Ex Reyes – “Only You” Video

Ex Reyes – “Only You” Video

Mikey Freedom Hart used to play in Sinkane and Albert Hammond Jr.’s band, and he’s currently a member of Bleachers. But Hart is also cultivating a solo project called Ex Reyes. The band released their debut single “Bad Timing” back in May along with a Mardi Gras-themed video, and they’re currently on the road alongside How To Dress Well.

That’s a lot of brand-name band names, but they only partially clue you in to Hart’s favored psych-soul sound. On the new “Only You,” for instance, he taps into the power and glory of Brian Wilson’s delicate Pet Sounds-era chamber pop, but the track is also laced with shoop-shoop backing vocals out of an old Motown single, and pulsating electronic undercurrents help carry those ’60s influences into the present. Hart’s self-directed video for the track is full of striking images, and he shared this statement about it:

After making the “Bad Timing” video, which I felt looked outward and was full of public spaces, I wanted to make a video that looked inward, like a stream of drifting thoughts. That’s why I wanted to do it one shot, no edits, and include references to “expensive art” [Pollock] and street art [dancing].

While we were making it my friend Hans described it as “A monologue of distraction” and that really stuck with me.

The dancer is my friend Yansen who’s in Netflix’s The Get Down, there’s a fully functional jamaican soundsystem and a real piano, my friend Marion who plays drums for Michael Buble, and an actor from Craigslist who nearly died on set. In fact I was moving the piano the next day and it fell and broke my foot.

Watch the video below.

Ex Reyes have an EP called Do Something coming 11/4 on Lil Mo Records. Pre-order it here. Get tickets here for the band’s tour dates with How To Dress Well:

09/26 Grand Rapids, MI @ Pyramid Scheme
09/27 Detroit MI @ Shelter
09/28 Toronto, ON @ Mod Club
09/30 Boston, MA @ Sinclair
10/01 Philadelphia, PA @ Boot & Saddle
10/04 New York, NY @ Webster Hall
10/06 Washington, DC @ U Street Music Hall
10/08 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl
10/09 New Orleans, LA @ Hi-Ho Lounge
10/10 Dallas, TX @ Cambridge Room
10/11 Austin, TX @ Parish
10/13 Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
10/14 Los Angeles, CA @ Regent
10/18 Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
10/19 Seattle, WA @ Neumos
10/20 Vancouver, BC @ Biltmore

This is the single art for “Only You”:

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