Today Americana-UK premiered a first glimpse, a video, from the Portable Herman Dune.
BLACK DOG.
This is it. Just voice and guitar.
Black Dog is a love song, a ghost story, a fantastic tale on a suburban night such as the winters have to offer in San Pedro, with a cold moon rising through the wires of the Vincent Thomas Bridge, a marine fog coming into the late-night harbor, and animals howling at passing trucks. The recording is a simple set of microphones in a studio built with redwood, where boots can be heard stomping a beat, structuring the pace for agile guitar picking and raspy singing. The song represents what Ivar meant to find with The Portable Herman Dune, a first honest take, with flaws and surprises, where the melody lands where the guitar leads it and the lyrics are more spoken than recited. The song is a vision in a vignette, a dream in a breath, and a bittersweet ode to Desire.
The Video for BLACK DOG shows the actual setting of the recording, with the microphones still in place from the session. It was directed by Ivar’s partner in life, Mayon, who also sings in The Portable Herman Dune on several songs. The footage is meant to be as raw as the song, with a dark and poetic film quality to reflect the lyrics.
The album The Portable Herman Dune - Vol. 1 is scheduled for a late September release.
Herman Dune will tour Europe in October/November, see all dates here
Follow Herman Dune at
facebook / twitter / instagram / spotify
David-Ivar’s daily comic strips @yayathonman