After a four-year pause, Babeheaven returns with ‘Slower Than Sound’, a dreamy, quietly confident EP that feels both intimate and cinematic. Nancy Andersen and Jamie Travis talk about the blur between past and future, Kris Jenner–approved glow-ups, and the chaotic joy of touring with five friends stuffed into a Murphy bed. From wedding plans to beachside surprises in Mexico, Babeheaven proves that slowing down doesn’t mean fading out; it means tuning back into what matters.
“Picture This” is built like a photo album. If your band had an actual photo album, what’s the most chaotic snapshot in there?
We have so much fun on tour, so it would probably be the whole band (we play as a five-piece live). The most chaotic photo in my phone I can think of was when we tried to close two of the guys into a Murphy bed, and Jamie almost got smothered by the pillows. It makes me laugh just thinking about it.
Nancy, you’ve said the track’s about imagining the future. What’s one thing you picture clearly, and one thing you picture in blur?
I actually can’t see things in my mind’s eye, so everything is kind of a blur! But I think I can imagine a few things. I’m getting married next year, so I have to try and picture that most days. But I’m not really one for trying to imagine the future too much! I’d rather keep it all a blur until it has to come into focus.
You called the EP ‘Slower Than Sound’. What’s the slowest thing in your life right now, and the fastest?
The slowest thing is my brain, I’m trying to be less on my phone/less online, trying to slow my head down so I can focus on the present. The fastest thing is watching my friends’ babies grow up. They grow more every minute!
“So once the drums and chorus bass were added, it was like seeing someone after a facelift (but the good kind, like Kris Jenner).”
After four years away, what’s the first song or show moment that made you both think: “We’re back”?
Hearing Beloved with all of Jamie’s additional production was a real light bulb moment. I had written it as a relatively stripped-back song. So once the drums and chorus bass were added, it was like seeing someone after a facelift (but the good kind, like Kris Jenner).
You’ve toured with Cigarettes After Sex, Loyle Carner, Nilüfer Yanya… who had the best backstage energy?
Nilüfer is the best, we had so much fun with her and didn’t want that tour to end! Everyone’s energy is so different, but as a whole crew touring with Nilüfer felt like being backstage with friends hanging out every day.
Babeheaven’s visuals are always striking. If you could turn one of your songs into a film directed by Frank Lebon or Joyce Ng, which would it be?
All of our music is cinematic, I think Sink Into Me could have a really beautiful video, kind of Under The Skin vibes, a bit spooky and foggy. And I would be honored to have any of our past collaborators make a video for any song! They’re all so damn good.
65M streams later, what’s the most unexpected place you’ve heard your music played?
I walked onto a beach in Mexico, kind of remote, not many people around, and heard Jalisco being blasted out of a beach hut. It completely confused me, but made me so happy that our music has reached so far!
After four years away, how did that pause shape the “slowness” in ‘Slower Than Sound’?
It brought us back to the basics. The beginning of Babeheaven was about simple songwriting, no equipment, no fuss, just beautiful songs, and I think it’s what we needed to get back to ourselves.
