I'm thrilled to be able to premiere a new video from SAVAK here today. The cut is one of my favorites from the group's newest record, the superb Rotting Teeth in the Horse's Mouth, reviewed by me here recently. And while that Ernest Jenning Record Co. release is full of punchy, propulsive post-punk, this song, the final one on the album, is more pensive and ruminative. Featuring contributions from Michael Hampton (The Faith, One Last Wish, Snakes) and his daughter, Charlotte, the track is exactly the kind of thing that seems to fit the mood of this time. Even though it was recorded before the pandemic took hold, Sohrab Habibion from the band explains how the current situation informed the shooting of the video:
"I shot the video in Brooklyn's Prospect Park on my daily pandemic walks. I wanted the imagery to relay a sense of restoration and regeneration. In the narrative of the tune I tried to capture a sense of dislocation and the slow dissolution of relationships. The small spaces that separate us, where we lose each other between the words we choose and the way those words are heard. It feels like we're in that space as a country right now, so I wanted to suggest with the video that it's also a chance for rebirth. Hopefully we can emerge from this long and bitter winter into a thriving and beautiful spring."
Rotting Teeth in the Horse's Mouth is out now via Ernest Jenning Record Co.
More details on SAVAK via the band's official Facebook page, or the band's official website.
[Photo: Taylor Sesselman]