When it comes to an artistic form, any form that is, in my definition it's an attempt to understand our interactions and experiences from our individual perspectives. If someone connects with this interpretation, it's a win. Some days I wonder if we really communicate with each other at all. Rochester's Maybird recently sent over a double feature music video that touches on this exact sentiment. How can we find the right words to say? What comes of this experimentation? Through a trajectory of carefully crafted imagery using a Go-Pro to follow the band, this video weaves a story that I find philosophically transcendental and musically a golden nugget to my ears.
The initial visual image is a flock of birds dividing the sky as the band strolls into a green pasture, and just as quickly we're placed into their studio environment. Ethereal, mesmerizing throngs from the pedal steel and a surf-rock edge to the guitar harmonies creates a full, rich sound. As soon as the words "I'll be flying next time you see me/ I'll be alive and well" are sung, a mysterious tea concoction is set to boil in a fireplace. Sitar-distortion settles in as they sit in a circle and toast with sage to their assigned mugs. Once "Maybird" fades out, the screen is black, perhaps a signal they've gone into an alternate consciousness to answer the question of "Oh what am I trying to say?"
Out of the chaos comes the calm, as "Beautiful World" sets the second half of the video into motion. Driving through a car wash brings a unique watermelon coloring projected onto their faces. An aching, fuzzy quality to the vocals relates that reality settled in. The music feels more serious, there is a learnedness to the tone. Their faces appear exhausted, strung out, yet the words speak, maybe a little ironically, of the beauty found in the world. Dressed in finery, the story leads them into the woods, a communion with nature. I think of poet Matsuo Basho, who out of great despair decided to go on many "wanderings" and discovered a simple appreciation for his often ordinary discoveries. Birds in flight compose the ending visual for the video that is seen in the beginning. Maybird certainly delivers a clear message--engage in a higher perspective and you'll discover that there's beauty in everything.
