Dirty Projectors double down on heartbreak with “Little Bubble”

I’m not a praying man by any stretch of the imagination, but tonight, after I’ve brushed my teeth and my mom tucks me into bed, I’m going to say one for Dave Longstreth. A few months ago, Dirty Projectors broke its radio silence with “Keep Your Name,” a glitchy, gloomy ballad that saw Longstreth exploring themes of loss and isolation. Now, we have “Little Bubble,” a song that makes up for its lack of a rap verse by doubling down on heartbreak. The track premiered today with a hauntingly beautiful new video, which you can stream below.

About forty-five seconds into “Little Bubble”‘s visual, we get a striking image of Longstreth rolling out sod for himself amidst a harsh, icy landscape. It mirrors the track perfectly, but it’s also likely to resonate with anyone who finds winter to be an overall bummer of a time. When you don’t have anyone to share it with, three months of freezing temperatures and darkness can feel like, as he puts it, a “century of emptiness,” but when you do, you have a bubble to keep out the cold. If you’re one of those unfortunate enough to have that bubble pop on you, snuggle up to this track and warm your hands on its sweet, tender melodies.

Dirty Projectors still has yet to announce plans for a new album, but if these two new tracks tell us anything, it’s that this dude really, really needs a hug. In the meantime, there’s more than enough sonic detail to explore in “Little Bubble,” so get to it.