Looking inside of yourself is not always an easy task, and can be significantly harder when you’re questioning your sense of self. Am I too sensitive? Am I too intimidating? How can I live with both aspects of myself? Will anyone accept me as I am?
New York-based The Silk War reminds us of that struggle in their video for their single “Velvet”. The song alone is a powerful testament to Alexandra Blair’s vocals, trying desperately to find some clarity on who she is. Blair creates moments of sheer power and inquisitive softness as her lyrics change from owning her uniqueness (“Your light lives in your mouth, not on your skin/ They’ll never take it”) to questioning her self worth and even adapting herself (“Please take me to get fixed/ yes, take me out of me”). This confusion is further amplified in their music video, filmed at two famed downtown Manhattan music venues The Bowery Electric and Madame X’s red velvet lounge.
Directed by the acclaimed Sex and Life coach Shelby Sells and photographed by DP Oscar Zabala, the video utilizes different scenery and lighting to create a safe space for Blair to find power in all aspects of herself. There are two dominant shades of the singer’s psyche in this video: one who is commanding, volatile, physical, and almost feral in movement, claiming the stage as her own in the black and white scenes. The other lives in a red-lit bar scene, moving slowly, closed off and timid to the people around her. Her face looks searchingly around this bar full of people for some emotional anchor to comfort her but none comes. All she has is herself and by the end of the video, that is enough. There is a brilliant moment where the quieter version of Blair breaks away from her closed-off body language and dances like Blair performing with her band, creating a mirror image of both Blair’s personalities moving as one. This visual cue is such a rewarding moment for the viewer: I wanted the quieter Blair to let go of her insecurities and her desire to fit in, to embrace this potent energy her singing counterpart has. When she finally does, she creates a space for both shades of her personality to live in: the quiet and the inquisitive with the powerful and the physical, the yin, and the yang. Check out their video here and give their single a listen!
Words by Cath Spino