Not for nothing were Beach House sampled by the Weeknd, who darkly sex-minded Trilogy came out this week. “Making out” comes up a lot in writing about the Baltimore duo’s grainy dream-pop (including in the band’s own words), but those who’ve made out the band’s four albums might not want to think too hard about what exactly imbues the music with such bleak sensuality. In the video for “Wild,” an expertly supine standout from this year’s full-flowered Bloom, we see a shadowy side that wouldn’t be out of place in the Weeknd’s own paranoid lyrics.
Under the voyeuristic lens of Johan Renck, who has directed episodes of Breaking Bad and The Walking Dead along with videos for the likes of Madonna and the Knife, one couple — yes — makes out, while another, comprising a guy and his so-called “best friend,” proceeds to beat the shit out of each other. Bigger, vaguer, creepier dramas occur away from these central figures, too. “Wild in our ways,” Victoria Legrand sings huskily, and although few of the song’s lyrics translate well to the page, that one comes across powerfully, and a bit disturbingly, in the video.
Beach House 2012-2013 tour:
November 14 – Munich, DE @ Feierwerk
November 16 – Köln, DE @ Gloria
November 17 – Lausanne, CH @ Les Docks
November 18 – Brussels, BE @ AB
November 19 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
November 20 – Paris, FR @ Le Trianon
December 30 – Lorne, AU @ The Falls Music & Arts Festival
December 31 – Marion Bay (Tasmania), AU @ The Falls Music & Arts Festival
January 5 – Busselton, AU @ Southbound Festival
January 9 – Melbourne, AU @ Forum Theatre
January 11 – Fortitude Valley, AU @ Tivoli Theatre
January 12 – Brisbane, AU @ A&I Hall
January 18 – Osaka, JP @ Club Quattro
January 20 – Tokyo, JP @ Liquid Room
January 23 – Seoul, KR @ Interpark Art Centyer
March 25 – London, UK @ O2 Shepherds Bush Empire
March 26 – London, UK @ O2 Shepherds Bush Empire
