Image
Categories: Bands Video Premiere

Gifts From Crows Debut Video for Beautiful Piano Piece “The Empty Mirror (Forgotten)”

Neoclassical and ambient composer Richard Laurence possesses a colourful background in post-rock and electronic studio projects, including the cinematic Gifts From Crows.

The second Gifts From Crows album, Stories in Slow Light, is a collaboration where Laurence takes inspiration from photographer Helena Whitten; the project consists of twelve compositions, all inspired by and composed around themes depicted in Whitten’s motion-blur photographs. The scene is Poltimore House in Devon, which depicts a solitary figure in front of an oval frame where a mirror used to be.

“The protagonist appears to be channeling these spirits out of the ancient walls of the house, at times contorted by the energy flowing through her and then flowing with serenity,’ says Laurence. “The track itself is in constant flux and does not conform to any traditional structure of either arrangement or instrumentation. Beginning with ghost-like voices and improvised cello articulations, the piano leads the strings in a mesmerising dance that seems to change key every few bars. The strings shift from tight pizzicato motifs to sweeping legato passages building to a crescendo of ancient harmonies fought out between the cello, viola and violin performers. In the closing bars, a kind of peace is finally restored.”

The track evokes the memory of our ancestors and imagines all the living souls who have passed in front of the now long absent mirror. The protagonist appears to be channeling these spirits out of the ancient walls of the house, at times contorted by the energy flowing through her, and then relaxing in serenity. The music composed by Laurence is melancholic and bittersweet, evoking long-lost memories and the ever-flowing passage of time.

The video, directed by Corey Rid, features choreographer and dancer Kristine Berget. This version, a dreamlike sequel, differs from their February release – bringing this concept into a Merchant Ivory-style multiverse. This version is contemplative, melancholy, and mesmerizing.

Watch below:

Gifts From Crows has some music for purchase through Bandcamp, including the debut album, Holding a Thought Forever on CD and sessions with the Northern Film Orchestra as digital downloads. Holding a Thought Forever, released February 2021, is a hauntingly beautiful collection of piano instrumentals augmented with samples, electronics, and string arrangements.

Follow Gifts From Crows:
Alice Teeple

Alice Teeple is a photographer, multidisciplinary artist, and writer. She is not in Tin Machine.

Recent Posts

  • Art

Darkwave Trio Corlyx Colour Outside The Lines in Their New Single “Zombie Kid” — Plus Announce New Album “Purple Pain”

Darkwave trio Corlyx is a band that boldly colors outside the lines of traditional genre conventions, redefining the contours and…

13 hours ago
  • Art

French Synth Act Minuit Machine Returns With the Video for Their Resilient New Single “Hold Me”

They way they tore me apart Like I’m a corpse they wanna ditch They way they sold me for parts…

15 hours ago
  • Bands

Ballerinas Twirl in the Video for Los Angeles Post-Punk Artist Indiana Bradley’s Luminous New Single “Silent Moon”

It is a quiet devastation, a weight that presses without end. The realization unfolds not in a sharp moment but…

2 days ago
  • Song Premiere

Karolina Bnv Reimagines Classic New Beat with “Germany Calling”

In the history of new beat, there are few more memorable samples than "Germany calling." Taken from a Lord Haw-Haw…

2 days ago
  • Bands

Stella Rose Debuts Video for Smoldering Alt-Rock Anthem “HOLLYBABY”

Today, New York City's rising singer-songwriter Stella Rose drops her latest single and lyric video for HOLLYBABY, the title track…

2 days ago
  • Bands

Kim Deal Serenades a Flamingo in Her Surreal Video for “Nobody Love You More”

Perfect hosts and room ghosts shout I don't care what they say They can fight it out I mean to…

2 days ago
Sticky Footer Banner with Close Button