Although Lizzie Powell wasn’t among the cadre of mid-’10s indie rockers invited by David Lynch to take the stage at the famed fictional Roadhouse venue for Twin Peaks: The Return (in their defense, Land of Talk had just returned from a seven-year hiatus when the series hit the air), that doesn’t mean they can’t inhabit the cult show’s distinct universe. The latest single from their forthcoming fifth LP Performances feels like Twin Peaks fan-fic with the ominously proggy seven-minute instrumental jam “Pwintiques” (sound it out) echoing the convoluted teenage emotions that fuel that show without directly riffing on Angelo Badalamenti’s iconic score.
According to Powell, the track came together from a minute-long riff they’d demoed before engineer Rena Kozak and multi-instrumentalist Laurie Torres helped workshop it into its final form. “I remember giving Laurie so many drum references like Fugazi, Tortoise, and Trans Am, and she kept on nailing it,” Powell recalls, noting that they take to the kit themself alongside Torres for the last three minutes of the track. “I loved all these bands when I was younger, so this felt like a return or at least a tip of the hat to my teenage self. You can get lost along the way sometimes, so it was nice to go back to my roots.”
Meanwhile, the video for the single pays explicit homage to Twin Peaks, as it invokes the red glow of the Bang Bang Bar sign while recreating one of the original series’ most divisive moments. “I’ve always loved the aesthetic of Twin Peaks, which is at once campy, creepy, and scenic,” director Ana-Maria Espino Trudel shares. “I wanted to recreate some of these atmospheres by playing with colors, lighting, and effects to create a sense of magic and otherworldliness. We were excited to get to riff on the idea of queering Twin Peaks with a nod to James and Donna played by Felicity DeCarle and her girlfriend Éléa Saunier. Lizzie’s enigmatic presence was a perfect counterweight to the cheesy love scene.”
Check out the video below, and pre-order Performances before it arrives October 13 via Land of Talk’s longtime home of Saddle Creek here.
