Comprised of Russ Flynn and Alexandra Stewart, the Brooklyn-based duo ACES craft a painstakingly meticulous sound that pairs Flynn’s sparse, shimmering and atmospheric production with Stewart’s tender and breathy vocals and soaring, anthemic hooks. As you’ll hear on the duo’s latest single “What Do You Think They’ll Say About Me,” the duo’s sound manages to evoke evokes sunset drives, slow-burning romance and of wisps of smoke gently dissipating into the ether— but just underneath the surface the song possesses an achingly desperate vulnerability and longing.
The recently released video for “What Do You Think They’ll Say About Me” features a concept that would been all too familiar for anyone who grew up watching MTV in the 80s — shot in extreme closeups to create a blurry, distorted effect and at weird angles with gentle fades, the video features the duo performing the song in a darkened room. In some way, the bulk of the video employs a spectral, dream like quality and logic, as in some way it suggests that the the video’s protagonist has to confront something about herself — that is before we see the protagonist seemingly awakened from her reverie and answers the phone, perhaps in anticipation that the person she so desires is on the other line.
