Halifax’s June Body Transport with Nostalgic New Single “Take Our Time Back”
Swaying between the punchiness of modern rock and the nostalgic tones of ’90s alternative, June Body‘s rawness and forthright lyrical delivery throws back to the likes of Death Cab for Cutie and The Weakerthans.
“Take Our Time Back” is the latest single from the trio’s third album, Last Everythings (June 7th, 2024); a snow globe of the scenes before, during, and after a breakup. It is a venture into the subtle, heartbreaking domestic details of an ending.
“I ended a year-long relationship that I realized I wasn’t ready to be in from the start,” lead vocalist/guitarist Connor James elaborates about the new track. “I fell in love with a great person, but a voice in the back of my mind kept telling me it wasn’t meant to be. ‘Take Our Time Back’ is about the guilt of having to break their heart, and wondering if they’re wishing they could take back the time we had together.”
First off, care to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hey everyone! June Body is Connor James, Alex Callaghan, and Matt Schofield. We’re an indie rock trio based out of Halifax, Nova Scotia. Since 2017, we have released three albums and two EPs. We have always operated under the “DIY for life” mentality–stuffing amps and drum kits into bedrooms to record, and book our own DIY tours across Canada.
Tell us a bit about your most recent release.
Our new single, “Take Our Time Back” is the fourth single to be released ahead of our upcoming third full-length album, Last Everythings (June 7, 2024). The record is a snowglobe of the events before, during, and after a breakup. Lyrically on “Take Our Time Back,” I wanted to present feelings of guilt and heartbreak alongside really specific scenes that everyone who has experienced a separation might be able to relate to. “Flipping through my phone, pressing the trash can on our old photos. Empty my bin of guilt.”
We recorded the album at an isolated ancient wooden cottage built along the Northumberland Strait in Nova Scotia. We equipped each room to record different instruments. We tracked drums in the large main room, and hung a (very) expensive rented mic from the upper loft to capture the room sounds. The small adjacent bedrooms, with their wood paneling and bedding, were perfect for tracking vocals and isolating the guitar amps.
The album was mixed by Juno and Polaris Prize-winning engineer Jace Lasek (Land of Talk, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Stars), and mastered by Juno and Grammy-nominated engineer Gordon Huntley.
How do you typically go about the songwriting process? Do you have a specific method or creative routine that you follow?
I (Connor), have always written the blueprints for everything we’ve released. I workshop songs in their most stripped-down form on acoustic guitar and then make voice clips to share with my bandmates. They let the songs stew for a while, and then we get into rehearsal and build the arrangements. It’s quite rare these days that the song in its demo form is emulated in the final recording. We’re all very vocal in rehearsals. New ideas, tinkerings, or bonafide massive changes to songs are quite common during the writing phase.
On the new album, we made a distinct effort to dig into the dynamics of ‘three.’ We realized that being a trio inherently allows for a sense of space that a larger lineup would struggle to achieve. We tried to write with this concept in mind–leaving space for each other to shine, while simultaneously delivering moments of synchronized explosiveness.
Looking ahead, what are your plans for supporting this new release? Are there any upcoming tours, music videos, or additional content that fans can look forward to in connection with this project?
There will be a truly awesome vinyl release for the new album on Fresh Biscuits Records. Two great colour varieties: ‘Toy Truck’ Orange and ‘I Don’t Love You Anymore’ Red. Really cool handwritten lyric inserts, with photos of us in our makeshift cottage studio are contained within. The vinyl sounds incredible. 180g recycled colour-spatter vinyl mastered by Jason Corbett at Jacknife Sound. It truly is the best way to listen to this album–there’s so much clarity and vibrance to the sound. You can preorder it now at: obsoleterecordsrecords1.bandcamp.com
Summer shows include:
June 12 at The Baby G at 8:00pm – Toronto – NXNE Showcase
June 22 at The Seahorse Tavern – Halifax – Album Release Show
Canadian album release touring will commence in the fall, so follow us on our socials to see when we’re coming to your city!
Looking back on your musical career, is there a particular moment or accomplishment that you consider a turning point or a highlight?
When we got an email last year from The Beaches asking us to open for them in Halifax, we definitely had a massive dopamine rush, but more importantly a feeling of having come such a long way from the humble beginnings of making albums in our bedrooms and playing small DIY shows. Going from playing to 10 people to 2000 people really validated the work we have put in over the last seven years, and reassured us that little and big wins do come along if you keep at it.
Last but not least, it’s time to pay it forward, what upcoming band or artist would you recommend your fans check out?
We play in Charlottetown, PE quite a bit, and a band that’s really leading the indie rock charge out there is called Absolute Losers. They’re a song-forward trio that I would sonically compare to Big Star and The Lemon Twigs. They’re just a perfect band in my opinion–their live show and recordings are so impressive. Check out their new album, At the Mall.
Also, check out the hardcore/post-rock band Pavel Stroke from Halifax. Their debut EP, Teladan Stadium is so explosive and unique.