Ought tackle gender identity in their new “Desire” video
Ought have just shared the new video for “Desire,” from their new album Room Inside the World, released last month via Merge. The clip opens on a shot of a snowy junkyard stacked with cars, and cuts to shots of the band performing while following a central protagonist, who undergoes a sort of transformation late in the video.
It was directed by Heather Rappard, who had this to say about the video: “Desire” as a song has a real triumphant quality and masculine energy; I wanted to take this and subvert it and create a video that focused more on internal desire. Something that was important to me was that the video feel cathartic and positive; I’ve seen a lot of videos that take on ideas around gender that have characters being assaulted, or just exoticized. I wanted this character to have a full life but be most empowered, happiest, and at peace with himself when he’s on stage at the end.”
Watch the Ought “Desire” video below.