There’s something special about the power of restraint in music. It’s easy for throaty yelps and passionate whines to resonate with people because they’re extremes that are also incredibly tangible. You can latch onto the power put into those performances and feel catharsis powerful enough to linger long after the closing notes, but those are rarely the moments that I remember most fondly. I look for an artist who isn’t afraid to get soft and vulnerable with listeners — an artist who can take the quiet moments and make them feel just as illustrious, and Bogues is perfect for that.
Similar to the powerhouse that is Julien Baker, Bogues is just a singular person and their guitar. Their new Life Slowly EP is due out March 2nd and features a handful of songs that feel like carefully crafted views into the window of Bogues. Sprawling guitars and forlorn vocals often lead to explosive moments of emotional upheaval in a way that feels natural and not like some forced shift in tone. Today, I couldn’t be more excited to share the music video for a brand new song called “Transcendentalism” with y’all!
On “Transcendentalism,” every second feels deliberate — each careening note is its own moment of emotional despair comes packed with a line that stings as soon as they land, but none more-so than “I think I depend on you too often/or at least you as a concept/the person’s as good as forgotten.” The video feels just as integral to the idea that Bogues was working at when recording the song — a vignette of the depressive fit that comes from severed relationships. There’s a constant feeling of loneliness that creeps its way into the back of your head and takes complete control of you. It haunts and it haunts until you feel like you’re going to break, as illustrated by the video’s violent end.
When asked about the track, Bogues says: “Transcendentalism is a song about reliving your past through things. It can be an old spot you used to hang out at, a song you used to listen to, or a person you weren’t expecting to bump into. This video touches on all of it at once, and the difficulty that comes with trying to confront that.”
The music video for “Transcendentalism” can be seen above. Life Slowly is out March 2nd. Snag your copy of the record here. Bogues will be on the road for most of the Spring. Upcoming tour dates can be found below.
