US indie-pop duo slenderbodies on their latest album ‘the sugar machine’
Meeting on the UCSC quad. Creative awakenings. Euphoric nostalgic alt rock and producing music that feels like youthful freedom. Mezcal’s and more.
Fuzzer: Thanks so much for taking the time to answer some of our questions! First of all, how did you meet and start making music together?
slenderbodies: We met while both attending UCSC on the quad :). Initially we collaborated on different projects, but as time went on we started to collaborate on writing together. slenderbodies was born out of a time when we were both exploring new frontiers sonically.
Fuzzer: Awesome! Where are you from, and where are you based now?
slenderbodies: I (benji) grew up in the Bay Area and Max grew up in LA. I’m now based in Austin and Max is in San Diego.
Fuzzer: Who were your main musical and creative influences growing up?
slenderbodies: We were both really into rock and metal, but had creative awakenings around alt/indie music like Radiohead and Local Natives.
Fuzzer: One of our favourite songs of yours from your album "the sugar machine” is of course "before"! Can you tell us a bit about the inspiration behind that track and how it came to be?
slenderbodies: This song was an absolute puzzle! We wrote the instrumental first and got really attached to the guitar riff. From there we actually ended up reharmonizing (changing the chords) across the whole song, architecting this euphoric nostalgic alt rock feel, trying to get close to the sonic version of flying down the highway with your friends when you first learn to drive.
Fuzzer: Another song we absolutely LOVE is "sunny eyes (anymore)"! What was one of your main highlights working on this one?
slenderbodies: This one happened really organically, and the drums really helped drive it along. Because it was worked on in a linear fashion, it has this natural build and release like a temper tantrum that we really love.
Fuzzer: One thing we do for each of our interviews is we customise a cocktail recipe in relation to a project of the artist we're interviewing! So if your album "the sugar machine" was a cocktail, what type of drink would it be? What liquor or flavours do you think it would have?
slenderbodies: Definitely something sweet at first, with a touch of bitterness on the back end. we’re both big mezcal guys so it would have to be something with that!
Fuzzer: What music are you listening to at the moment and are there any new artists/songs you would recommend we listen to?
slenderbodies: I’ve been diving back into my roots with metal and listening to a ton of Spiritbox. Outside of that highly recommend the indie folk artist June Amiss.
Fuzzer: What's one of the best pieces of advice or lessons you've learnt across your career so far?
slenderbodies: The only way to truly fail is to give up and stop trying.
Fuzzer: Last question! What have you got planned for 2025?
slenderbodies: More music and hopefully more shows!
