“Shine Your Light” was the first single released off The Nude Party’s second record Midnight Manor. The song prepares us for the October 2nd release, just a week away. Now that COVID-19 has halted the band’s tour life on the road, living together at home in the Catskills has introduced a different, more reflective headspace. With the constraints of being limited to where you are, what you have, and who you’re with—the band created the video for “Shine Your Light” in their backyard.
We chatted with guitarist/vocalist Shaun Couture who describes how it all came to be. “What we have is this location, this equipment, and a lot of ideas—so let’s just go for it.” The band happened to be quarantining with friends who work in film—Alex Purifoy, Bryan Janizeck, and Jenn Warren who contributed largely to the vision, production, and execution. As their backyard naturally became the backdrop, the group just needed to figure out a story.
First they were going to do a live set on the pond but scrapped that idea and changed the vision completely. “The goal of the video was to create a series of vignettes where each shot is so visually stunning that it kind of holds its own, with textures and colors and visual nuances that catch your eye.” In their living room, the group scribbled ideas on index cards and rolled with the best ones.
If you haven’t seen it yet, here’s a little enticement.
In the video, the six members perform and roam with dead-eyed soulless demeanors. Light plays with dark to be disrupted by red—blood, an apple, wine. The night descends but “in a world falling apart, you are the light in the lonesome dark.” The shining lights emanate from lit candles on the water, the disco ball’s reflected specs, guiding lanterns. These illuminations guide the viewer and band through darkness, a feeling we’ve all internalized deeply this year.
The shots flash and remain in memory. A disco ball spins into an apple then to become a glass overflowing with a bloody red.* Disembodied fingertips twirl around close up headshots. A couple (played by friends Oakley and Jenn) pleasantly sip wine and row a boat down the river. A white bunny makes an appearance.
With a minute left, the music slows and culminates in a firework that revives greenery and life. “Light, shine on, forever’s gone, gone to the night.” In the end the sun comes out, the harmonica plays and the song could go on and on under the disco ball.
All minds came together to envision the moving parts, the same way they create music: “Everyone chimes in to make one idea better. That’s how we write songs too. Some songs are written just from jamming when someone plays a cool bass line or guitar riff—we’ll write a song on that. Or someone has a chord progression with a few lyrics so we’ll build off that. There are many ways but all of it is done together. We do it all together.”
If you’ve seen The Nude Party perform, you know their visual identity has a natural synchronicity without being overly choreographed. We’re looking forward to seeing the way Midnight Manor comes together in sound, color, clothing, expression, and art.
When the harmonica comes in during the last 20 seconds of the fadeout at the end, Shaun says it feels like the song could end there or continue on. This element is a little glimpse into what’s possible live—how endings can turn into transitions or beginnings. One day we’ll hear the song live but until then, watch the video for “Shine Your Light” below, look out for Midnight Manor’s release on October 2nd, and check back here for some more nude chats and coverage next week.