We started writing the songs for A Brief Moment in the Sun in late 2020. It was daunting at first trying to make music virtually from four separate locations (NYC, Los Angeles, North Carolina, Austria) in the middle of a global pandemic, but we quickly found a songwriting groove and we added biweekly video conference calls to keep ourselves on track. By early 2021, we realized that there was something very special and passionate (and urgent) happening in these songs, and in November we met up for four days of in-person rehearsals in Brooklyn before heading down to Magpie Cage Studio in Baltimore to record the album with our old friend J. Robbins. It was pretty incredible working with J., who inspired some crucial changes to the songs, and Ian MacKaye came to the studio for two days to help make them even stronger.
A Brief Moment in the Sun is a narrative LP, full of stories: some based on Bobby’s personal experiences and others addressing volatile sociopolitical themes, including an historical perspective on racial oppression in the United States. In both the music and the lyrics, this new album picks up where Soulside left off years ago—but with zero nostalgia in the mix.
