Tag: Caroline Polachek discography

Where There’s “Smoke”…There’s Fiery Hot Lava About to Burn You: Caroline Polachek Releases the Perfect Volcano Anthem

In case anyone was looking for a song to dance to when the next inevitable volcano eruption ensues, Caroline Polachek has you covered with “Smoke,” the fifth video to hatch from her Desire, I Want to Turn Into You album. Like two of her other music videos from this album cycle, “Sunset” and “Welcome to My Island,” the overall aesthetic and editing techniques are designed to look similarly “DIY,” or, as Polachek put it, “I just wanted to make a classic shoegaze video without having to do the music part.” Which she already loosely did with both of the aforementioned videos. And it was also in “Welcome to My Island” that a volcano plays a central role as one of the backdrops while “lava” bursts forth from Polachek’s own mouth. Perhaps the volcano metaphor in relationships is just too good to pass up a second time in “Smoke.”

Visually lush and sumptuous in a different way than “Billions,” Polachek evokes, in many ways, the Andy Warhol painting of Mount Vesuvius entitled, what else, “Vesuvius.” This done with a volcano “structure” that looks as though it was crafted of, let’s call it, “theater cloth” as she does her dance in front of it. Almost as though using her witchy arm movements to attempt conjuring the lava to come out and play. She then opens with the assurance, “It’s just smoke/Floating over the volcano/It’s just smoke/Go on, you know I can’t say no/It’s just smoke.” Ignoring the fact that, in this case, where there’s smoke, there’s bound to be scalding lava.

Such an allusion to relationship difficulties mirrors the same tactic Taylor Swift uses on Lover’s “Afterglow” with an “explosion metaphor,” including, “Chemistry ’til it blows up, ’til there’s no us” and “I’m the one who burned us down/But it’s not what I meant/I’m sorry that I hurt you…/I need to say, hey, it’s all me, just don’t go/Meet me in the afterglow.” But, as Pompeiians weren’t able to attest, there is no such thing as an “afterglow” to meet in once the eruption has ceased.

As Polachek’s band is silhouetted and superimposed over her own interpretive dance homages to the volcano, she declares in earnest, “And you are the big answer tonight/And you are melting everything about me/Oh, don’t worry about me, it’s just—” That unspoken cutoff being, you guessed it, “smoke.” Warming to the dangers of a “smoky” lover, Polachek is inspired to take her interpretive arm gestures to the next level as a disjointed shadow pair of her arms moves in front of her body as Peter Pan’s shadow might. Matt Copson, the director of the video (as well as Polachek’s boyfriend) then cuts to a close-up image on Polachek’s face (bedecked in her signature eye makeup style…that feels like a riff on Amy Winehouse meets Cleopatra) with the theater cloth volcano in the background—ever-looming, ever-beckoning. If desire is what Polachek wants to turn into, diving in headfirst to the volcano of love is a good start. Ignoring the smoke a.k.a. the ultimate sign of an inevitable eruption. Of course, on the positive side of figurative language, that could also mean an imminent orgasm as much as imminent disaster.

When the series of chanted “na-na-na, na-na-na, na-na-na-na-das” reaches a crescendo at the end of the song, Polachek—letting out a complementing “war cry,” of sorts—is shown on her knees looking skyward from an overhead angle at the center of a lava-red spiral. Letting loose more than ever with her theatrical dance stylings, smoke circles all around her, enveloping her. It certainly goes against all those fire safety videos people were shown in school about how to keep smoke from entering your lungs. But Polachek is committed to the perilous cause of love, announcing of the ash and smoke, “The fallout doesn’t faze me.”

That much is clearly true if this calm, tranquil visual of Polachek daring the volcano to erupt as she inhales its smoke is any indication. And, as climate change increasingly becomes “the name of the game” in the “20s,” it’s some “comfort” to know there’s a ditty to turn to should one find themselves amid an irascible volcano. Surely, the Pompeiians would’ve appreciated if this song could have played before the big lava smackdown came to wipe them out.

Genna Rivieccio

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April 7, 2023
Caroline Polachek Channels Circe on “Welcome to My Island”

On the heels of the “Sunset” video, Caroline Polachek continues to intensify the anticipation of her fourth solo record, Desire, I Want to Turn Into You (a title that automatically makes The Sandman fans think of Polachek wanting to turn into Mason Alexander Park’s portrayal of Desire). Slated for a Valentine’s Day 2023 release, the record has thus far proven to possess nothing but bop after bop (“Billions” and “Bunny Is A Rider” included), with “Welcome to My Island” being the latest example.

