Joshua Winstead
Catching up with Joshua Winstead; press photo.
Joshua Winstead released his debut solo album MMXX (the MM representing Malcolm X & Martin Luther King Jr. with the two X’s symbolic for life & death representations according to Winstead) earlier this summer, and today we bring you all the sunny & sentimental musings in stunning Super8 with the Raviv Ullman video for “A Poison Cup”. The Metric bassist delves into the modern pop consciousness that bridges the twentieth century song composition methods with a twenty-first century lens that leads emotion-guided music into the expanses of the current era. Winstead proves to posses a gift that hearkens to the William DeVaughn school of smooth & certain delivery where the fervent & finessed facets of the songwriting are conveyed in earnest.
The warm film textures found on “A Poison Cup” follows Joshua & spouse spending a day strolling all around NYC. From the heat & gentle beat of the sidewalks, backdrops of the busy streets, & spectacles of subway acrobatics; the two take to the day with the thrill & spirit like there is no tomorrow. Perusing through Chinatown, sharing ice cream, & lychees in the park—the Winsteads play out their own romantic epic while posing with statues, taking over a playground, celebrating their own near, dear & sincere dynamic displayed along with Joshua’s own Shakespearean love ballad / pop sonnets. “Romeo had Juliet but their love got lost, enmity in between the families just got to stop…” The Romeo & Juliet tragedy is framed like a cautionary tale while the focus is placed on the intimate abandon found between the star-crossed lovers in question as the Elizabethan play is updated with a more enlightened epilogue that errs on the side of the upbeat postword of happily ever after.
In Joshua’s own words on the single & video:
The song “A Poison Cup” was inspired by my relationship with my wife. It is rare that we find someone who can truly bring out our better side. While the song is not directly about us, her presence in my life helped me to envision how this dynamic can be a powerful influence and without it how many people’s lives spiral out of control. She is also in the video with me. The video is directed by my friend Raviv Ullman and talented young actor who is making his way into the directing world as well.
Joshua Winstead’s solo album debut MMXX is available now.
