Metric recently shared “Just The Once”, a new song featuring strings composed and arranged by Drew Jureka (Dua Lipa) and mixed by Stuart White (Beyoncé). The song is the lead single off their forthcoming album Formentera II. Today, they share the official fan video for the track.

“We received hundreds of submissions from all over the world for our spontaneous ‘Just The Once’ fan generated music video,” notes Metric’s Emily Haines. “It was nearly impossible to choose which clips would make the final cut because, of course, I wanted to use them all. Once I started watching all these excellent unique one-off humans (and animals!) being all kinds of adorable and making ‘Just The Once’ their own, I couldn’t stop. Aerial Gymnastics! Omelets! Woodworking! Dancing Dogs! Cowboys! Rollerskate! Thanks again for being your wild selves. Metric fans rule.”

“Just the Once” features clips of random people dancing and syncing to the lyrics of the song. It’s as if the song was made by the fans themselves. One of the clips shows someone writing down the lyrics of the song at a fast pace. Many of the people are seen playing instruments as well. For instance, when drums can be heard prominently, someone can be seen playing on their own set. Everyone is very optimistic in their gestures. The fan video ends with a man running in a field.

The lyrics of “Just the Once” tell a different story; it talks about bad habits. “Soon it’s a race, it’s a rush and a high Steal an embrace, it starts with one little lie Try once again to redefine now and then Before once becomes once in a while”. It’s unknown what happens “once in a while”, but Metric talks about how there are no rules in life. “Though we trace the outline clearly Of morality and honesty We observe the outline rarely And eventually, unknowingly We erase the outline”. This may allude to the people in the video; they’re dancing and performing without a care in the world. It’s likely that the song celebrates freedom; especially with the lyrics that come next. “But who’s to say it isn’t better this way Look at me, now I’m free, you’ll survive”. It says that there’s nothing to worry about when one has it.