Singer-songwriter Chris Robley’s new album A Filament In the Wilderness of What Comes Next is the soundtrack of a man reckoning with a country that is (and has been) defined by complicated issues that require nuance just to understand, let alone solve. From current issues like the police murder of Sandra Bland, immigration, and the violence and brutality of unchecked capitalism, as well as historical events like the 1975 evacuation of Saigon, Robley’s background as an award-winning poet gives him the ability to address these issues with empathy and wit.

Today we are premiering the latest song from In the Wilderness of What Comes Next, “There’s A Bird,” which balances its serious subject matter with somewhat silly, visually stimulating video directed by his own eight year old daughter.

“THIS is what happens when you let an eight-year-old direct a music video,” Robley said. “Stinging eyes and lots of smiles. I get accused of writing depressing songs. It’s true. I’m guilty. So I thought that letting my daughter direct a video for “There’s a Bird” would lend a little… levity. I’m confident she delivered, with extra face-fulls of absurdity.”

A major impetus for the making of In the Wilderness of What Comes Next revolves around his realization that his dying father supported the Trump campaign in 2016. This surpised the songwriter, who had known his father to be a lovely, respectful, humble man – all traits that are the antithesis of Donald Trump. Ultimately, Robley finds hope in the future of America, concluding the album with the nine-minute epic “Filament.”