Video: The Mynabirds, ‘Velveteen’

Kevin Bronson on March 23rd, 2016

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At first blush, there’s nothing particularly bloody about “Velveteen,” a song from the third Mynabirds’ album, “Lovers Know.” It’s a tender plea to be handled with care, because, as Laura Burhenn sings, “I’m threadbare velveteen / Where lovers have been.” In the hands of director duo LEAN (Ian Roche and Luke Hanlein), though, the video for the song becomes a vampire tale, with the singer-songwriter baring her teeth after an encounter with a mugger (played by Joe Zizzo) and a do-gooder (Reese Richardson). “It’s the darkest (and bloodiest) thing I’ve ever made, and the vampire narrative the directors put into it adds a dimension to the song that makes it feel like something fresh, even to me,” Burhenn says. “I love it.” In other Mynabirds’ flights of fancy, Burhenn announced that her forthcoming West Coast tour will feature more intimate representations of her songs, as opposed to the full-band outing they got after “Lovers Know” was released in August. Included: some string arrangements and some new songs.

||| Watch: The video for “Velveteen”