The Fragments are an indie rock band from Sydney, originally active from 2001 to 2006, and reformed in 2022. While active, The Fragments only put out two singles! So, in 2019, they released ‘Transporter Volume I’ and ‘Transporter Volume II’, a double album compilation of music recorded in the 2000s. The two volumes are available on Bandcamp and streaming services.

In 2022, the band set up a mobile recording studio in a beach house in the seaside suburb of Thirroul, north of Wollongong, to start writing and recording ideas.

Featuring an unexpectedly relaxed reggae vibe, ‘So Long’ appeared to Piers Twomey(vocals, guitars, keys) almost fully formed in a dream at 5:00am one morning in 2021. 

In the dream, he was jamming the song with his old bandmates in their old rehearsal space. He woke immediately, figuring out the details on piano and guitar, and completing minimal lyrics to keep the message short and sweet.

Damian Press (vocals, guitars, keys, production), Christo Kollias (drums, bass), and Piers completed the arrangement in Thirroul. Absent member Fraser Smith (bass) gave it the nod and added artwork for the single.

Perfectly timed for the summer months, the loping dub bass and sweet vocal interplay between Piers and Damian add a Pacific flavour that places The Shins, Scritti Politti and Horace Andy under warm UV rays on an East Coast beach.

About the song, Piers says, “’So Long’ is about spending years in the wilderness, getting off track from what really matters in your life, before returning to a healthier sense of what you might call “home” again. It also points toward The Fragments hanging out and writing together again which is nice and has extra resonance for all of us.”

The Fragments plan on releasing additional songs from the Thirroul sessions, and will record more material for release over summer 2022/2023.