Dallas alt-pop trio little image have released their stunning debut album, SELF TITLED today via Hollywood Records. In celebration of the record’s release, the band unveiled the cinematic video directed by Sawyer Skipper for their latest single, “RUNWAY.” It’s an inherently simple concept of an open room with a focus on the band, in their signature painted-over suits, working and reacting together on a long red carpet. The video’s trippy cinematography and playful editing mimic the song’s eerie synths and vocal distortions leading into a cathartic celebration of tearing up the carpet, ripping up the pressure that comes from constant gazes of critics.
On the release, the band says, “The runway music video pokes at the simple yet important meaning into our record ‘SELF TITLED’. With it being the final single from the album, we wanted it to feel celebratory but also intentional. The idea of a blown up runway for us feels like the culture we are trying to create in this band and music. The reason we do this is to bring people together and not single ourselves out to be watched like hawks. The music industry can be like an intense, blinding light that never goes away. With the runway video, we found a way to get away from all that and be ourselves.”
SELF TITLED, produced in partnership with Chad Copelin (Sufjan Stevens, 5 Seconds Of Summer) includes previously released, fan-favorite tracks, “LUNGS BURN,” “WORTH IT,” “EGO,” “BLUE,” and the punchy declaration of love, “OUT OF MY MIND.” The latter premiered on Sirius XM’s Alt Nation, was recently featured in an ad running on Hulu, and is currently #17 on Alternative Airplay. This year, the band was also added to iHeart’s premiere breaking artist program On The Verge – ALT. The group is currently receiving nearly half a million streams every week.
little image morphed from a group of perpetually online suburban teens who were obsessed with underground indie rock and had no idea what they wanted to be into the tight-knit outfit you see today. Made up of Jackson Simmons (vocals/guitar), Brandon Walters (bass/synth) and Troy Bruner (drums), the trio truly blossomed during 2020’s lockdown.
SELF TITLED doesn’t lack in memorable moments: From the hip-hop groove of “BALLET” to the electro-dance break in “WORTH IT” to the acoustic softness of “MAKEUP,” the album sonically delivers the goods. The M83-esque indie-dance number “LUNGS BURN” is a diamond in a sea of gems; the double-meaning lyrics of “OUT OF MY MIND,” a love song which Simmons describes as being about both their individual partners as well as their relationship as a band, has the potential to speak to millions of people. Then there’s the more guitar-oriented vibe of “BLUE,” a song spawned out of the past few years of political strife in America, described by Bruner as “a very special song to all of us.”
The result, SELF TITLED, is more than just a collection of 13 songs — it’s an actual album, deliberately sequenced to tell a story of self-doubt, self-reflection and eventually, self-love. But while the album is a document of its three members’ lives to this point, little image hopes to use it to connect with people across the globe.