Heartbreaking Bravery

Over the past few years, Nano Kino has made a handful of appearances on this site. The group’s evolved quite a bit since their initial appearance here, growing from a duo to a quartet but always managing to craft songs that retained a sense of wide-eyed wonder. Today, they’re unveiling the gorgeous one-off “Sick Dreamer” today and an elegiac accompany visual. The band’s bassist, Andy Martin, helmed the clip and wound up with a superlative result.

Compromised of faded imagery cut into a montage, “Sick Dreamer” provides the song itself an emotional lift by tapping firmly into a pervasive sense of nostalgia that’s always been at or near the forefront of the band’s work. Gentle hues complement a hushed melody, each side of the equation exercising restraint without ever conceding their cumulative effect. It’s a gorgeous two minutes to either listen to or watch but when combined, “Sick Dreamer” winds up feeling more like an open prayer than any sort of visual experiment. Hushed, wrought with care, and surprisingly tender, it’s what every one-off release should aspire to be: essential.

“Sick Dreamer” is available as a free download on bandcamp and the music video can be watched below.