Vision Video Premiere Video For New Single 'Comfort In The Grave'

Today, Athens Georgia quartet Vision Video released their latest single, "Comfort in the Grave," premiering a video via New Noise Magazine. The track, featured on the band's upcoming, debut album Inked In Red (out April 16), lays in the dirt somewhere between teenage angst, '80s Italian horror films and murderous, gut wrenching loss of love. Watch and share the via YouTube. Pre-order Inked In Red.

On "Comfort in the Grave," keyboardist Emily Fredock takes the lead on vocals. Fredock once met a very peculiar guy at a bar... and after some deliberation and drunken antics, she and some friends ended up consensually, temporarily burying him in her backyard. It became a running joke with a couple of her friends, who said she should write a song about it. Fredock notes that, "once I started writing about it, it kind of evolved into this concept of me putting the relationship I had just gotten out of, to rest. Losing someone so close to me in that way felt kind of like a death and finding closure through the realization it was what was best for me was the only way to make it feel less tragic."

Fredock and vocalist/guitarist Dusty Gannon collaborated on the writing of "Comfort in the Grave," which is apparent in this genre-bent track that combines classic goth-rock, post-punk and hints of emo, both lyrically and sonically. This track pulls from a wide range of influence, from 45 Grave and Joy Division to My Chemical Romance.

Described the writing process with Gannon, Fredock adds, "My writing process has really just started throughout the last few months, so I'm still working with trying to make my lyrics less literal and direct, which is where Dusty comes in. Most of my influences are more emo, punk, or alternative, so lyrically you say what you mean. Whereas with Dusty, the influences are more poetic and mysterious, while having a similar message. So, having his help has been a great learning experience by showing me how to take something that you feel and embellish it in a way that gives it a nostalgic and timeless kind of feeling."

Gannon additionally wrote, produced, directed and edited the video, which leans on his love of Italian, Giallo horror films. It pays homage to the gore hounds of that era, such as Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento. It is, in both sight and sound, macabre, intense and one hell of a ride.

Vision Video are led by active paramedic, firefighter, and veteran of the war in Afghanistan, Dusty Gannon. Gannon has seen more horror in real life than in the classic movies he draws inspiration from. When not saving lives on the front-line, Dusty dons torn fishnets, combat boots and makeup to play post-punk that recalls the genre's heyday when the lines between goth and pop blurred.

Hidden within Vision Video's catchy hooks and danceable beats is a nostalgic yet desperate message exploring the darker undertones of our existence. At its core, Inked In Red, recorded with producer Tom Ashton of The March Violets, looks inward to understand the effects of war and the global pandemic. Dusty's experiences in service have imparted an authentic gravitas to the music, revealing a cautionary tale of unhinged mental illness born of trauma. Sonically, this is reflected in every chord and melody through its enticingly gothic yet often upbeat nature, imparting a duality of mania that, simply stated, is real malaise and existential dread that cannot be made facsimile.

Dusty left the active duty Army and decided to move back home to Athens, GA after being disillusioned with his experiences from the war. "I just knew that I couldn't keep on supporting something that was fundamentally against my nature as a human being," he says of his return from military service. As a native of Athens, he recalled the rich music scene that he grew up around. "It just made total sense to go back. I knew in my heart that I wanted to play music, as I had been writing about my experiences during the war and I knew it was a message that needed to be heard."

Shortly before the world entered the pandemic, Dusty assembled a band with Fredock on keys and vocals, Dan Geller - the producer behind synth-pop act, I am the World Trade Center - on bass, and Jason Fusco drummer of the punk band Shehehe.

Inked in Red is a culmination of Gannon's experience dealing with trauma, but the band is all about having the time of your life: "While the subject matter of Vision Video is full of real-life terror and monsters, I want our listeners to feel the same thrill of the teenage Friday night horror movie rental. They say that when looking into the void, it looks back into you, but it will damn well see us dancing our ass off."

Watch the new video here:

Photo Credit: Olivia Mead