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Apr 13, 2022 By Caleb Campbell Photography by Dave Scanlon

Later this month, Ashville-based singer/songwriter Ethan Woods is set to share his new album, Burnout, coming April 29th via Whatever’s Clever. Burnout acts as a dense sound collage, weaving together strains of Appalachian folk, buzzing field recordings, and heat-scorched psychedelia. These elements enlace into a tapestry of dreamy songwriting, drenched in the summer heat and naturalist beauty.

Woods has already teased the record with a pair of singles, “Mrs. Moo and “Chirin’s Bell,” and today Woods has shared a new video for “Chirin’s Bell,” premiering with Under the Radar.

“Chirin’s Bell” is a work of haunting and ethereal craftsmanship, sporting a placid indie folk facade that steadily gives way to a menacing core. Woods’ gentle finger-picked guitar descends into an intricate string accompaniment before soaring back towards an explosive climax, as the lyrics transform from a pastoral setting into a tale of violence. The video imitates this progression, with gorgeous naturalistic scenery turning into a surreal collage of destruction and decay.

Woods says of the video, “The music video for ‘Chirin’s Bell,’ the second single off of my upcoming album Burnout, is a surrealist collage of videos I’ve taken on my iPhone throughout the years. A haunted pair of mechanical eyes hovers menacingly over videos of poodles, insects, and worms. All the while, I spin a yarn about a lamb transforming into a wolf, loosely based on the 1978 animated film Ringing Bell. The imagery is meant to be the shadow to the music video for the first single, ‘Mrs. Moo.’ Whereas that one represents the day, the music video for ‘Chirin’s Bell’ represents the night; the haunted corners of the happy house. As dark as that might sound, I think the night in the latter’s music video still maintains a sense of play and humor. More like a ghost story around a campfire than anything else. I hope you enjoy!”

Check out the song and video below. Burnout is out on April 29th via Whatever’s Clever.