afropunkfest 2012 band inky jack gets lost in la in their newest video “red for days” #soundcheck

Inky Jack killed it this summer at the Afropunk Festival and at the 2012 Battle of the Bands with their sound like melted Depeche Mode. They’re back with their latest single “Red For Days.”

The track trades the final frontier of “Space Oddity” for the never ending urban sprawl of Los Angeles. Combining crushing guitars, soulful vocals, and spaced-out synths, singer Kwame paints a picture of that moment when a night out in LA changes from fun and exciting to totally disorienting and maybe hopeless. (If you’ve ever been to LA you know exactly what this feels like. If not, just listen to the song, you’re not really missing anything…) Eyes bloodshot for days, and undecided if you can find your way back to reality or—more to the point—if you’d want to.
The video (directed by Ron Brody) creates that same atmosphere of disorientation and confusion. It’s beautifully shot, strange, and surreal. Treading that fine line between where hope and hopelessness meet. You know, kinda like Los Angeles itself.

– Words by Nathan Leigh