Exclusive Premiere: The Occult Fascination of CLAVVS’ “Sit You Down”

by Maggie McHale and Mitch Mosk

Control is an occult fascination: Primordial and instinctive, the power to manipulate people and situations is a built-in, but often shunned human quality. Instead of acting on our own Machiavellian desires, we have for centuries constructed stories of magicians and sirens who would bewitch and enchant others: Control has become a fairy tale.

Yet we remain fascinated by the possibilities: To assert dominance; to take for ourselves and do what we want. Such is the subject of CLAVVS’ new music video. “Sit You Down,” which Atwood Magazine is pleased to be premiering today, dives into that inner impulse to exact one’s power over the surrounding world. Conflating the physical with the visceral and surreal, “Sit You Down” targets the humanness of these innate desires, presenting them for what they are: Natural.

Screenshot from "Sit You Down" by CLAVVS
Screenshot from “Sit You Down” by CLAVVS

Atlanta-based indie-pop duo CLAVVS may still be relatively new to the music scene, but you would never be able to tell. Blending lead vocalist Amber Renee’s brilliant harmonies and (four-time Grammy award-winning) producer Graham Marsh’s enrapturing beats, CLAVVS utilize their inimitable musical prowess to create songs that are haunting, addictive, and sonically unique.

we do what we want when we want

“Sit You Down” presents Renee as the assertive indie pop muse, shrouded in colored smoke and — aptly — adorning her right hand in claw jewelry. Marsh, presented as Renee’s humble servant and underling, presents the juxtaposition necessary for Renee’s dominance to shine through. Mixing whimsical, existential and occult visuals with spellbinding sounds, the video feels as though it could take place in the realm of Where the Wild Things Are. The dichotomy creates a fantastical final product that harbors a seductive freshness, presenting CLAVVS as an unmistakable indie treasure.

CLAVVS © Leah Roth
CLAVVS © Leah Roth

Intoxicating visual and sonic effects oblige a mutually pithy and sagacious presentation that allows for the humanity of intrinsic desire to push to the forefront. “Sit You Down” is an orphic blend of the celestial and the congenital, and its accompanying video proves it so.

Concluding the video, Renee and Marsh are seen perched atop a rubbish pile as the masters of their domain. They have succeeded in the absurd; they have vanquished their visceral appetites. But what have they attained?

Ultimately, CLAVVS present their video for “Sit You Down” as having undeniably mastered the esoteric.

Got time and I don’t mind
Baby I’ma knock you down
And I’m sure you’ve heard it all before
You think you got it figured out

Watch: “Sit You Down” – CLAVVS

[youtube=https://youtu.be/Qb0cQU6W1M8?t=0s]

You can follow CLAVVS on FacebookTwitter and Instagram

"Sit You Down" - CLAVVS

“Sit You Down” – CLAVVS

lyrics

Got time and I don’t mind
Baby I’ma knock you down
And I’m sure you’ve heard it all before
You think you got it figured out

Got time and I don’t mind
Baby I’ma sit you down
Upload this data into you
So you know what I’m talking about

We do what we want
We do what we want when we want
We do what we want
What we want when we want

I’ma sit you down
I’ma sit you down
I’ma knock you out
I’ma knock you out
Babe I’ma sit you down
Gonna sit you down
Boy I’m gonna knock you out
Gonna knock you out

Screenshot from "Sit You Down" by CLAVVS

Screenshot from "Sit You Down" by CLAVVS
Screenshot from "Sit You Down" by CLAVVS
Screenshot from "Sit You Down" by CLAVVS
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