by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Moss Jaw released their debut album, Embody, back in April of this year via Already Dead Tapes (Skin Tags, Fuck Lungs, Imelda Marcos) and made an immediate impact on the Kalamzoo DIY scene and beyond. The quartet, which features former members of The Reptilian (Community Records), crafted an album of serene yet complex rock music, picking elements of Midwestern emo, math rock, dream pop, and post-rock and combining them to create something as gentle as it is intricate. In the year that saw the band play with peers Blessed, Treadles, and No Tongues For Quiet People, Moss Jaw aren’t done just yet.
Closing out 2019 with a premiere of their “Dry Remains” video, the album closer’s animated clip comes courtesy of Documavision, AKA Cloakroom’s Bobby Markos. With animated scenery and a constantly shifting atmosphere, the images fade in and out like a powerpoint slide with the most vivid collage beauty. Elements rise and fade in time with the song, bringing new layers with it and removing others at the same time. As the lyrics appear we’re transported from to new territories, the words finding their own space within the scenic landscapes and open frames.