singles releases and Patreon-exclusive covers. For those who forecasted the “death of the album,” the band’s trajectory seemed to fit right into the narrative, as the meteoric rise of streaming platforms coincided with their break from the LP.
Fans of the record format and POP ETC — of which there must be many — should fear not, however, as the band’s newest album is set to release this year. Our first taste of the group’s first album since 2016’s Souvenirs comes by way of “Slips Away,” a driving indie rock tune complete with acoustic guitar, synth pads, and Schwartzman waxing poetic.
10 years in the making, “Slips Away” deals with lyrical themes of uncertainty, the struggle to let go of the past, and ultimately how, even when well-intentioned, you can bring those you love down with you if you’re not careful. It’s surprising that Schwartzman’s monologue was recorded for a different song, as his musings on lifeguards and old relationships work so well within the context of “Slips Away.”
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Lead singer Chris Chu tells Consequence that Schwartzman came to one of the band’s shows and was “the sweetest guy” when they met. “We exchanged emails and became kind of pen pals over the years, and I would run into him occasionally around LA and NY,” he remembers.
“We had spoken about collaborating for a while, and at some point years back we tried doing this spoken word thing, over an entirely different song,” Chu continues. “It didn’t end up working on that song, but I always loved a lot of what we came up with, and one day when I was working on what would become ‘Slips Away,’ it just sort of popped back into my head.”
Chu recalls feeling a bit anxious about sending it to Schwartzman, but it all worked out in the end. “It worked perfectly to my ears, but I was a little nervous when I sent it to Jason,” he says. “Luckily he wrote back immediately, ‘I love this!'”
Check out “Slips Away” below, followed by Chu’s Origins breakdown.
