We’re not exactly sure why RVA pop-punk band Sundials just released a new video for the first song from their 2012 album When I Couldn’t Breathe, a year and a half after that album first came out. However, we don’t intend to complain about it, either.
We’re not exactly sure why RVA pop-punk band Sundials just released a new video for the first song from their 2012 album When I Couldn’t Breathe, a year and a half after that album first came out. However, we don’t intend to complain about it, either. This clip, directed by Max Weinstein-Bacal of Better Basements, stars the three members of Sundials in an unorthodox tale that simultaneously resembles depressing children’s classic Old Yeller and totally weird current FX show Wilfred. The classic “boy and his dog” scenario is given a twist when Sundials guitarist Harris Mendell takes the role of the dog–and it gets weirder when a real dog shows up halfway through the clip, prompting the inevitable slide from idyllic happy times to death and destructiion–all in just over three minutes.
While the video’s subject matter doesn’t really relate to the song itself, its sad storyline is appropriate considering what “710” is about. Back in 2009, while Sundials were on one of their first tours, their house in Oregon Hill burned down and almost all of their possessions were destroyed. The song’s lyrics are about attempting to come to terms with a loss that you know about but haven’t actually seen, and can’t do anything about. The juxtaposition of the song’s final chorus, in which Harris Mendell repeatedly sings “All I can do is try to forget this,” with video footage of bassist Carl Athey shaking and freaking out about what his character in the video has just been through, is chilling. Even the upbeat sound of Sundials’ guitar-driven power-pop riffs can’t brighten that moment.
Sundials’ most recent release is Always Whatever, an LP collecting EPs, splits, and other unreleased material into one convenient release. It came out last fall on Asian Man Records, and can be purchased on vinyl HERE, or downloaded from Bandcamp HERE. They will be playing two shows at Strange Matter next month, and you really should go see both of them. The first will see Sundials opening for “emo revival” standard-bearers Into It. Over It, The World Is A Beautiful Place And I Am No Longer Afraid To Die, and A Great Big Pile Of Leaves; it takes place on Sunday, February 16 at 7 PM, and tickets are $10 in advance (order here: https://intoit.eventbrite.com/). For more info, click HERE. The band’s other February show pairs them with pop-punk heroes Iron Chic and fellow RVA crews Family Cat and Sea Of Storms. That show takes place Wednesday, February 26 at 10 PM, and tickets are $10 (order here: http://ironchic.eventbrite.com/). For more info, click HERE.
By Andrew Necci
