WL//WH Video Of The Day: ARIMA “Orbainak / Scars”

Video Of The Day  Arima  

Formed in 2018, Basque Country‘s shoegaze trio ARIMA based in Bilbao, comprised of Paule Bilbao (guitar and vocals), Josu Gonzalez (bass) and Gontzal Bilbao (drums), channel torment and nostalgia, melancholy and pain into emotional billows of bittersweet shimmering distortion in an evocative music video for the modern dystopic new single “Orbainak” (Scars) off their upcoming second 6-track EP, “Biluztasunez Jantzita” (Dressed Naked), due out, CD / Vinyl 12″, on 25, February 2021, via independent label Bonberenea Ekintzak.

Distortion draws energy from a sinuously dry throbbing bass line, off-tempo scattered drums, and poignant sparkling guitar melodies with abrasive fuzz spraying riffs, as beautifully tragic female vocals release long, drawn-out breaths, rising and falling in an outpouring of grief before fading helplessly below a surging sway of reverb-drenched oppression.

Poetic lyrics, written and delivered in the Basque language, evoke extreme desolation and trauma by depicting a nightmarish portrait of being immersed in an ocean of hatred and tears with no hope of escape.

Interpretive video travels through a series of uninhibited visuals to dive into the psychological realms of subconscious fear and emotional conflict. A black and white dance sequence unearths primal tension and personal power through intimate moves and hypnotic hand gestures, while seafoam swirls captivate the mind’s eye of imagination to project inner turmoil within a shape-shifting tide of abstract symbolism. Disturbing transition scenes suggest overwhelming anxiety and isolation exist at the hands of an exterior force that lies hidden in the fluctuating shadows of melancholy and pain.

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