Ang Bocca's "How Long" Music Video Puts a Dry Twist on Isolation

Philadelphia singer/songwriter Ang Bocca dropped a surprise stay-at-home music video for her upcoming single, “How Long.” In low-key celebration of her birthday and director Sarah Puleo’s half birthday, it emphasizes those moments of isolation where you don’t realize you’re lonely until you’re fully immersed in the solitude.

Produced, arranged, and mixed by Will Brown (he and Bocca worked together on his most recent single) and mastered by Michael Cumming (Trap Rabbit, Sophie Coran), the song itself is a perfect blend of explorative soul and indie with some slight hints of country in the guitar tones. Bocca’s vocals are gripping and earnest and demand attention no matter what direction or dynamic she propels them toward. With just enough rasp to slate herself as a lounge singer, Bocca’s theatrical persona is still fully evident in this video. This is Bocca and Puleo’s attempt at lightening a universally heavy time and making the most out of postponing celebrations that aren’t meant to be spent alone.

While the visuals directly parallel the state of Bocca’s immediate present - celebrating a birthday while stuck under quarantine when all she wants is to be surrounded by people she loves - it also speaks to the bigger picture of this global issue we’re all facing. The universality of spending time with yourself, especially right now, isn’t always easy. The video flips between moments of humor and moments of deep sincerity in order to emphasize the fact that this really isn’t all bad, but it’s also important to reconcile with the fact that it’s okay to not feel okay with this situation.

Bocca says this video is dedicated to anyone who has to work with what they have at home at the moment, which is especially relevant to artists right now. All through her set are previously-closeted Christmas and Halloween decorations, costumes, and even a vintage exercise bike. Though scenes of Bocca decked out in pajamas and a Jason mask while getting in a workout-for-one are definite comic reliefs, they don’t discredit the more poignant instances of Bocca singing herself Happy Birthday when isolation becomes heavy.

I give Bocca and other artists who are getting extra creative with their time and releases a lot of credit right now. With the excessive downtime it’s easy to feel the pressure to perform, but you don’t have to come out of this isolation period with the next “Abbey Road.” You just have to survive it and, as Bocca is doing, DIY it to a level where you feel comfortable in your own creative space.

“How Long” drops next month, but until then you can watch the video below and find some comfort in the fact that we’re all dealing with this thing the same way.