Dan Mangan delivered an unexpected EP earlier this year with the surprise arrival of Unmake, and now the singer-songwriter has shared an accompanying clip for "Race to the Bottom" from that very release.
The track explores the dangers of nostalgia and painting the past in an unrealistically bright light, as well as the anxiety of anticipation.
"It's about us grasping for a better or simpler time, but it never existed," Mangan told American Songwriter, where the video premiered. "Either we're bummed that we missed out on it, or we're anxious that we'll miss the moment when it does come. I've always been fascinated by nostalgia. I think it's dangerous. Putting a halo on the past takes you out of the present, and it's just not realistic. It's fantasy."
The video follows a young man sprinting through the streets, while an older gentleman drives bleary-eyed down a similar, but much darker path. It was directed by Christopher Smith, and you can scroll past Mangan's upcoming tour dates to watch it right now.
Tour dates:
08/13 Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON – Jackson Triggs
08/18 Meaford, ON – Meaford Arts and Cultural Centre
11/07 New York, NY @ Webster Hall *
11/09 Washington DC @ DC9 *
11/10 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer *
11/11 Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club *
* with James Vincent McMorrow
The track explores the dangers of nostalgia and painting the past in an unrealistically bright light, as well as the anxiety of anticipation.
"It's about us grasping for a better or simpler time, but it never existed," Mangan told American Songwriter, where the video premiered. "Either we're bummed that we missed out on it, or we're anxious that we'll miss the moment when it does come. I've always been fascinated by nostalgia. I think it's dangerous. Putting a halo on the past takes you out of the present, and it's just not realistic. It's fantasy."
The video follows a young man sprinting through the streets, while an older gentleman drives bleary-eyed down a similar, but much darker path. It was directed by Christopher Smith, and you can scroll past Mangan's upcoming tour dates to watch it right now.
Tour dates:
08/13 Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON – Jackson Triggs
08/18 Meaford, ON – Meaford Arts and Cultural Centre
11/07 New York, NY @ Webster Hall *
11/09 Washington DC @ DC9 *
11/10 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer *
11/11 Boston, MA @ Paradise Rock Club *
* with James Vincent McMorrow
