Let’s be real: Decibel copy editor Andrew Bonazelli has a more refined taste in music than anyone else in that rotting hellhole we call a masthead. The man keeps the rest of us on our toes, presenting out-of-the-box extraordinary ideas for Hall of Fame records and reminding us that melody exists outside of 1990s Sweden. For instance, he consistently reminds us that Boston rock band Junius creates music several notches above your ordinary metal-adjacent growlers, or, as Bonazelli himself puts it: “While I cherish [their] entire catalogue, Michael Bolton-style, Reports From the Threshold of Death is a record that, no pun intended, has eternal life in my collection. I never would have imagined an extended meditation on the afterlife could be so well-researched, thought-provoking, crushingly heavy and emotionally poignant.”
“Transcend the Ghost” is the penultimate track from that record, and more than a decade after Junius first offered us this gem, they have reimagined the song in a somehow even more tender, haunting and vulnerable fashion. Even better, Andrew Bonazelli wrote the treatment for a gorgeous video for this version of the song with his 10 Seconds to Comply production company. It’s a quiet, dark contemplation that deserves your full attention for all five minutes. Watch it once for the experience. Watch it again to parse all the emotion welded to each shot, to every action. Then watch it a dozen more times for the sheer beauty of the thing. Not all at once though. That would be way too harrowing.
10STC director Manny OA says of the video: “When I was approached with the treatment and song for this music video, I immediately had a vision for the concept. The idea of an old Victorian house with very soft light and ethereal motion felt like a perfect complement to the tone of the music. I also wanted this to be a fully narrative story without performance elements that could stand apart from the music, but also one that – together with the music as the score – would make a strong emotional impact.”
Songwriter Joseph E. Martinez comments on his part of the process: “When Andrew approached me about the treatment he had written, I thought it was super interesting. A script inspired by a song, which in turn inspired me to transform that very song into something that would hopefully complement a future video. Knowing the treatment was on the darker side of things, I decided to lean into the light and ethereal, keep it more optimistic. I had my daughter sing on it which added this haunting beauty that I’m over the moon about. Having her contribute to this project has been a very surreal experience and undoubtedly a highlight of my life. Not to mention Tom Syrowski’s amazing mix and production; he definitely took this to the next level. Always honored to have him work on Junius music.”
“‘Transcend the Ghost’ seems like an outlier on the album,” says Bonazelli, “with its vulnerable, isolated vocals, that perfect kick drum before the distortion crashes in, the disarming optimism in the lyrics… it was a massive honor getting a seat on the sidelines while Joe crafted this gorgeous, delicate variation that marries so well to the images Manny crafted. The vast majority of our work at 10 Seconds to Comply has thus far been heavy on the old ultraviolence (our name is a Robocop reference, after all), so it was refreshing to have the opportunity to bring something so nuanced, enigmatic and (hopefully) moving to life. That can all be attributed to the hours of hard work that Joe and Manny poured into this.”
10 Seconds to Comply is the Philadelphia/Detroit film production nexus of writer Andrew Bonazelli, DP/director Manny OA and DP/director Ken Whiting. Prior to “Transcend the Ghost,” they have produced music videos for Graf Orlock, Chrome Waves and Lotus Thrones, and will be shooting the debut video for New Jersey-based heavy shoegaze band Pale Shade this summer. Their debut feature film, Rich Interior Lives, directed by Whiting, is in post-production, and will feature original music from blackgaze/sludge/post-metal trio Glassing and hardcore/punk powerhouses Sweat.
