TJ WEST Video Premiere: Alias Means “Things I Can’t Explain”

TJ WEST Video Premiere: Alias Means “Things I Can’t Explain”

By Kim Grant

Alias Means has been a figure on the Los Angeles Americana/country/bluegrass music scene for many years. His latest record, Light Matter showcases Means’ versatility for instruments along with his ability to move through the genres with ease.

“For the music video, I chose the song, ‘Things I Can’t Explain,’” said Means. “When I wrote the song, it was an adventure and a reminder of putting lyrics and music to a brush with death I had some time back. I thought it would complete the journey to add a visual element to the song, to see what we could print through the eyes to the mind.”

Enlisting the help of director, Sandra Powers, Means says that he chose her because of her keen eye for the beautiful and bizarre. A rough blueprint for the video became a strict call sheet and shot list, which was subsequently tossed aside when the cameras started rolling. Both Powers and Means took a pass at the edit and wound up with this collaborative vision.

“The video was shot in the house where I grew up,” said the musician, “It’s the house that my Dad built with his hardworking hands—elements of the Frontier in the modern City of Angels. My Grandmother painted the oil paintings hanging on the walls of the interior shots. It’s a special place and it added another layer of passion to the project. The whole experience hits wonderfully close to home.”

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