The Rad Trads Offer Up Funny, Poignant Love Lost Song Via “Thumbtack” (premiere)

The Rad Trads perform music that’s a confluence of excellent musicianship, deft writing and one wicked sense of humor, as evidenced via the group’s latest video, “Thumbtack”. This is music for the unlucky in love and recalls the legendary NRBQ at its most comically romantic and Lake Street Dive at its most self-effacing.

Michael Harlen, bassist and vocalist with the group, says, “‘Thumbtack’ is a song about love lost, in which the character is offering up various forms of self-flagellation or humiliation to win his lover back, ‘baby if you come back, prick me with a thumbtack.’ It’s essentially a humorous song but with honest, poignant moments ‘darling can’t you hear the night’s dark quiet, can’t you feel the days cold. I can feel it coming on like a riot, darling won’t you come back home.’ Both funny and sad, the song tries to capture the absurd and contradictory feelings that can surface in the breakup of a romantic relationship. The video for ‘Thumbtack’ was directed by our good friend Taylor Ashton and shot by him and Sam Graff. He set up a giant green screen behind a Citibike docking station in Red Hook and had us pedal the bikes in place while he superimposed various exotic locales behind us. The result is a playful, quirky video that reflects the tone of the song as well as the goofy good-natured-ness of the band.”

TOUR DATES

02/12/2019: Los Angeles, CA @ The Hotel Cafe

02/14/2019: Sacramento, CA @ Torch Club

02/15/2019: San Jose, CA @ The Art Boutiki (San Jose Jazz Festival)

03/09/2019: Nashville, TN @ The Basement

03/20/2019: Columbus, OH @ The Basement (w/ Bailen)

03/21/2019: Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Cafe (w/ Bailen)

03/24/2019: New Cumberland, WV @ Oak Glen (Music and Art Festival)