The music industry is a cold, impersonal environment that churns through talent without a care. If you’ve survived long enough to win some acclaim like Spring Skier, you’ve paid your dues. But, as they say in the second single from their upcoming album The Big Surreal, “Don’t expect what you have earned.” That single, “Don’t Forget”, is a reflection on their own industry experience.
With vast spaces in their harmony and gulfs between vocal phrases, they exploit this emptiness with emotion. There’s a hollow frustration bubbling below every note. It’s one part resignation and one part quiet fury.
That handcuffed feeling is on full display in their music video. As they open with marionette puppets whose every action is controlled, it’s not hard to parallel the themes of manipulation they occasionally experienced. With the concluding parade of fools, that sense of being pulled along echoes in their harmony—marcato chords land slightly syncopated with the melody. The offset resolutions weigh heavy in the sound.
Remy Boccalatte and Kane Mazlin gracefully build that tiredness throughout the piece. It’s highly personal and easily relatable to anyone who works in a similar field.
Watch “Don’t Forget” below.
Ben is an advertising Madman who spends his days with words and music. When he’s not writing for his supper, he’s eating it at some of NYC’s most interesting restaurants.
