Boombox Blitz: Parrot Dream’s fractured ‘Light Goes (in Mines)’

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

We remain shrouded by our own thickly-lathered identities. As the past is shed like a caterpillar emerging from a cocoon, the exterior flaky and silky, we step into the silver light of a crescent moon. Our gaze is hopeful yet stern, and in every second we are free, we creep closer to our full potential. New York City native and fine artist genius Kai Pelton, who co-facilitates the Trans-Generational Theatre Project, unwinds her freedom story in alt-pop group Parrot Dream‘s incandescently shot visual for “Light Goes (in Mines),” serving as the opener track to the band’s 2018 debut LP. It’s a splashy, evocative and cathartic set-piece, with the twinkling cityscape as an appropriate backdrop.

Pelton is a commanding presence and assists in tightening the emotional and psychological implications of the song, which swells with airy brush strokes and sweetly lush exuberance. “[The song] speaks of emotions often unexpressed and the desire to communicate stories buried and left untold,” says the band, comprised of players and songwriters Christina Appel, Gonzalo Guerrero, Matthew Sklar, and Don Lavi. “In this relationship, there is sometimes a sharp need to question deeply that goes unanswered. Mysteries remain unilluminated.”

The fragile give and take is ever-present in Pelton’s subtle but colorful performance. She embodies the true meaning of living as one’s most authentic self, but that doesn’t mean it doesn’t come with a brutal price to pay. Directed by Cristian Pino, the video follows Pelton as she navigates the dirty streets and subway system of the City That Never Sleeps, her pain wrought heavy and etched onto her face. It’s palpably a soul-affecting portrayal of wrestling away from expectations and the tragedy that comes with life, her sojourn hasn’t been an easy one. Relationships are made increasing difficult in the digital age. But she’s a warrior in every sense of the term, discarding convention for what is real and true in the here and now.

Such vital lyrics as “Wonder how / Fear is spun / Wonder why / Wars are won” echo off Pelton’s form. It’s a devastating inquiry, one in which we all must gather our senses and find our own answers. Appel’s vocal floats as a ghost in the night, its former lives rattling behind it, and by design, we’re left haunted and wandering the halls of our own minds. She later observes, continuing to carve in only vague terms, “Call out / Your name / In mines / Dig deep.”

Parrot Dreams’ Light Goes is out now via Good Eye Records.

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Photo Credit: Stephanie Griffin

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