Watch Dirty Projectors’ Surreal, Romantic ‘Up in Hudson’ Video
Dirty Projectors translate ecstasy and heartbreak into vivid surrealism with their new “Up in Hudson” video. Encyclopedia Pictura directed the experimental clip, which unfolds in four distinct sections symbolizing a relationship’s rise, fall and subsequent redemption.
The first vignette documents the blooming, inexplicable romance between a security guard and random mall shopper in a nondescript parking lot; the charmed duo, both of whom have massive noses and ears, wander down to a creek and dance. In the second, two figure skaters perform against a massive backdrop of blue skies, only to crash.
The third stars a pair of grizzled men reclining outside their mobile homes; one climbs inside his vehicle and drives to a hillside before climbing inside a cave. The fourth section ends the video on an optimistic note, as a traffic cop (Dirty Projectors mastermind Dave Longstreth) performs the Kiani Del Valle-choreographed dance moves in the busy street.
“Through four very different couples, the arc of a relationship is portrayed in its stages of growth, death, and rebirth,” Encyclopedia Pictura said of the clip in a statement. “To unite our characters as we weave through their stories, we tried to present their vulnerabilities in a surreal way, right on the surface, in their faces.”
“Up in Hudson” is an electro-art-pop love song from Dirty Projectors’ self-titled seventh LP, which came out in February. Rolling Stone ranked the track Number 35 on our list of the year’s 50 Best Songs.