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Date: 9/5/2023
EASTHAMPTON — A labor of love 27 years in the making is set to take center stage during a multimedia event presented by The Frost Heaves and HaLeS’ at City Space’s Blue Room on Sept. 8 at 8 p.m.
The night will feature four different acts, according to Frost Heaves singer/guitarist/writer Daniel Hales, including an album release show for the band’s sixth album “You Double-Crossed My Mind” as well as a premiere of “Of Moths And Men,” a film co-created by Hales and writer/cinematographer Brion Dulac.
The movie is an absurdist noir in the vein of a Samuel Beckett or Orson Welles work, according to Hales, and contains a lot of the classic tropes of a film noir.
“There’s common men that are stuck in a tight spot, but it’s much more absurd and ridiculous than a real, true film noir,” Hales said of the film. “It’s a little more existential crisis that’s really happening.”
In an interview with Reminder Publishing, Hales said he and Dulac met at the University of Massachusetts Amherst creative writing program and took some classes together. Both were huge fans of absurdism and noir, and Dulac in particular was a cinematographer who worked as a longtime projectionist at the Pleasant Street Theater. Hales described him as a major film buff and aficionado of the film noir genre.
The two friends eventually embarked on their own absurdist noir journey in 1996 with the official inception of “Of Moths and Men.” The movie, according to Hales, was mainly shot in 1996 and 2004.
“I don’t know how much of a goal we had, we really were just enjoying the process and having fun,” Hales said of the movie’s creation.
The movie took a backseat to their lives for many years until Dulac died back in October 2022. Hales said he knew he had to finish the film in honor of his friend.
“It was a very associative and organic process to begin with,” Hales said, of the movie process. “We had always intended to finish at some point, but it had just gotten put on the back burner, so I vowed to really just focus and finish it and take all the things that were loose ends and try to tie them all up with new footage.”
The Frost Heaves’ new album, “You Double-Crossed My Mind” is very connected to the movie and Dulac, according to Hales. In fact, a couple of the songs are dedicated to Dulac, including one that commemorates their process of making the film and the inspirations associated with their friendship.
“That’s one real big vein in the album is that that sort of connection with him around film and film noir,” Hales said. “Brion was an extremely special guy and one of the funniest people I’ve met. Part of working on this film was an homage to him, but part of it is he’s just so amazing on screen. He’s a very sweet guy and a very good friend.”
The other main thematic thread of the album is the many references to Welles.
Remnants of the album’s thematic throughline can be traced back to 2012, when the band wrote a song called “Harry Lime,” in reference to the Welles character from the classic 1949 mystery “The Third Man,” and performed it during one of their frequent gigs at Pothole Pictures in Shelburne Falls; the 420-seat Memorial Hall independent theater where live, local musical acts play on stage before a film is showcased.
Hales said the track was an oddball in the band’s catalog for years until Hales wrote the “Of Moths and Men” song in honor of Dulac when he died. Hales’ mention of Joseph Cotton, an actor Welles frequently employed, meant a Welles theme was starting to form.
“Once I had two songs [referencing Welles, I was like, ‘Oh, there’s a theme,” Hales said. “The other songs came together around that theme.”
The rest of the tracks came in a burst since October, Hales said. A couple of the tracks on the album are unapologetically poppy, while a couple others are more somber and heavier. In many aspects, the vision of this album is different from past Frost Heaves work, according to Hales.
“We’ve never thematically had something that specific and certainly not something that was cinematically focused,” he said. “The vibe of this album different, as well.”
The band’s past performances have always encompassed a multifaceted approach, and this is no different. The degree to which the band is incorporating other arts is reaching a whole other level on Sept. 8, though.
The band, which consists of Hales, bassist James F Lowe, and drummer Brian DiPippo, will perform the new album during the first act of the night while clips from Welles’ films are playing in the background. The second act will be a showcase of the “Of Moths and Men” movie followed by an intermission where there will be a toast to Duclas and an opportunity for the audience to sing karaoke to a few of the songs referenced in the Welles films.
The third act will feature a more “rocking” set by The Frost Heaves and other musical guests. The fourth act will round out the night with sets from DJ SeLah and DJ FLowe.
“We’re pulling out all the stops,” Hales said.
Physical copies of the band’s album will be available at the event but Hales said listeners can also find it on Bandcamp.
The multimedia performance is part of CitySpace’s Pay It Forward program, which offers artists venue access to develop and perform bodies of works. People interested in the Sept. 8 event can purchase tickets for $5 at CitySpaceEasthampton.org.