Comedian Neal Brennan once described the creative process like this: “I reach inside the dark hole. I can’t control what comes out of it. Sometimes people like it. Sometimes they don’t.” The danger lurking behind people liking it is that instead of reaching into that dark hole again, you start repeating what people liked before. Code Orange has earned quite a following with their earlier extreme metalcore work (check out their “I Am King” album from 2014 if you want to have a taste. But the new album, called “The Above”, produced by Steve Albini (see: Nirvana, PJ Harvey, etc.) explores new sounds and feels for the future. Case in point: “Mirror”, a soaring song by diminutive powerhouse Reba Meyers. Driven by a 90’s break & a melancholy chorus and illustrated with a video of rainbows and flowers, it’s a far but poignant cry from their usual pit-sparking riffs and grunts. It’s also a song I’ve been listening to on repeat lately and it keeps growing on me, especially since I’ve heard it live as part of a blistering and courageously exploring set earlier this summer. Can’t wait to hear the whole album. 

Directed, Animated and Edited by NOWHERE2RUN