Music Insights
Video Views by JC: Sylvan Esso – Numb
Announcing a tour schedule and dropping a music video all in one breath, Sylvan Esso revives fans and spirits alike.
As Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn of Sylvan Esso release their first single since acclaimed 2020 album Free Love, a gathering optimistic force is growing. Artists are emerging en masse from a lost year to offer a taste of what’s to come, and it’s a welcome sign. A delicate delight with shimmering hightlights riding a dark undertow, Numb doesn’t reveal itself until it’s already got its hooks in you.
“Shake, shake, shake,” hums the stripped down vocal refrain, guiding the track into blood-pumping joy. Like a tingling in your limbs from sitting still too long, Numb gets under your skin. In a back lit, black-and-white contrasted underground theatre, the imagery conjured by LA director and cinematographer Jasmin Albuquerque evokes the emotional static of pins and needles. An airborne emergency thermal blanket twisting in the light seems the perfect visual metaphor for an emerging wave of renewed energy.
Take a deep breath and get ready to run. Catch Sylvan Esso on the Shaking Out The Numb Tour, coming to US music festivals soon.