Vallens is a Toronto based shoegaze band put together by song writer and bad-ass Robyn Phillips, distilling Twin Peaks vibes and marrying them with some thick guitar sounds. In their new Shelby Fenlon directed video for “Tennessee Haze,” Phillips is seen floating around green landscapes almost like a ghosts. We chatted with Phillips about “Tennessee Haze” and its inception. On the track itself, Phillips says…
It was one of the first Vallens songs ever written, and it was during a time when a lot of heavy stuff was going on. It had a lot to do with feeling like my efforts weren’t going anywhere for a variety of things that could go sour, that I had been hoping for. I felt like I had to focus on what was good, so it’s sort of about that battle of trying to find a silver lining and keep going, but still allowing yourself to acknowledge the negative.
When asked about the video and how Phillips & Shelby Fenlon came up with the concept, Phillips laughs and explains…
It’s actually very pretentious, but I didn’t want it to be. It was a huge collaboration with Shelby, but originally I wanted to do something inspired by William Blake’s Innocence/Experience work. It is not something I believe hard and fast necessarily, but I find it very interesting. The fact that every person has a different moment where they Passover to the “Experience” part of their life. And to me, I think a lot of the things people really chase, crave in their life is them trying to get back to those original feelings of “Innocence”. I wanted to make a video of someone chasing that, and it just being “light”. Shelby’s work is really focused and talented with “light” as if it were a medium so that was part of it too.
Check out the video for “Tennessee Haze” above. Vallens are midway through recording their full length debut. Expect it out on Hand Drawn Dracula spring 2016. You can also catch them live at one of the dates below.
Tour Dates
November 21 – Montreal PQ : M for Montreal – l’Escogriffe w/ Kapauno, Chastity
November 27 – Toronto ON : The Horseshoe w/ Dilly Dally