Co-produced by Danny L Harle, Dan Nigro (presently of Olivia Rodrigo repute), James Stack and Charli XCX favorite A. G. Cook, the capriciousness of the sonic landscape is likely a result of so many “minds” involved. To add to that caprice is a video co-directed by Polachek and her current boyfriend, Matt Copson, as they take us on yet another indelible visual safari. One that mirrors the lyrical buffet Polachek is known for serving up. This time around, Polachek seems to be tapping into the classic narrative from The Odyssey that focuses on Circe. Hence, the opening lines (with more than just a slightly goading tone) of the single: “Welcome to my island/See the palm trees wave in the wind/Welcome to my island/Hope you like me, you ain’t leavin’.” Of course, Odysseus could have left at any time, really. For he was given the magic herb of “moly” (yes, it sounds like something else) by Hermes to stave off any effect that Circe’s “witchery” (/potion) might have on him. While the crew of men from his boat were already turned into swine by the time he arrived at Circe’s Hall, impervious-to-her-magic Odysseus is able to make the enchantress promise not to harm the men and to release them from their porcine form.

After Circe obeys, Odysseus and his crew end up staying “entertained” on the island for an entire year of their own volition. And Odysseus likely would have kept on staying were it not for the influence of his “friends” telling him to “shake off his trance” and get back to the business of returning to Ithaca. What a fool move that was, for he could have stayed chillin’ in paradise with a woman who was into all the freaky shit. But, of course, Odysseus’ “desire” to leave parallels, in many ways, the Garden of Eden narrative, with human nature constantly leading a person to seek “excitement” when “bored” (often synonymous with being relegated to “paradise”—a word itself that borders on a fine line between heaven and hell).

In the “Welcome to My Island” video, Polachek is sure to emphasize the Circe connection with a close-up shot on her face during the intro as she sings nothing but sweet notes of luring in lieu of actual lyrics. The manner in which she’s filmed also makes it look as though she’s enjoying orgasm-induced ecstasy, whether being fucked by someone else or simply masturbating. The video then cuts to a scene of Polachek in a coffee shop, sporting a giant black bow in the style of Lana Del Rey on the cover of Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd. But that’s about the only scene of “normalcy” before things get really fantastical, including yet another nod to Greek mythology wherein Polachek’s head is mounted onto the body of the Chimera of Arezzo sculpture.

Another cut to Polachek running through a construction-laden street reminds one of that whimsical scene in The Worst Person in the World where Julie (Renate Reinsve) is also running—women love to fucking run, and who can blame them when there’s so much scary shit in this life to run from? But, in Polachek’s case, this is a run of joy, freedom and jubilance as she recites part of the album title-alluding chorus, “Desire, I wanna turn into you.” And, if she can’t turn into that, she can always settle for being a walking “quirk monster” as we then segue into a Lascaux-esque cave where Polachek proceeds to make shadow puppets on the wall. Then, she’s walking through a room with pottery-filled shelves before we see liquid bursting out of her mouth against the backdrop of a volcano also exploding. Meta indeed.

More moments displaying the whimsical and weird ensue when Polachek proceeds to dance on a tabletop decorated with candelabra, followed by her appearance amid a sea of sperm. Something Circe herself could likely relate to, what with constantly being up to her neck in dick. And all from the comfort of her own island, Aeaea.

Another close-up shot on Polachek’s face (complete with the aforementioned oversized black bow in her hair) emphasizes the importance of her saying, “I am my father’s daughter in the end.” If speaking from Circe’s perspective, that would be Helios. Who, according to Polachek, told Circe, “Watch your ego, watch your head, girl/You’re so smart, so talented/But now the water’s turning red/And it’s all your fault and it’s all your mess/And you’re all alone and can’t go to bed/Too high on your adrenaline.” And residual horniness from all that time spent with easy access to Odysseus, ultimately gone forever because she was foolish enough to adhere to the adage, “If you love someone, set them free.” Though he was “kind” enough to leave her with some sons, including Latinus and Telegonus. But obviously, Circe’s ego being what it is, that’s hardly a consolation. Thus, Polachek, in the paternal tone of the song’s bridge, continues with some more tough love via the advice, “Forget the rules, forget your friends/Just you and your reflection/‘Cause nothing’s gonna be the same again/No, nothing’s gonna be the same again.” How very Harry Styles saying, “You know it’s not the same as it was” in reference to post-pandemic existence.

And it clearly never will be the same again for Polachek after running along the beach of this island in question as she holds the “hand” of some creature with a hoof. The only point of view we see is from the hoofed being’s, whose “arm” is guided by Polachek through the sand as they frolic and cavort in a way that Dionysus surely would approve of. The video concludes with a contrasting image of normalcy (which was the same way it started): Polachek waiting to get on a subway. The mythological-in-its-own-right L.A. subway. So, in that sense, Polachek never ceases with the motif of myth throughout this particular song and video. And maybe even Circe would deign to ride the subway in Los Angeles if it meant securing some fresh “pork” for her deserted island.

