Philadelphia creativity knows no bounds. This is made so clear in Hauntress’s premiere music video for “Now Here”. The song is giving me The Smiths vibes with heavier metal/grunge edge to it, and the music video is the perfect visual supplement. Kevin Cullen Hart, vocalist and guitarist for the trio (consisting of Richie Straub on drums and Sam Zettell) told us more about the inspiration for the song and the video.
Before we get into the video, let’s talk song inspiration. “The song is really an attempt at dealing with change, whether in transitioning seasons, the pursuit of one’s ambition, or fostering a new relationship.” This theme feels especially relatable right now. The song really nails the feeling that comes along with shifting into the winter season. I know I personally used to feel pretty sad when the days would get shorter and colder. But I’ve started to really enjoy the winter months forcing me indoors. It gives me a change to veg out with friends and family, focus on projects or just self care in general. Kevin tells me that this is another main theme of the song. “To me, the song acts as a reminder of sorts to focus on my relationships when the stressors of inevitable change in life loom large. It’s also very much a song about hibernating during the colder months, and allowing the introspection that comes with that to take shape into something worthwhile.”
Now, THE VIDEO. This stop motion animated video by animator and illustrator, Hannah Darrah is truly mind-blowing. “It was always a very visual song to me,” Kevin tells us, “she really captured the tone & setting of it flawlessly. She was also just an incredible collaborator to work with -- communicative, positive, engaged... It was a really fun project to work on throughout.” Kevin was already familiar with and a huge fan of Hannah’s work. When engineer for Hauntress’s upcoming EP, Matt Porier, recommended Hannah to Kevin, he jumped at the chance, “I knew as soon as he said her name I had to reach out to her...I remembered and loved her video for “I’m Blessed” by Speedy Ortiz (which came out about a year ago).” The stars aligned on this project and the outcome is just perfect. Kevin agrees that Hannah not only understood his concept, but took it above and beyond what he could have expected, “I gave her a rough outline of what I imagined the video to look like, and she brought it to life in ways that not only improved on my original idea, but enhanced the overall listening experience of the song.”
You can check out more of what Hannah is up to here!