Floating Action operates as a persistent endeavor spearheaded by Seth Kauffman, who layers multiple instruments to function as a solo ensemble across the project's studio output while serving as lead performer for its concert configurations. The North Carolina native absorbed an upbringing that banned rock & roll outright, with his parents enrolling him in violin instruction beginning at age four. Rebellion surfaced at fifteen, prompting Kauffman to covertly acquire Rolling Stones and Sam Cooke recordings and instruct himself on guitar. Mission work in Jamaica and Angola during his late teens ignited a lasting fascination with diverse global musical traditions. In his early twenties he connected with Bryan Cates, whose musical preferences aligned with his own, and together they launched the Choosy Beggars, whose sound merged rock and R&B in a spare yet fundamental manner. The band issued its first album in 2002 before creative disagreements over future direction prompted an immediate split between Cates and Kauffman. Hightone Records signed Kauffman in 2005, issuing the EP Powder followed by the full-length Ting, the latter titled after a well-known Jamaican beverage. He subsequently joined Park the Van Records, which put out his 2008 album Research. In 2009 Kauffman chose the moniker Floating Action—derived from an older bass drum pedal—for a self-titled release. After Desert Etiquette appeared in 2011, he shifted the project to Removador, the imprint run by Jim James of My Morning Jacket, for the 2012 album Fake Blood. New West Records became the next home in 2014, yielding Body Questions, while Sofa Burn Records handled the 2017 follow-up Is It Exquisite?
