Video: Atoms and Void, ‘Lay Down Your Weapons’

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Atoms and Void (Photo by Ashlee Williams)
Atoms and Void (Photo by Ashlee Williams)

The world can be a harsh, vile place, as amplified by much of what has appeared recently on your television screens and social media feeds. The new video from Atoms and Void — in fact, their whole album “And Nothing Else” — serves as a respite from the cacophony, though not necessarily from the melancholy that world events inspire.

Atoms and Void is the collaboration between Arlie Carstens, once of Seattle indie-rockers Juno, and producer/engineer Eric Fisher. Over years of recording with a gobsmacking list of collaborators (including members of Sunny Day Real Estate, Foo Fighters, Fleet Foxes, Ted Leo & the Pharmacists, Sufjan Stevens and La Luz) — and through some trying experiences, as they explain in this interview — the duo have forged a collection of ambient post-rock that in mood makes the National sound like Grouplove. Released in May via Arctic Rodeo Recordings, their compositions are mesmerizing.

So, submitted as your antidote to the world’s shoutists: Director Greg Hunt’s slo-mo video for “Lay Down Your Weapons.” Known for his work in skateboarding films, Hunt here simply lets landscapes and cityscapes unfold. Breathe deeply, watch and listen.

||| Watch: The videos for “Lay Down Your Weapons” and “Golden Shivers”

||| Also: Stream “Waves of Blood”