Meet Pouty, the new project of Slutever’s Rachel Gagliardi, and watch their new music video “Sad”

Pouty | Photo by Scott Troyan | courtesy of the artistWhenever anyone decides to move from balmy Los Angeles to Philadelphia right before the dead of winter, you have to question their sanity a bit. Rachel Gagliardi did just that – but she’s not totally unprepared. She got her start in Philly, after all, performing in the punk duo Slutever and then relocating to the west coast. For the trip back, she’s brought along her new project Pouty.

The has just released the music video for “Sad,” the second track off of their debut EP Take Me to Honey Island. Although the album was recorded both in Philly and in L.A., it still feels solidly West Coast. The track’s sunny vibes are similar to fellow Philly-via-L.A. transplants Girlpool, and they’re matched in the video by the equally sunny, blue skies of Los Angeles.

But in spite of the beautiful L.A. landscapes, everyone in the video is, rather appropriately, sad. We’re introduced to a number of whimsical, somber characters, ranging from “Sad Cult Girl” to “Sad Vintage Girl.” Gagliardi’s vocals have a charming sassy character, but they obscure the singer’s emotional turmoil, which comes to the fore during the chorus as she sings with disdain, “And all I ever wanted / is disappearing now.”

With this one statement, Gagliardi makes it clear that the palm trees and sundresses of Los Angeles don’t necessarily equate to happiness – sometimes they can have the opposite effect. Indeed, on “Moody,” Gagliardi finally reveals why she’s left California: “They call it the best coast / but so far it hates us / There’s so much sun and shine / all I see is darkness.”

Check out the video for “Sad” below. Take Me To Honey Island is to be released in February 2016, but you can stream the album’s tracks for free via Bandcamp. You can also catch Pouty live on January 2nd at The Goldilocks Gallery, or on the 5th at The Pharmacy.