Sultry and smooth, yet sombre before we even start to think about what “Nixonland,” the newest single released from alternative folk artist Chuck Prophet, means on a thematic level, the music alone reignites our excitement for the forthcoming new album it’s featured on, The Land That Time Forgot.
Yet “Nixonland” does have a message to tell, or at least a picture to paint, and it’s brand new video, released yesterday, does that pretty well. The video, which you can watch below, mixes old photographs and video footage of Richard Nixon and company into comic book style graphics and animations, and altogether the piece conjures the gritty, moody atmosphere of Prohpet’s music, as well as the subject it sings. With it’s quiet, folky anger, “Nixonland” brings a vibe really reminiscent to a song like Lou Reed’s “Sword of Damocles.”
Prophet, a Bay Area native since his childhood, has time and again characterized the allure of San Francisco and its surrounding areas across the many albums he’s released throughout his career. Yet The Land That Time Forgot apparently comes as an album about San Fran while being away from San Fran—being that the singer-songwriter recently was forced to move out of his hometown for upstate NY, due to rising housing prices.
This ongoing issue of gentrification is what “Nixonland” decries in part, along with a world of other issues that the rest of the new album hits. The press release for the new song hints at this, saying: ‘“Prophet has described The Land That Time Forgot as a “21st Century Exorcism” from Silicon Valley to the White House.”
The Land That Time Forgot is set to be released on August 21st via Yep Roc Records.
Chuck Prophet Official and the gang land in Nottingham and Birmingham in January 2021 featuring the new album including this damn gem!
Most of the record’s dozen songs were co-written by Prophet and klipschutz, his longtime collaborator. Together, they recall the melancholy wonder of their native Bay Area, a land that, to the acclaimed songwriters, represents the hope and despair that makes rock ‘n’ roll so timeless, even if it’s now full of “robots with ironic haircuts.” It’s a darker, more present take on Americana and all its beautiful losers.
With this announce comes a new single, “Marathon,” which is mutant rock n’ roll at its finest … full of driving motorik bass, Everly Brothers-in-space guitars and vocal harmonies courtesy of Stephanie Finch. As the album reexamines the West Coast, the music video for “Marathon” channels the dance-a-thons of the Great Depression. To Prophet, these were the first reality TV shows, and they’re not too out of place in today’s gig economy. “There’s twisted psychology to the Depression-era dance marathons,” says Prophet. “And like Wrestling or the Kardashians, it’s all rigged. But we don’t want to believe it. The Marathons blurred the line between theatre and reality.”
“Marathon” is from Chuck Prophet’s new album, The Land That Time Forgot.
From the album, The Land That Time Forgot.
The Fat Angel Sings 