Jason Pulley – Memphis Flyer

On our final Music Video Monday of 2022, Memphis’ Fugitive Droids make their Music Video Monday debut. Bran Sowell (vocals), James Hoffman (guitar), Jason Lancaster (guitar), Jason Pulley (keys), Kip Wright (bass), and Josh Sparks (drums) have released two albums of punk-prog-metal — Boot Cycle, which was released on a fateful week in March 2020, and Anomaly, a response to a year of pandemic nuttiness.

“Kinged” is Anomaly‘s roaring anti-Trump screed. “The song details the tyranny, hypocrisy, and propaganda used by frail dictators in pursuit of a coup,” says Sowell. “They’ll say anything, do anything, or be anybody for the crowd that will cast the correct vote, and everyone else is the enemy. The majority of the lyrics are written from the perspective of a citizen living in such a dictatorship, except during a jarringly upbeat musical shift where they are temporarily the dictator’s inner thoughts.”

The video, created by Cam Taylor of Phoenix Cloud Studios, uses AI generated images on a trip down the uncanny valley. It feels just as surreal as the last three years.

If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.

Music Video Monday misses live shows.

No industry has been hit harder by the coronavirus pandemic than music. The small venues which serve as a breeding ground for the superstars of tomorrow have always had a marginal existence, but the COVID shutdown has pushed many beyond the brink. The Save Our Stages initiative seeks to enlist government help to preserve these valuable cultural institutions. It has attracted the support of many lawmakers, including Memphis’ Congressman Steve Cohen.

The shutdown has been hardest on the musicians, both the weekend warriors with day jobs and the road warriors who eke out a living playing all over the country. Alyssa Moore is emblematic of both sides of the story. She’s emerged from a tragic history to thrive as a solo artist, producer, and live sound engineer at the Hi Tone and other Memphis venues. But since March, she’s been stuck at home, spending her time making solo records and also bringing a little comedy to the situation. Made under her country persona Big Jim, “Woman of the Night” is a lament to lost nights on stage and behind the soundboard. The video, which she made at home with her roommates/bandmates Mitchell Manley and Jason Pulley, is comedy gold. What to do when there’s no place to play? Take to the streets.

Music Video Monday: Alyssa Moore

If you would like to see your music video featured on Music Video Monday, email cmccoy@memphisflyer.com.