Deb Never recalls a golden era of goofy early 2000s rock videos in her bright and somewhat eerie "Ugly" video. The L.A.-based artist, signed to the WEDIDIT label, mourns the death of a relationship while it's still going on in her raw new single, letting lines like "You don't want me, I don't want you" slip out like a sigh. She later follows it up by stating "You don't want me but I need you."
The downbeat nature of the song, however, is offset by a video in thrall to big, dumb classics that lit up MTV back in the day. Think back to when Blink-182, Sum 41, and The Offspring had access to major budgets and you get the vibe. Deb Never and her pals, including Matt Champion of BROCKHAMPTON, even don the Bloodhound Gang's furry suits from the "Bad Touch" video.
Fresh from touring with Dominic Fike and Tommy Genesis this year, Deb Never explained her mindset when writing "Ugly." "You know when you fall in love for the first time and you don’t know any better but you don’t wanna leave because you’re comfortable, even though it’s a dead end relationship? That’s what ‘Ugly' is.”
Thumbnail image courtesy of Michael Washington.