Genna Rivieccio

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December 16, 2022
“Sunset” Video: Caroline Polachek Lives Her Best Life in Barcelona While Channeling Beth Orton and “La Isla Bonita”

When one is as well-traveled as Caroline Polachek, it’s probably hard to be “impressed” by much of any milieu. After all, this is the girl who lived in Tokyo during her early years—an influence that was perhaps obfuscated by then being relegated to Greenwich, CT. But, as those in the know are aware, all the faux rebellious girls live in Greenwich, dipping into NYC (where, like Lizzy Grant, Polachek was born—the day before her, in fact) to unleash some of that pent-up repression on the weekend and then go back to being a docile ducky when Monday arrives.

Which is exactly what Polachek did when she went to concerts and got a taste of the “rock n’ roll” lifestyle long enough to know that she wanted to be part of it (hence, Chairlift). And yes, Polachek was obviously a rich girl, which is why she can talk about (with a straight face) things like how horseback riding taught her a lot about rhythm with regard to understanding music. Clearly, it must be true—for “Sunset” is yet another shining addition to her list of recently released singles (including “Bunny Is A Rider,” “Billions” and “Last Days: Non Voglio Mai Vedere Il Sole Tramontare”), all of which will likely comprise some of what turns out to be her second solo record (or fourth, if you want to count her work as Ramona Lisa and CEP, which many do).

Unlike “Billions” and “Non Voglio Mai Vedere Il Sole Tramontare,” “Sunset” is filled with much more palpable levity—and, incidentally, acknowledges ultimately surrendering to what that Italian song title translates to: “I Never Want to See the Sun Set.” But, of course, it must. And what better time to release such a single than fall, when the sun starts to set ever earlier? Yet there is nothing “bleak” or “unhappy” about “Sunset,” with its up-tempo, jubilant notes accented by a Spanish flavor that automatically makes one think of “La Isla Bonita” (for Madonna is apparently not the only white girl with appropriative machinations when it comes to Spanish culture).

And, as a Spanish-influenced track, Polachek, who co-directed the video with Matt Copson, favors a collage-oriented aesthetic that overlaps scenes and images mostly involving her walking through the streets of an ultra color-saturated Barcelona—evidently one of the cities that can still “charm” her despite what is sure to be an expected veneer of New York jadedness after having “seen the world, done it all.” Singing lyrics like, “So no regrets/‘Cause you’re my sunset, fiery red/Forever fearless/And in your arms a warm horizon/Don’t look back/Let’s ride away, let’s ride away [Bunny is, after all, a rider],” one can’t help but hear, in the same intonation, “Tropical the island breeze/All of nature wild and free/This is where I long to be/La isla bonita.” And that’s clearly where Polachek longs to be as well, also spending part of the day among the sandy beach (complete with a scene of a sand sculpture being perfected into a face). Just another perk of a rare breed of city like Barcelona, offering the beach life in addition to its metropolitan life.

And while Polachek roams around it in a white crocheted beanie looking like an Amy Winehouse-ified (because Polachek’s heavy eyeliner is more manicured in precision) version of Beth Orton, we can automatically feel the transfer of her affinity for this place. As for the Orton comparison, it’s not just that Polachek looks so much like her, but that her acoustic vibe in this song harkens back to Orton’s 1999 hit, “Stolen Car.” And that’s how Polachek drives her own in the video—like it was stolen. Her elfin ears peeping out from behind her hair like she’s Grimes or some shit, Polachek barrels down the road as though she’s got nothing left to lose, Thelma and Louise-style. Bumper stickers also pay homage to certain of her song titles (e.g., Bunny Is A Driver), while other stickers are just an insight into her personality (e.g., I’d Rather Be Playing Magic the Gathering and Welcome to My Island—possibly also a future song title hint).

Reminiscent in its own way of Giulia Y Los Tellarini’s “Barcelona” (which, alas, is best known for being constantly played in Woody Allen’s Vicky Cristina Barcelona), the upbeat and repetitive string instrumentations of her thin-body acoustic guitar are ironically contrasted against the depiction of a languid day that concludes with her tanning topless on her rooftop as she draws serenely in her notebook. For, you see, in a place like Spain, art is not deemed a “frivolous” “hobby” as it is in the U.S.

At another point in the song, the exuberant flow is contrasted by a lyric like, “I’m wearing black to mourn the sudden loss of innocence.” This being perhaps a loose reference to the death of her father in 2020 from COVID-19. But where Polachek really cuts to the emotional core is with her series of repeated, high-pitched “ooo-ooo-ooo-ooos” toward the middle (and end) of the song as we see her walking amongst the street crowd as just another face in it. By the end of the video, however, it’s apparent she’s found her tribe, putting her clothes back on to join some revelers dancing as the sun sets.

Genna Rivieccio

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October 19, 2022