Just a minute into hearing his voice I knew I was listening to a unique and astonishing talent. Adam Torres' voice is high, yearning and captivating. "Juniper Arms" is the lead-off track to his first record in a decade and for the few fanatics that fell in love with the 2006 album Nostra Nova, this is the followup to a self-released cult classic. The song is an homage to Albuquerque, N.M., where Adam was born, and to the landscape of his current residence of Austin, Texas. Adam Torres told me via email that "The main character in the video is a gardener in an unforgiving terrain that receives the aid of spirits (dancers) to help make juniper trees grow."
The dancers in the video, Oren Porterfield and Jordan Moser, met working together for Ballet Austin. They told me that their interpretation of the song is that it represents the "carrying of one another's burdens and the concept of personal ritual." They said that the "collaboration was an intuitive one, between director, musician and dancers. We felt free to improv and most of the shots in the finished product are expressions we came to on the spot. Adam is a gentle soul and in the dancing we hoped to add depth to the experience of the song rather than drown out his music with flashy movement. We wanted it to feel simple, organic, humanistic." The video was directed by Brian Wiebe.
Adam's album Pearls To Swine comes out Sept. 9 on Fat Possum.
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