Los Angeles shoegaze/folk-rock act Coma Girls have officially announced the release of their new album, No Umbrella For Star Flower, due out Sept. 2 via Baby Robot Records, and its first single and accompanying music video, “Knife,” a nostalgia tinged excursion where one reassesses moments in their life to make sense of where they are now and who they used to be.
“Knife” combines intimate lyrics with a heavy production that layers distorted and blown out elements. Akin to alt-rock staples such as Bright Eyes, Spoon and Beck, “Knife” is a combination of strong lyrical ability, instrumentation and engineering know-how.
The single focuses on an inner battle, or rather, a reflection on all the past battles waged within oneself over the years. Coming out of these internal wars a better person, but still with some battle scars and healing left to do, Chris Spino, the creative force behind Coma Girls, shares his experience in a raw and unfiltered way.
The song’s music video features Spino meandering around Echo Park, particularly around the park’s lake, seemingly contemplating life and occasionally holding/admiring an engagement ring. Spino stays at the park late into the night where he is suddenly attacked by a masked figure who at the end of the video, is revealed to be Spino himself; the heavy, yet ambiguous symbolism adding more tension to the song. Speaking about the music video on social media, Spino notes how it is a combination of his journey to sobriety and a reflection on the time he spent being homeless when he first moved to LA.
Since Spino formed Coma Girls more than a decade ago the moniker has encompassed numerous iterations from being a solo project, a band, a rotating cast of studio musicians and now, a two-man collaboration between Spino and producer Christian Paul Philippe who produced the entirety of No Umbrella For Star Flower.
Together, the two worked to produce a strong piece of work, varied in texture, sound and containing highly personal themes including those that touch on addiction, love, depression and more.
“This record was my one escape, the one thing that kept me from going off the rails,” says Spino. “It’s a pandemic record, a relapse record, a break-up record, and a recovery record. This was the thing that was keeping me sane.”
Words: Patti Sanchez
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