By January 16, 2020
Modern Moxie had a big 2019, and they’re continuing that trajectory by coming out swinging into the new year. After releasing their debut (and one of the Queen City’s best albums of 2019), Claw Your Way Out, the indie pop/rock band is releasing their first music video for lead single “Til I’m a Ghost,” directed by Dries Vandenberg.
The video starts with Modern Moxie’s singer and songwriter, Madison Lucas, prepping to play street hockey in a slick, custom Modern Moxie jersey. The video is lighthearted and fun, as three-fourths of the band start to compete, but they quickly have to clear everything out of the road to let an upset driver pass by their game (it’s a scene too similar to Wayne’s World to ignore). As the video progresses, the situation escalates from a simple game between bandmates to dire consequences by the end. What starts as playful roughhousing results in Madison’s untimely death (thanks to a banana peel) and yet the video maintains a child-like summer fun feel to it. The front-woman continues rocking and rolling as a glittering angel in a campy montage of the band in front of beautiful skyscapes. The carefree tone of the video contrasts fairly sharply with the weight of the lyrical subject matter.
Modern Moxie entrenches this video with little nuggets of Charlotte-specific imagery that shows their love for the city: live scenes of the band performing at The Milestone are interspersed throughout; there are beers from NoDa Brewing Company and Birdsong Brewing; and drummer Charlie Weeks is sporting a Pullover shirt, which happens to be the band that guitarist Phil Pucci fronts.
“Til I’m a Ghost” is one of the band’s strongest and most confident tracks. The verses feature catchy sing-song vocals and jangly guitar lines, and build to an explosion of distorted guitar and drums in the chorus where Lucas declares, “All I know is I only wanna rock and roll til I’m a ghost.” Lyrically, it explores fears and anxieties concerning capitalism, environmental issues, and modern American politics, but turns it back to the audience in the end by asking, “What scares you the most?”
The video for “Til I’m a Ghost” was directed by Dries Vandenberg of Charleston, SC based Practical Effect. On top of being a director, Vandenberg is also a musician, and plays as a member of the bands Human Resources and SUSTO. Claw Your Way Out is available to stream on major streaming platforms, as well as on vinyl through Modern Moxie’s bandcamp.
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