The brainchild of singer-songwriter Michelle Birsky, Birch took shape during a songwriting sojourn in Vermont in the summer of 2014. A year later the project has expanded to a proper band, a debut EP is on the way, and best of all, there’s a fantastic, stylish new video for the contagious track “Halfway” that shows just how well-rounded Birsky’s brand of indie rock is.
“Halfway is a song about the duality of the mind and the inner turmoil we humans feel between how we present ourselves to the world versus our experience within our own bodies,” Birsky says. “I wanted to reflect this idea by creating a mystical narrative about a conservative, unsatisfied woman who is taken on a journey by her imaginary “alter ego”. Her alter ego is the leader of a cult of dancers who seduce the woman into succumbing to their way of life. Ultimately the video is about giving in to the dark side of your personality and allowing yourself to go beyond the ego.
“Because I wanted to create a strong duality between conservatism (the ego) and liberation (the alter ego) choreographer Sarah Lass and I created the original dance movements by looking up Vogue covers from the 1950s. We took the traditionally chic poses that these women took on the covers and demented them into rigid, convulsive movements.”
Learn more about Birch here.