Bellows – “Denouement” & “What Can I Tell You About the World?”
Bellows is the folk-pop project of the Brooklyn-based musician Oliver Kalb. His most recent album, 2016’s Fist & Palm, chronicled the decline of a friendship, and in the years since we’ve heard a few one-off singles, including last year’s “Housekeeping.” Kalb preemptively released that song ahead of announcing his new album, The Rose Gardener, which will be out next month via Topshelf.
Bellows shared two singles from The Rose Gardner today titled “Denouement” and “What Can I Tell You About the World?” Both come accompanied by videos. In the first self-directed clip, Kalb paints his face bright white in order to accentuate a nosebleed, which gives the clip and overall Joker vibe. He sings “Denouement” in a series of close-up shots, giving the textured, electric guitar-driven track a claustrophobic feel.
The “What Can I Tell You About The World?” video was made by Richard Gin. It finds Kalb floating around a room playing an acoustic guitar, accompanied by some of his collaborators. Kalb says that the two songs are the centerpieces of the album, and they both represent a different polarity.
“The first is a bitter, angry song, obsessed with the past and the misdeeds of others. The other is a song about peace, and about trying to live life without passing judgment on everything you see,” Kalb says. “They’re a duo because neither tells a full story: the world is neither as messed up as it is in ‘Denouement’ nor as simple and problem-free as ‘What Can I Tell You About The World?’ but together they form a worldview: feeling out the anger it takes to acknowledge when you’ve hurt, but not allowing it to overwhelm your ability to find happiness where it comes.”
Watch the videos for both below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Housekeeping”
02 “Accidents Happen”
03 “In Silence”
04 “Rosebush”
05 “Stupidest Thing”
06 “Innocent in Ignorance”
07 “Denouement”
08 “What Can I Tell You About The World?”
09 “Gather Ye Rosebuds”
10 “The Rose Gardener”
11 “Judgment”
12 “The Tower”
13 “Count ‘Em Down”
TOUR DATES:
03/01 Albany, NY @ Chateau
03/02 Kingston, NY @ BSP
03/03 Boston, MA @ O’Brien’s#
03/07 Brooklyn, NY @ Rough Trade (Album Release)
03/08 Philadelphia, PA @ PhilaMOCA#
03/09 Washington, DC @ Comet Ping Pong#
03/10 Asheville, NC @ The Mothlight*
03/11 Nashville, TN @ DRKMTTR*
03/12 Little Rock, AR @ White Water Tavern*
03/13 Denton, TX @ J&J’s Pizza*
03/14-19 Austin, TX @ SXSW*
03/17 New Orleans, LA @ The Starlight*
03/18 Atlanta, GA @ 529*
03/19 Durham, NC @ Duke Coffeehouse*
03/20 Baltimore, MD @ Joe Squared*
* = w/ Another Michael
# = w/ Shannen Moser
The Rose Gardener is out 2/22 via Topshelf. Pre-order it here.