That magnetic Cali-based singer-songwriter/guitarist we dig, Matt Jaffe, has once again joined forces with acclaimed indie animator Bill Plympton (The Simpsons, Plymptoons) for their second dazzling collaboration – a melancholy and masterful video for new song “Voodoo Doll.” We’re thrilled to premiere it today on P&W and dare you to take your eyes off of Plympton’s signature scribbled magic. Perfectly intertwined with Jaffe’s dose of unconventional romance, it’s a hypnotic music video that begs for multiple plays. After premiering the first Plympton-animated video for Jaffe’s ‘Wicked World,’ we witnessed their synergy as they drew/jammed in unison at Brooklyn’s National Sawdust last year and wished for another treat from the duo. Now, we’re hoping they keep it going for many more projects together. The way Plympton visually interprets “Voodoo Doll”’s clever lyrics, which Jaffe delivers in a soothingly vintage timbre, is too much wit and style to resist.
Plympton & Jaffe in Brooklyn in 2019
“The song ‘Voodoo Doll’ explores a relationship gone awry, in which happiness and sadness are expressions of the same feeling,” Matt Jaffe told P&W. “Love and angst, while opposites on the surface, are closer together than we know… ‘She has got my voodoo doll / she’ll throw it off a waterfall / it’s the only way she knows at all / to say she loves me.’ The song skews towards a subtler indie pop distinct from my power trio rock roots. Accented by vibraphone and violin, the song is angular and angry, but plays it a little closer to the vest. More of an Imperial Bedroom Elvis Costello than a This Year’s Model Elvis Costello. It is the first release from two upcoming albums which will be released between December and March, entitled Undertoad and Kintsugi.”
Jaffe humbly shared an amusing anecdote too. “‘Voodoo Doll’ is a love song. The kind you don’t want written about you. But then again, I’ve discovered that ‘hate and love are reciprocal passions,’ he said, quoting Chronicle of A Death Foretold by Gabriel García Márquez. “So at least the song’s muse escaped indifference, a fate much worse than hate. My most memorable performance of the song was at San Francisco Juvenile Hall, after which a young woman asked me why I sang the words ‘voodoo doll’ so many times. I told her it was the title of the song. She reiterated how many times I had sung it, so I asked her if it was too many. She said definitely, going on to tell me she wasn’t a fan of my music in general. I hadn’t anticipated the show turning into a focus group, and, while I appreciated her candor, I hope you’ll enjoy this song a whole lot more.”
Article: Olivia Isenhart
Photo: Shayne Hanley
