Metric release new single, ‘Nothing Is Perfect’, and video – watch
It's the second single from October's 'Formentera II'
By Joe Goggins
Metric have released a new single, ‘Nothing Is Perfect’, and an accompanying music video – you can see it below.
The Canadian indie rock stalwarts announced the release of a surprise second part to their Formentera album last month, on the one-year anniversary of the original’s release. Formentera II will now follow on October 13, and in keeping with the disarming nature of its announcement, ‘Nothing Is Perfect’ plays against type, eschewing the band’s traditional electric guitars and synths for an acoustic palette that places singer Emily Haines’ vulnerable vocal front and centre.
“‘Nothing Is Perfect’ stands out on Formentera II as the lone track that is carried by only acoustic guitar and vocals,” said Haines, who creatively anchors the group alongside guitarist Jimmy Shaw. “We explored many renditions of this song during the recording process, but in the end found that everything we tried adding seemed to detract from the essence of it.”
The video, which was directed by Justin Broadbent, sees the band reference some of their cinematic idols, to “create an atmospheric and surreal visual accompaniment to enhance the otherworldly mood of the song, with stylistic nods to Terrence Malick and David Lynch,” according to Haines. “The song ends with a meditative and anthemic repetition of the word “nothing”, like I’m celebrating it and singing its praises,” she went on. “I love nothing!”
Whilst Formentera II largely came together at the band’s own Main Street Studios, which lies in a rural location outside of their native Toronto, it was finished up earlier this year at Motorbass Studios in Paris. That location is potentially instructive as to the sound of the album, given that Metric have previously cited the likes of Air, Daft Punk and Sébastien Teller as influences on their more electronic work, especially 2012’s Synthetica; all three of those artists have storied histories at Motorbass.
‘Nothing Is Perfect’ follows on from Formentera II’s lead single, ‘Just the Once’, with both tracks arriving as Metric finished up a lengthy tour of North America as the opening act on a run that saw co-headlining sets from Garbage and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds.