Boombox Blitz: Ciaran Lavery stages epic meta-video with ‘To Chicago’

Welcome to Boombox Blitz, an artist spotlight series showcasing overlooked singers, songwriters and musicians who are quietly taking over the world.

People come into our lives randomly, and they leave randomly. There’s no way to anticipate any of it. But our short life is arranged just so, loaded with necessary chance encounters and an assortment of other experiences. Sometimes, the relationships we forge last a lifetime; other times, they are only meant to be fleeting. It’s what we do with them that truly matters in the end. Singer-songwriter Ciaran Lavery explores this theme in his “To Chicago” music video, a simple, unfussy sequence which was filmed all in one take. It’s a rather tall order, considering the many moving parts, working as a makeshift meta-video. “This was something we all felt strongly about so it not only flowed, but there was a sense of realism about it that could not be achieved from many angles or cuts,” he explains of the visual, adorned with a forlorn love ballad.

Directed by Kris Platt (a longtime Lavery collaborator) and filmed by Jamie Neish (onsite at his family home), the video depicts a group of strangers who happen to spin into each others’ orbits. Among the cast of characters are two lovers, a smoker, the French girl, the mourner and the fixer, all weaving on and off screen. While the tone is rather somber, there is an understated pool of hope ebbing below the surface.

“The creative idea was that we were making a music video and letting the viewer in on this. In essence, it is a video within a video,” adds Lavery. “The purpose of the characters represent the very real concept that on an average day you are likely to unknowingly walk into or through so many complete strangers’ lives.”

“To Chicago” samples Lavery’s forthcoming third studio album, Sweet Decay, out April 13 on AllPoints.

Watch below:

Photo Credit: Andy Hughes

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