Whenever we’re faced with intense changes in our lives, there’s always a feeling of creeping uncertainty and chaos that breeds alongside the already traumatic thoughts of losing whatever came before. This feeling can be summed up in many ways, with a more recent interpretation courtesy of “transatlantic” rock band Viruette’s single ‘Faceblind’. Fresh off their debut LP Your Lacuna released in June, the track runs through the gamut of coming to terms with and moving on from a serious connection.
“It’s a series of dialogues between two people at the conclusion of an intense relationship. Two people turning around everything they said when they were seducing each other. ‘You’re not like everyone else’ turns into ‘you’re just like everyone else, in fact you might be worse than everyone else,’” explains singer Harry Bee. A familiar storyline now illustrated perfectly by filmmaker Jimmy Del Ponte in a new music video. Also a member of Boston’s beloved Mallcops, Del Ponte employs various techniques to capture the anguish and energy of Viruette’s music.
Photo Credit: Jimmy Del Ponte – From left: Harry Bee, Andrew Ring, George Heffernan
“It’s a weird, strange tune,” Del Ponte explains, “I wanted to do something different, fast-paced.” Drawing inspiration from movies like Birdman and the work of David Lynch, Del Ponte chose to shoot in black & white, used effects on the eyes to appear fleshed over and utilized a Snorricam (a chest mounted camera aimed at the wearer) to portray a man aimlessly moving around their home, searching for something unknown. “These guys let me go crazy with whatever. Visually speaking, they were down to clown.”
“Over the past 18 months or so, [Del Ponte] has become our in-house photographer. During our last round of photos, he joked that he would only shoot them if he got to make a music video with us. Whether or not he was actually joking, we thought it was a splendid idea,” Bee recounts. “He’s filled to the brim with ideas, and I have a very limited visual sense, but if something didn’t work, he would come back with something even better than before.”
Using bassist George Heffernan’s apartment in Brookline for the shoot, they were able to use the ample space to create a sprawling, hectic feeling. As Bee works his way around the house, slowly deteriorating with each step, it’s hard to not picture flashes of Darren Aronofsky’s Requiem for a Dream or Danny Boyle’s Trainspotting. When commenting on his effective “eye work” in the Snorricam shots, Bee remarked “I did get an A Star in GCSE Drama back in 2008, who could forget.”
However game an actor Bee was, some of Del Ponte’s ideas would not make it onto film, as Bee rejected a plan to shoot him in the fetal position. “I’m far too vain to make myself look that weak on camera”, he laughs. “I was already scared with the camera right in my face, I spent five minutes in the bathroom checking my teeth. Can you imagine anything more humiliating than if I had a wayward crumb of bread stuck?”
Photo Credit: Jimmy Del Ponte
With both the band’s debut album and music video released, listeners can expect even more content in the coming months. They plan to release an illustrated lyric book soon, in collaboration with local comic book artist Adam Kane, as well as two standalone singles including a cover of Tears for Fears “Everybody Wants to Rule the World”. Plans for a follow up to Your Lacuna are in the works as well, with Bee hoping to release their sophomore LP around this time next year.
For more information on Viruette visit their website here, and follow them on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. You can follow Jimmy Del Ponte on Instagram and keep up to date with Mallcops by clicking here!