Shopping are pleased to present the video for ‘Suddenly Gone,’ before kicking off their North American tour tomorrow night in Boston at Great Scott! The tour takes them all across the US and Canada, including stops at both Savannah Stopover and SXSW, in support of The Official Body, out last month on Fat Cat Records. A full list of dates is below.

The ‘Suddenly Gone’ video, directed by LA-based director and animator Lessa Millet, “talks about labour and resources,” says band member Rachel Aggs. “It’s about feeling used and undervalued in a relationship or, more generally, as a queer and/or a person of colour making music or art in the UK and how that can feel very draining.” She adds, “you can feel overlooked for years and then suddenly tokenized when your identity becomes buzz-worthy or fashionable.

“So much of the guitar music we love originates from roots and blues music made by and for people of colour and the same goes for dance and disco that has its roots so firmly in queer culture. We are asking people to reflect on what our cultural landscape would really look like if it weren’t for those pioneering but marginalized artists and in particular what our cities will eventually look like if queer spaces and independent gig venues continue to be forced to close.”

In creating the video, Millet says, “I went off of the energy of the song and the feeling behind it – this feeling of ‘I see what you’re doing, and I’m done being used.’ It’s optimistic and angry at the same time. In looking for images I just thought about all the instances a small group of people profit from everyone else, which way the money river flows, where does it pool. I think the magic tricks and hand shadows were a good metaphor for all the distractions that prevent us from seeing what is going on underneath.”

“It also suggests a parallel between this kind of emotional, creative draining and the terrifying environmental consequences of reckless money-grabbing corporations,” Aggs continues, “undervaluing and exploiting our natural resources and the impact of that on people living and working in more precarious parts of the world.”

Shopping
Tour Dates:
Thu. March 1 — Boston, MA @ Great Scott *
Fri. March 2 — Providence, RI @ Columbus Theatre *
Sat. March 3 — Brooklyn, NY @ Market Hotel *
Sun. March 4 — Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s *
Tue. March 6 — Washington, DC @ Union Stage *
Wed. March 7 — Asheville, NC @ Mothlight *
Thu. March 8 — Savannah, GA @ Savannah Stopover *
Fri. March 9 — Atlanta, GA @ 529 *
Sat. March 10 — New Orleans, LA @ Gasa Gasa *
Sun. March 11 — Houston, TX @ The Secret Group *
Mon. March 12 — San Antonio, TX @ Paper Tiger *
Wed. March 14 — Austin, TX @ Hotel Vegas Annex (SXSW) (11:25pm)
Thu. March 15 — Austin, TX @ Latitude 30 (SXSW) (10pm)
Fri. March 16 — El Paso, TX @ Lowbrow Palace *
Sat. March 17 — Phoenix, AZ @ Rebel Lounge *
Sun. March 18 — San Diego, CA @ Whistle Stop *
Tue. March 20 — Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room *
Wed. March 21 — Los Angeles, CA @ Resident * #
Thu. March 22 — San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop #
Fri. March 23 — Portland, OR @ Bunk Bar #
Sat. March 24 — Seattle, WA @ Vera Project #
Tue. March 27 — Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Wed. March 28 — Chicago, IL @ Beat Kitchen &
Thu. March 29 — Detroit, MI @ Marble Bar &
Fri. March 30 — Toronto, ON @ Baby G &
Sat. March 31 — Montreal, QC @ Bar Le Ritz &

* = w/ French Vanilla
# = w/ Lithics
& = w/ Tyvek