by alex grainger
photo courtesy of joan
joan recently released their latest single “nervous.” The nostalgic laced track was crafted to bring us all back to the intoxicating, all-consuming crushes we once experienced in high school. The duo aimed to “get as close to the emotion of a sort of school-like love story,” a story which is driven by the “handmade and intentional” sounds produced to elicit the striking memories of the swarm of butterflies as you see your crush in the hallway and making sure you say all the right things to them. The fourth track off and third released single ahead of their album superglue, “nervous” makes us all feel that “wonder and hope” of a crush. The alternative pop beats curated for “nervous” is one the duo felt was a “cool separation from their sound,” and drives the narrative of superglue through the phases of life — “nervous” obviously reminiscing on young love. Read more about “nervous” and joan below!
Your latest single “nervous” is about a “sort of school-like love story.” Can you tell us a little more about the story “nervous” shares?
joan: “We wanted to get as close we could to being back in school walking down the hall and you see that person that gives you such strong feelings, gives you a pit in your stomach, literally makes you feel like you’re going to throw up when you go to talk to them because you don’t want to say the wrong words and look like an idiot. It’s about being nervous, but in a good way that fills you with wonder and hope.”
You two wrote the song with Emily Falvey and Jonathan Capeci from Nightly. Can you take us through the collaborative writing process? How did the “immediate chemistry” felt between everyone aid in this process?
joan: “Yes! We had already written ‘don’t wanna be your friend’ with Jonathan and loved what we got in that session, and Jonathan introduced us to Emily after that. We were in Nashville and called them to write together and just had such a great connection right off the bat. It felt like we had been friends and writing together for a really long time, just incredibly natural. Can’t wait to write more with them.”
You two talk about how while you have these love interests, you’re consumed by the feeling of wanting to be near them but also avoiding ever saying the wrong thing while around them. Looking back now, do you think in that moment you’re concerned with being your true self or just playing into what will attract the other person? How do those feelings of attraction change as you mature?
joan: “Oh yeah, totally. That’s such a crucial moment in meeting different people and having a desire to be with someone — one side of you really just wants to say the right thing so badly and make that person happy with your words, and the other side really wants to be accepted as YOU and not feel like you have to put on any front. It can be such a fine line to not change who you are in all of that, and it’s so important to stay true to who you are. Even in the end if you don’t end up together, I think maturing is realizing that finding someone that wants you for you is worth the wait.”
How do you feel the alternative pop sound of “nervous” pulls the listener into the nostalgic, “cool and distinct feeling” of an all-consuming crush?
joan: “We intentionally produced a lot of this track in a very minimal and organic way. A lot of the drums are us beat boxing, hitting hands on a leg, etc. Even the sounds after certain words in the verses were created to be sort of a voice in your head while the narrative happens. It’s a little hard to describe, but we tried our best to make it feel handmade and intentional with what the song is trying to say.”
You two released a music video to accompany the single’s release. What inspired the decision to have the music video set in a warehouse type setting instead of a “school-type” setting?
joan: “We definitely thought about doing the video in a school setting, but it felt a little too on the nose and it definitely seemed like the easier choice which we try to go against. :)”
How do you think the use of distorted fisheye shots, bright lights, scribbles of lyrics, and almost psychedelic shots of black and white swirls, and dancing silhouettes drive the narrative of being enamored by a crush?
joan: “Oh, it doesn’t necessarily. we just wanted to create a video for this song that visually paired with the song more than trying to drive a narrative through the video.”
“nervous” is track number 4 off your upcoming debut album superglue. How does this track play into the overall sound and narrative of superglue?
joan: “Wooohoooo SUPERGLUE!!!! Literally cannot wait for you to hear the album. superglue touches on pretty much every part of life — from growing up, becoming an adult, to having kids, to death. ‘nervous’ represents young love in that narrative and definitely moves from there.”
“nervous” follows “don’t wanna be your friend” and “flowers” as your third single released ahead of superglue. Did you always know “nervous” would be released as a single or did the song surprise you once completed?
joan: “‘nervous’ always felt like a really cool separation from our sound a little bit, and kept sticking out as a favorite on our team, so it was always a front runner as a single. We were super stoked about it being a single, it’s definitely a favorite.”