Brooklyn natives Empty Chairs are continuing on their wave of rhythmic harmonies toward the release of their first full-length album with a video for their single “GTMO.” The album, Caveat Emptor, drops on November 5, but for now, you can check out the exclusive premiere of the video here on AudioFemme. Frontman Peter Spear debuted Empty Chairs’ 5-track EP back in April 2011 and has since been joined by bandmates Whitney Broadstreet, synth and vocals, and Matthew O’Koren, percussionist.
Leading up to the new album, the band released singles “Akira” in July 2012 and “War Cries” in March 2013. Now, they’ve given us “GTMO,” a dreamy harmony of synthesized guitar and keyboard. They keep within the same psychedelic sound as the EP, which in this case isn’t a bad thing. Elias Gwenn shot the video and Empty chairs teamed up with him to produce it at Velidoxi Studios.
The video follows Spear walking around New York with an acoustic guitar — clearly not the instrument responsible for the song’s electronic-heavy sound. The footage appears to be playing backward: as Spear walks around Washington Square Park heading toward the camera, pedestrians behind him travel in reverse. It’s a clever touch that takes a second to notice, for the focus is on Spear. The video is reminiscent of a type of home-video montage and evokes thoughts of sunny skies and brighter days. As Empty Chairs continues to grow, their infectious rhythms are keeping our attention.
