NN Music Video of the Week: “Night Terrors” by SPELLES
SPELLES, the sonic duo made up of Luc Laurent and Kathryn Baar, has released their haunting and anthemic new single “Night Terrors”, and its accompanying visual, our NN Music Video of the Week, directed by Zach Bell. “Night Terrors” is a mixture of Amy Winehouse meets Suicide and shows a new side to SPELLES’ vast and genre-defying musical prowess. The menacing new single begins with a blues inspired bass synth riff and Laurent’s pulsating drums that allow Baar’s soulful and biting vocals to sink in. The choruses explode with textures of organs and string machines as Baar confidently sings “Look at me now, I’m coming alive.” There is a moment in the song where the listener feels like they’re floating underwater and then are pulled out from the depths as the song concludes with a heroic ending. With personal lyrics such as “What haunts you the most? My unlived life” and “Built a pyramid of dreams, to honor what’s dead” Baar touches upon the dichotomy of feelings of hope and hopelessness that one inevitably experiences when chasing an elusive dream. Night Terrors is the 3rd single off of SPELLES’ long awaited debut album Diving Into the Arms of the Divine out November 15th via Sierra Bonita Records.
SPELLES broke out in 2014 after their unreleased song “Bird in a Cage” was placed on the hit TV show Pretty Little Liars. Since then they’ve released two EP’s: SPELLES and Skeleton Coast I, and multiple singles. They’ve also had the good fortune of getting their songs placed on numerous shows, such as Good Girls, Big Sky, Charmed, and Nancy Drew, as well as on a TV promo for ABC. In 2017 their song “Dead in the Water” was played on BBC Radio 1 and they were sponsored by Taco Bell for their Feed the Beat program. Baar co-wrote a song in 2022 with Jordan Frye called “Let It Out” that landed an HBO promo. She also lent her vocals and writing skills to the song “Fly” by The Avener and vocals to “Fade Away” by Claptone, the latter of which was initiated via a personal email by legendary producer Stuart Price (Madonna). SPELLES has also performed live in Los Angeles on the same bill as LP, Dorothy, Cannons, Skott and Niia.
Influenced by artists such as Portishead, Radiohead, and Nina Simone, SPELLES has combined different musical influences along with poetic and evocative lyrics to create an already commanding and moving body of work that speaks for itself.
Listen to “Night Terrors” on: Spotify