Sarah Swire is a multi-disciplinary artist with work spanning across stage, screen and television. As an actor, Swire is known for The Boys, Anna and the Apocalypse, Murdoch Mysteries, the upcoming Apple TV+ thriller The Last Frontier and Hallmark’s new drama Ripple (the latter two both set for release in 2025). Swire is an art-rock songwriter and storyteller who often incorporates original monologues and word art into their live performance.

Their 2023 debut album, Sister Swire, was produced by Joel Plaskett in Dartmouth, NS. Swire has also toured and performed theatre internationally and has arranged and composed original music for the BBC, Avalon Arts and The National Theatre of Scotland. After graduating from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, they toured with the band Belle and Sebastian and choreographed shows at Radio City Music Hall, Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Scotland’s Olympic Hydro Stadium and Glastonbury Music Festival.

“Tight!” and “The Fish Song” are Swire‘s newest singles following Sister Swire. Full of beefheart-ian lyricism and Burroughs-esque word art, these songs mark a shift in their songwriting and build off the fiction driven narratives heard on Sister Swire‘s “I Shot The President” or “She’s Screaming.” Reminiscent of early Nick Cave records, they are inspired by strange fiction from authors like Joy Williams, Tom Robbins, Lewis Carroll and Ishmeal Reed.

1. Tell us the story of this song, why did you choose to visualize this song specifically? 

Tight is a stream-of-consciousness poem I wrote in my parent’s kitchen ages ago. It’s the final installment of a larger piece of writing, a 3 part EP called “That Time I Took Too Much Acid And Saw Josh Tillman” which is a musical retelling of literally just that. I felt ‘Tight!’ had legs as a solo piece and wanted to pitch it to the ether while keeping the full three-song cycle for live performances only. I make music to make movies or to explore visual ideas. I feel they are two sides of the coin/expressive process. For ‘Tight!’ I was keen on DIY animation. It’s B-Side, ‘The Fish Song’, I desperately wanted to build a giant kaleidoscope. Link to The Fish Song Here: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRpqZfz0szo)

2.What was the inspiration behind this video (visuals, storyline, etc.)? 

I love Eric Stephen Martin’s illustrations and wanted to incorporate them somehow. Eric plays electric guitar and synth with me, and having him animate over the video felt like a complimentary collaboration to go along with the tunage. I’m hell-bent on keeping our live performances as a duo, not only for practical purposes but because I think it’s an interesting limitation: how can 2 people make as much noise as possible with as little equipment as possible?

3.What was the process of making this video?

Suuuuper simple: we booked a couple of hours in a local venue and called up our pals Nicole Cecile Holland and Autumn Cox to help film. I then did five takes of improvised movement. I knew the bulk of the work would be in editing. I didn’t want it to feel too polished, and the inconsistencies in the footage created interesting offerings to edit with. Eric nailed it with the animation. Nicole and Autumn nailed it with the lighting. A SPLENDID ORDEAL INDEED.

Both “Tight!” and “The Fish Song” are in the vein of a style Swire has been exploring, performing original monologues to a live underscore by Eric Stephen Martin and recorded at Fang Recording Studios. Martin plays guitar on “Tight!” along with Joel Plaskett stepping in for an afternoon, playing the mellotron and helping shape the growing madness in both the tracks.

I wanted to make as much noise as possible with an acoustic guitar, an electric guitar and a kick drum. I don’t know what the genre of “Tight!” is, or “The Fish Song.” They exist somewhere in the uncanny valley. Anti-Genre? Singer-Songwriter, Art Rock? Spaghetti-Doom-Folk? – Sarah Swire