Singled Out: Kate Fagan's 2 Good 2 B True

11-29-2024

Kate Fagan, vocalist of the Chicago Ska band Heavy Manners, just released a new single called "2 Good 2 B True", and to celebrate we asked her to tell us about the track. Here is the story:

I was literally writing the chorus of "2 Good 2 B True" when Jeremy Joyce called wondering if I'd like to try collaborating. We'd played together on live gigs and were fans of each other's songs.

I brought over my musical ideas and keyboard and we started working in his home studio. I was looking for an ethereal soundscape with lyrics that felt like they were falling out of a memory or dream. I explained the song's intent as a love story that felt deeply organic and even blessed: "I was your angel fair/Your hands in my hair." Yet things turn bittersweet when the lovers grow apart. I wanted to portray letting go without the drama of explosive betrayal or resentful anger through lingering questions, "Did you slip away? Or did I stray?"

Jeremy came up with a rhyming structure for the verses. We drank tea on a steamy August night at his New Orleans apartment and, in what felt like a trance, we envisioned the verses together one word at a time. He wrote one of my favorite lines: "Entwined we fell."

To get the soundscape, I brought in the basic chords with a ska "skank" on strings and came up with a harpsichord riff. I hoped to balance the upbeat feel of ska with the sentimental depth of classical influences for a fresh sound. Jeremy built a floating bed of chords and arpeggios. His heartfelt solo reveals the song's soul of pain and loss.

Jeremy led a detailed pre-production process. When we got to the studio, we were on the same page and got the sound we hoped for with Michael Harvey, an engineer we had both enjoyed working with.

At that session, we also recorded a second song that will drop in January. It combines Jeremy's rock and my punk tendencies. Our goal is to drop a series of singles then group them for an EP release in the fall of 2025.

Hearing is believing. Now that you know the story behind the song, listen and watch for yourself below and learn more here