Though Fighting Colours have been quiet for the first half of 2023, they have been by no means inactive. Though the core lineup of the band currently comprises solely of Jasmine & Pete, they have ploughed ahead to bring you their next single - ‘Calling’, out on 29th September.

Featuring the final contribution of former bassist Stan Mitchell and a heavy-hitting drum performance by Jack Wrench (Arcane Roots, Jamie Lenman, James And The Cold Gun, In Dynamics), ‘Calling’ is a frantic, aggressive mosh pit-starter. Having recorded the track almost entirely DIY (barring drums), the band are at their most confident and self-assured to date. Across 3 minutes & 10 seconds, frantic drums, searing vocals and walls of bruising guitar & bass are ably balanced by Luke May’s mixing and a stellar master from Chris Coulter (Arcane Roots, Jamie Lenman, Arctic Lake, Idles). Make no mistake - Fighting Colours are shooting for gold.

Pete Ferris: “‘Calling’ stems from an idea I had floating around just as the band was beginning its first rehearsals way back in 2020. During lockdown I had time to fully flesh it out. I feel like this is one of those tracks where my playing really reflects a lot of my different musical tastes. It’s heavy & rocky like we usually are but when writing the verse parts especially I wanted to capture the energy you get from a lot of 2000s indie music. In particular I was after that kind of frantic & frenetic urgency of those early records from Foals, Bloc Party and Editors. Saying that, I think the bridge goes pretty hard - it’s one of the heaviest things I’ve written.
Recording DIY essentially meant we could do whatever we wanted, when we wanted. That included creating a ridiculous layer of guitars and so many vocal harmonies we’d probably need to hire 6 backing vocalists if we ever wanted to replicate that live! We got to use whatever we had at our disposal to its fullest potential. It’s an incredibly freeing way of doing things and probably a blueprint for
how we’ll record in the future.”

Jasmine Ardley: “‘Calling’ is a song about being overwhelmed by the struggles in life and running away from them instead of facing them. Sometimes there’s too many things going on for one person to manage and they end up losing control of situations, causing a panic and breakdown. This is reflected in the lyrics and staccato, syncopated rhythm of the vocals, as they create a sense of chaos and uncertainty.”

Pete: “The opportunity to have Jack Wrench play drums on this song fell into our laps at really the best possible time and I couldn’t quite believe it. He’s one of the best drummers around, and I’m a huge fan of his work, especially with Arcane Roots & Jamie Lenman, so the fact that he played on this track is still mind-blowing to me. It was also a great pleasure to work with Luke May again on the mix, and with Chris Coulter on the master - again, an honour, really, to be working with these incredible people. It’s also the last song with our old bassist Stan Mitchell, and we’re incredibly grateful that he did this with us one last time. If you find yourself in need of a bassist on a gig or studio session, remember that name!”