The Brooklyn goth-pop band LANTRNS have returned to sway our souls to the dark side with their newest video for the trippy treat, “Gold Thread.” Woven with the finest strands of 70’s and 80’s synthy goodness, they turned up the darkly sexual steaminess on what is apparently their first official music video. The director Christian St-Gallo gazes into a spooky blue milk bathtub and broken mirror stare-down trip-outs, threading surreal broken heartedness throughout what could be an otherwise upbeat pop track with some slight tweaks to the bright side.
LANTRNS – Photo by Elena Zubreva
When I hear the name “Gold Thread,” I tend to think of the healthy herb or the brilliant shine of strands of priceless metal, although the lyrics here clearly point towards a less healthy and costly definition. Instead, you’re confronted with the frustration of symbolically weaving a relationship only to have all your precious work unravel. I also sense some visual homage to the recently departed David Bowie interlaced, with painted and bejeweled faces in sexy and somewhat androgynous poses, which at points feel like stepping back into a Ziggy Stardust video shoot circa 1972. Apart from some subtle 70’s glam rock touches, a ton of influences peak out from behind the musical fabric. There is certainly some synthy 1980’s new wave and no wave salutes with bits of Siouxsie and the Banshees, Blondie, Cocteau Twins, and All About Eve, knitted with 90’s influences including Massive Attack, Hooverphonic, Goldfrapp, and so on, and then a ton of newer inspirations, as well, such as The xx, Daughter, Purity Ring, Warpaint, Poliça, and Phantogram. Those are just the ones that immediately come to mind.
Sewing together such a bright quilt out of such bitter threads can be tough, but this song and video is a straightforward stitch. Mending the pieces of a broken heart never seemed so easy, as the song flows through you like a brief summer breeze. Then after it cleanses you, it returns to the ethereal land it came from with a rather fleeting vision. The video similarly displays the darkness without dwelling too deep in the backstitch and just passing the needle through the heart’s eye and then drifting through. The heart and soul of this group is frontwoman Kaitlyn Mills, who is the focus of attention through most of the video, but the newer members, guitarist Sridhar Ravichandran and bassist Katie Pierce, are also prominently featured (along with Kaitlyn’s friend Patrick Steadman).
The band describes the video simply as “visuals examine ethereal aesthetics and how they can be woven together to convey an abstract narrative. The band takes the viewers far away from the urban jungle of Brooklyn and makes you question what you’re watching.” Their next local show is at Shea Stadium on January 9, which is also Sister Helen’s farewell show.
Article: Dean Keim
