Bishop Allen Shares “Why I Had To Go” Video

In just under two weeks, Bishop Allen will release their blissful new album, Lights Out (outAug. 19th on Dead Oceans). They’ve already shared singles “Start Again” and “Why I Had To Go,” along with the video for “Start Again,” which draws a map of the band’s hometown of Kingston, NY. Today, “Why I Had To Go” gets its own visual companion, focusing on the people who live in Kingston. The band invited their friends and neighbors, along with everyone who worked on the record, to a theater that’s currently being restored uptown, and asked them to hula-hoop. The video directors Chad Smith and Bishop Allen’s Justin Rice chose hula-hooping not only because the song is about (to quote the lyrics), “the endless repetition of an action,” but also because it gave people something all-consuming to focus on, which meant they weren’t self-conscious in front of the camera. The goal was to capture natural expressions of innate personality, and to do it in slow motion.

BISHOP ALLEN TOUR DATES (new dates in bold):
Sat. Aug. 16 – Kingston, NY @ Chronogram Block Party
Wed. Aug. 20 – Boston, MA @ Middle East Downstairs
Thu. Aug. 21 – Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands
Fri. Aug. 22 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
Sat. Aug. 23 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
Sun. Aug. 24 – Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506*
Mon. Aug. 25 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl*
Tue. Aug. 26 – Jacksonville, FL @ Burro Bar*
Thu. Aug. 28 – New Orleans, LA @ The Beatnik*
Fri. Aug. 29 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Chelsea Café*
Sat. Aug. 30 – Austin, TX @ Holy Mountain*
Sun. Aug. 31 – Dallas, TX @ Three Links*
Mon. Sept. 1 – Norman, OK @ Opolis*
Tue. Sept. 2 – Kansas City, MO @ Czar Bar*
Wed. Sept. 3 – St. Louis, MO @ Firebird*
Thu. Sept. 4 – Chicago, IL @ Schubas*
Sat. Sept. 6 – Louisville, KY @ Zanzabar*
Sun. Sept. 7 – Columbus, OH @ Treehouse*
Mon, Sept. 8 – Akron, OH @ Musica*
Fri. Sept. 26 – Bloomington, IN @ Back Door Bar
Sat. Sept. 27 – Champaign, IL @ Pygmalion Festival
Sun. Sept. 28 – Minneapolis, MN @ 7th Street Entry
Thu. Oct. 2 – Seattle, WA @ Lofi
Sat. Oct. 4 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios
Fri. Oct. 3 – Spokane, WA @ The Bartlett
Sun. Oct. 5 – San Francisco, CA @ Rickshaw Stop
Tue. Oct. 7 – Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Bar
Wed. Oct. 8 – Phoenix, AZ @ Crescent Ballroom
Fri. Oct. 10 – Denver, CO @ Hi Dive
Tue. Oct. 14 – Hamden, CT @ The Ballroom at Outer Space