We Speak Music
Julie Slim Releases New Single “Time Flies” from Her Album Suspended
Multilingual vocalist and songwriter Julie Slim unveils her deeply personal new single, “Time Flies,” a song that has traveled with her for more than two decades before arriving at its definitive form on her newest album, Suspended.
“Time Flies” was first conceived in 2000 during a quiet yet life-altering moment. After dropping her two daughters off at elementary school, Slim was struck by an overwhelming awareness of time’s fleeting nature.
“I felt a profound sense of urgency and anxiety about how quickly time was slipping away,” Slim recalls. “The melody and lyrics came to me in less than half an hour.”
The song continued to evolve over the years. In 2005, Slim workshopped and recorded an early arrangement with Joshua Thomson (saxophone) and Ethan Vlah (tabla). In 2012, while forming her band, Slim shared the recording with her mentor and friend, the late Dr. James Polk, the Grammy-winning jazz pianist and revered figure in the Austin music community. Polk helped shape the arrangement that later appeared on Slim’s debut EP, Julie Slim & RendezVous.
Despite performing the song extensively, Slim felt the piece had not yet fully captured her original vision. That changed with the recording of Suspended. Reuniting with Joshua Thomson and collaborating with her band members Phil Spencer, Joe McCreary, Shawn Ellison, and Shirley Johnson, along with Sari Andoni on oud, Slim recorded the track live at King Electric Studios. The result is a version that finally embodies the spontaneity and emotional immediacy she always intended.
“This recording captures that ‘in the moment’ feeling I had been searching for since the song’s birth,” Slim says.
Based in Austin, Texas, Julie Slim has spent more than twenty years enchanting audiences with her warm, expressive voice and cross-cultural artistry. In 2013, she founded Julie Slim & RendezVous, a project reflecting her global musical influences and commitment to connection through music.
Her work has earned critical recognition, including an Honorary Merit Award in the 2017 USA Songwriting Competition for “Sarabande de Solitude,” which led to a feature in the Songwriters Showcase at SXSW. Her releases include multiple EPs and the 2017 full-length album Promenade Sentimentale, a tribute to beloved French standards.
Her latest album, Suspended, presents a multilingual collection of original songs inspired by meaningful chapters of her life, with “Time Flies” standing as one of its most intimate and reflective offerings.
A Life of Art, Service, and Cultural Bridge-Building
Beyond her recording career, Slim has been a featured vocalist with the Austin Jazz Workshop since 2001. She is also an active member of the Threshold Choir, offering weekly songs of comfort to individuals in hospice care at Hospice Christopher House in Austin.
Raised in Beirut amid a rich tapestry of global music—from Edith Piaf to Fairuz—Slim’s artistic journey spans theater, linguistics, and education. Her work consistently reflects a passion for cultural dialogue, emotional authenticity, and human connection.
Julie Slim is a proud member of the Indie Collaborative and ASCAP.
Swiss artist Fanny Alexandra returns with “Black Pearl Summer”, a new single that finds her exploring a more open side of her alternative sound. Released via Now Listen, the track combines coastal imagery with a story about growing through grief, pressure and the experiences that can shape a person over time.
Alexandra notes that the song is relatively summery by her own standards. She has said that her music is usually darker and that she has never been particularly drawn to the typical idea of summer, preferring cold air, jackets and rugged coastlines. That gives the release a clear sense of personality from the outset.
The song centres on Alexandra’s reflections on being 19 and spending years focused on survival rather than fully living. Those experiences are presented through the image of a black pearl, which becomes a way of considering how something worthwhile can emerge from a challenging period.
What makes the track particularly effective is the balance between its subject matter and its musical approach. The production gives the song room to breathe, while Alexandra keeps the focus firmly on the story she is telling. It means the track can be enjoyed as a seasonal release while still offering more to discover in the lyrics.
There is also a clear sense of change in the way Alexandra approaches her younger self. The song is not about returning to that period or trying to erase it. Instead, it considers what can be learned from experiences that once felt overwhelming.
“Black Pearl Summer” therefore offers newcomers a useful introduction to Alexandra’s work. It shows an artist comfortable writing about serious subjects, while also demonstrating a lighter musical side that may not be as familiar to listeners who know her darker material.
It is an interesting glimpse of what Alexandra can do when she lets a little more light into the picture.
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