Photography by Tina Korhonen
We might have mentioned once or twice, about how excited we are to air the video premiere for the new Goldray single, How Do You Know, which is being released tomorrow along with the epic Oz as a double A side.
The video, which was made during lockdown is very pertinent to these times, when Mother Nature has collectively put humanity on the naughty step and is healing the damage that we have created. Pysch Rock has always had a spiritual link with nature, and when Rockshot recently had a long chat with Leah Rasmussen and Kenwyn House, Kenwyn told us “ With the video you can choose and pick from this. This came about because of lockdown and is the way it is because of the circumstances and its turned out very different and it is more meaningful”
The video is a magical fantasy which starts with Leah in front of a mirror with her image reflecting back a high-priestess-goddess-like- image. She steps into the mirror and the beauty of nature cascades behind her as we start tripping on images and colour. Kenwyn further explained “The theme has a real fantasy vibe, and Louis Rangecroft, our video director, is our favourite guy for that kind of thing, he is amazing. He is adventurous and has a lot of magical visions in his head.”
Kenwyn wields his guitar with killer hypnotic riffs, pristine in white as Leah eradicates the drab black and white of a congested road network with vibrant colours of nature. This is the theme of the video, and what a timely theme it is. In lockdown the hustle and bustle of ‘normal’ life has been curtailed. Roads are not gridlocked, cities are not crawling with people and nature is thriving. Not only that but we are more appreciative of nature. We can hear birdsong, with less traffic noise. Browns and greys have been replaced by greens, yellows and oranges. So maybe the new ‘normal’ is not so bad, and just like the Goddess we should rejoice.
Of the video, Leah told us “ The video was made in isolation, as we only had one day of actual filming. We were supposed to have two or three so it kind of took a change and turn in a different direction, and is actually a lot better than we had planned. It was only a few days after our first day of filming that lockdown happened. Luois just managed to get back to Barcelona, and we were supposed to go over there and join him, we had these great ideas, but none of that happened. So we had to create something different which actually has the same narrative. We think it has come out better. He had to work with the visuals and had to work harder and longer.
Kenwyn added “The cool thing was, and it was a great decision, we didn’t realise it at the time, we actually filmed a lot of it in front of a green screen because we were going to add stuff. Then there were going to be other days when we were either on location or using a more realistic background. But we did the day of green screen, which as it turned out was the only thing that worked. Barcelona was on proper lockdown, we could at least go for a run, but he was just locked in. So he worked on our video for six weeks and did an amazing job. Without the green screen this wouldn’t have worked there would not have been enough footage of us, so we lucked out there really.’
Photo by Tina Korhonen
The song itself is very uplifting and Leah’s vocal, as always are stunning, and in this song remind me of Grace Slick from the masters of psychedelic music, Jefferson Airplane. It is loaded with killer riffs as you would expect from Kenwyn. Leah told us “The title says it all How do we know? In the time now that we are in, its how do any of us know? There are a lot of stories going around. The song is about following your heart rather than your mind. Follow your feelings, as the heart seems to know what the truth is better than the head.
As this is a double A release with the stunning Oz, we have access to 25% of their forthcoming album, Feel The Change. Both these tracks showcase the album very well, and the good news is that the other six tracks on the album are as good as these ones.
How Do We Know and Oz are released tomorrow, 29th May and the Feel The Change album is due for release on 31st July. Click on the previous link or go here: https://smarturl.it/HowDoYouKnowOz
Keep you eye on RockShot between now and then for further news and an interview with Goldray where we discuss, the album, performing live, and surviving the apocalypse. We will meet again, with friends and strangers alike in a field with bands playing and glitter on our faces.
Photographs of Goldray by Tina Korhonen, you can see more of Tina’s beautiful photography here: https://tina-k.co.uk
