Bay Area indie / Midwest emo band DAMPER are back with their newest single The Longest Hallway via Old Press Records, and today we’re stoked to give you the first airing of the music video above.
“The Longest Hallway,” reflects the bizarre liminal space that my co-teacher and I occupied before fully switching from virtual learning back to in-person learning in 2020.” – explains the band’s singer-songwriter Thom.
“Our boss had asked us to return to work but only on select days to avoid mingling with other staff–yet there still were no students. My co-teacher and I spent the latter part of the summer sitting in this empty classroom all day, just trying to keep busy by assembling work packets between Zoom lessons so it’s intentionally written in 60 BPM to reflect the slow passage of time. When I first entered the field, I had an idealized vision of my role in education but, over the course of that year, it began to deteriorate to the point that I had to start making oaths for myself like the last line of the song: “Even if it takes a toll / I won’t let them go.” Although it describes a very specific set of circumstances, I hope that others will relate to the description of the profoundly awkward experience of slowly coming out of quarantine and trying to reassert one’s sense of meaning.”
Lyrics:
“the longest hallway
is the one i walk each tuesday
to an empty classroom
shrouded in morning gloom
of all things
i miss their voices
filling the air
with nonsense
’cause i can’t think in this silence
so out of place
i might as well be in outer space
drifting aimlessly
but i will always
keep on trying
even if it takes a toll
i won’t let them go”
