“In any situation of letting go, moving on is clearly the right and natural thing to do,” explains Hansard of the song. “This song speaks to that part of us that can’t quite get there. The moment just before complete acceptance.”
"Stuck In Reverse" follows last month’s single "People We Used To Be", and is accompanied by a video produced by James Del and Anthony Mulcahy, and filmed during a surprise show last month at New York bar Scratcher.
“After our whirlwind that led up to the Oscars and after, we were so busy and with that came a pressure that neither of us particularly wanted, and ultimately we kind of drifted in the middle of all of that hard work and celebration,” Hansard says.
“We remained good friends, helping on each other’s records, keeping up with each other’s families. While touring my last record, I realized I just missed her. I remember calling Marketa and saying, ‘Do you feel like doing some gigs?’ She said, ‘Yeah, that sounds great,’ and the shows went really well. Once we were hanging out again, new songs started coming through, and we started trying new ideas and playing the songs onstage. From there the idea was to do a little recording and not put any pressure on it, just see what happens, and suddenly we found ourselves making a record. And we were both totally into it, and so here we are, a new chapter of our lives.”
Next month, The Swell Season will embark on a lengthy tour of Europe, the UK, Ireland, and North America in support of the album.