Regardless of whether you’re indie, goth, or a poser that only listens to Morrissey’s Your Arsenal when the tide’s high, GIRL BAND deserve your attention. The Dublin foursome are releasing their debut next month and their new video for “Paul” sums it up nicely as the clip follows a depressed man who plays a costumed animal character on a children’s TV show. It’s a bit harrowing at times but there’s a pretty good reason for that. As director Bob Gallagher told NPR:
“While I was researching I watched a documentary about Big Bird and there’s a line where Caroll Spinney says that a woman was complimenting his performance but that she couldn’t see that inside the costume he was crying. It’s quite tragic. I think everyone has experiences of having to put on an outward expression and feeling trapped, so Paul’s costume is a visual extension of that. He’s inside the suit, at a distance from everybody around him, but wearing this absurd smile that’s totally false to what’s going on inside.”
Girl Band’s Holding Hands With Jamie will be out on September 25th via Rough Trade