Sam Means is, in addition to being to being a great indie rock artist, a family man. After putting in a few years of distance from ill-fated group The Format, the Arizona-based songwriter has released an album that is uniquely his own. From design (aliens are a common motif in his merchandise) to sound, Means’ solo debut 10 Songs is fun, quirky indie rock at its finest.
He’s just released possibly the most endearing piece of the puzzle yet – a video for “Other Side of You,” written and directed by his 6-year-old daughter Lola. The finished product is a DIY video with a fleshed-out plot and some impressive cinematographic techniques (a personal favorite: rocking the camera side to side to simulate driving). The tells the story of Means learning that he has a stalker, a brown stuffed monkey whose paper speech bubble reads “I’m watching you!”
After a cat-and-mouse chase ensues, the menacing monkey catches up and defeats Means once and for all. And it’s all a backdrop for a piece of catchy, lighthearted pop music. Try and resist how hopelessly endearing the entire package is. The opening and closing shots of “Other Side of You” show Lola and Sam plotting their masterpiece. This is what makes the video so fitting in the first place. The entirety of “10 Songs” feels very intimate, as it relies on Means’ personal and family life. It only makes sense that his family got involved in the visual process too.
Means said of the video that they “most importantly, had tons of fun.” It’s nice to see something in this field taken not-so-seriously, and 6-year-old Lola Means proves herself to be better at making music videos than a lot of others out there.
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bil5BR94te0&w=560&h=315]