Music Video | Heartbreaking Bravery

April 21, 2017

Pleistocene – Your New Life (Music Video)

Over the past week, there have been outstanding records by Real Life Buildings, Yellow Paper Planes, Molly Drag, Bluffs, pickle darling, Guilty Optics, Eric Slick, Good Good Blood, cooking, Sundae Crush, Monograms, Exhibition, Go By Ocean, dead man hammock, Kelly Moran, BENT, Raj and the 100’s, Tara Jane O’Neil, and Priests all finding release. Records weren’t the only things making an impact over the stretch. There were more than a few great music videos to surface and one of them came from site favorites Pleistocene.

In the most recent edition of A Year’s Worth of Memories Pleistocene bandleader Katie Preston talked a great deal about camaraderie and fostering healthy relationships, especially through shared interest. Those values are all reflected in the band’s new BUBL-T-directed music video for “Your New Life”, Spear‘s excellent lead-off track. The clip turns the focus onto the world of roller derby, where physical toughness is brought out with feverish intensity.

In addition to that toughness, there’s a dedication to the sport’s virtues that turn the people who immerse themselves in that world from casual spectators to role players to near-obsessives. There’s an undeniable ferocity to the game that manifests itself in the players, who, in turn, support each other. Since it’s not the most visible sport, that kinship intensifies considerably.

All of the values that are clearly evident in the sport wind up being analogous to the ones that Pleistocene have preached over the course of their discography, whether it be the inherent power of sisterhood, the willingness to stay resilient, or the importance of camaraderie. “Your New Life” distills everything into an energetic, effective, honest, and oddly moving portrayal of one of the great fringe sports. It’s a powerful piece from a band that, like derby, a lot more people should grant investment.

Watch “Your New Life” below and pick up a copy of Spear from the band here.

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April 20, 2017

father truck – talk to me (Music Video Premiere)

“The video has clips from times in my life that were fun, and it’s about growing from that even if things have changed.” In that lone sentence describing the “talk to me” music video from Brooke Johnson’s solo project, father truck, Johnson exceeds the word count of the song. Combining that sentence with the only one present in “talk to me” — the twice-repeated “I wish I had enough time” — along with the visuals and suddenly, this sub-minute piece’s meaning expands infinitely.

The song’s taken from father truck’s forthcoming stealing flowers from the neighbor’s lawn, which was partially inspired by the excellent Adventure Time miniseries Islands, which explores everything from fractured familial relationships to several feasible fates for humanity, should certain paths be emphasized. Affecting, introspective, bittersweet, and ultimately tender, Islands influence can be felt all over the video for “talk to me”, which incorporates ambiguous footage from a previous spring over a melancholic organ figure.

Sincere pleading collides with the downhearted acceptance that life can never truly give us everything we want, leaving it up to us to carve out some good parts along the way (and then look back on them fondly as we move forward and face new sets of challenges). “talk to me” may end with birds chirping and earnest laughter but what comes before that moment could hardly be described as light. Then again, when we’re faced with the bleakest circumstances or realizations, sometimes laughing’s all we can do.

Watch “talk to me” below and pre-order stealing flowers from the neighbor’s lawn from It Takes Time here.

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April 13, 2017

Hazel English – More Like You (Stream)

Now that everything’s caught back up to the current release cycle, expect posts nearly every day to recap what’s been happening. Thursday brought in a small trove of treasures from great new tracks by the likes of Sharkmuffin, Christopher Paul Stelling, Walter Martin, Adult Mom, Gallery 47, The Bonnevilles, BNQT, So Many Wizards, Saudade Sisters, and Do Make Say Think to great music videos from John K. Samson, Tara Jane O’Neil, and JFDR to outstanding records by Workhorse, Lugaweight, and Mimi Raver.

Shortly following a characteristically excellent clip, Hazel English has returned with another winsome piece of music just in time to soundtrack all of our warm weather parties. “More Like You”, the project’s latest, is teeming with a familiar carefree aesthetic, something played up in the wistful, nostalgia-inducing home movie leanings of its music video. As always, it’s a warm piece of music, buoyed by the same empathetic warmth that’s quietly made Hazel English one of our most consistent emerging songwriters.

“More Like You” is unassuming, unpretentious, and gently atmospheric, conjuring up a world that’s easy to get lost in and difficult to leave. While the vocals remain pensive, they also retain the sunny optimism that’s always provided Hazel English’s music with a sturdy core. It’s that paradigm that makes Hazel English such a fascinating artist and what makes “More Like You” so alluring. There’s a hint of mystery nestled into the familiarity, rendering the comfortably breezy “More Like You” yet another triumph.

Listen to “More Like You” below and pre-order Just Give In/Never Going Home from Polyvinyl here.

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April 13, 2017

Christopher Gold & The New Old Things – Sad Songs (Music Video Premiere)

There are few figures in the Wisconsin music scene that have been working as tirelessly and exuding as much warmth as Chris Gold, who’s maintained a consistency throughout a number of both musical projects and charitable work. A mainstay in the world of folksy, heart-on-sleeve balladeering, Gold’s also revealed a streak that leans far closer towards punk over the years. “Sad Songs”, the lead-off single from the forthcoming You Are A Ghost, bridges that divide masterfully.

Directed, shot, and edited by Aaron Jankowski, the video for “Sad Songs” both takes the title of the record it appears on very literally and, in a characteristic turn of events, keeps it in the family. Gold’s son, Oliver, is hidden underneath the sheet for near the entirety of “Sad Songs” but still manages to exude the kind of magnetic, easygoing charisma that defines his father (and his father’s work).

“Sad Songs” itself comes across as a perfect amalgamation of everything Gold’s accomplished in his career, so it seems fitting that he’d find a way to encompass his son into the proceedings. Like all of his work, it’s heartfelt, it’s well-informed, it shows its influences, and reveals a heart all its own. A Southern-tinged rock n’ roll romp from a proud Northerner, “Sad Songs” may look towards the past but it marks an exciting new chapter for the artist responsible for its creation.

Watch “Sad Songs” below and keep an eye on this site for more updates on You Are A Ghost, which will be released on May 12. The release show for You Are A Ghost will be held at Source Public House in Menasha, WI on May 13.