Waterparks' release blatantly dark "Just Kidding" off 'Greatest Hits'
It’s Waterparks Wednesday, and the group have released “Just Kidding,” the seventh track on their forthcoming album, Greatest Hits. Directed by vocalist Awsten Knight and creative collaborator Jawn Rocha, “Just Kidding” feels like an intimate glimpse into Knight’s inner psyche.
The video opens with Knight in a white room by himself, playing guitar in his socks and jeans. The lyrics ring, “I wish I was dead sometimes so I wouldn’t have to check my phone/I wish I was dead sometimes so I could spend a day alone.” At the 25-second mark, Knight lays down his guitar and disorientedly sings directly to the camera. Seemingly exhausted by the experience, the camera loses focus, highlighting a blurry image of Knight picking up his guitar again before he resumes playing.
While the simplicity of the video may feel underrated, Rocha and Knight’s conscious decision to never fully have the vocalist’s face in focus reflects the darkness of the track. The video cuts to an all-black screen at the 2:28-minute mark before hearing a robotic, female voice say, “And repeat.” The last 20 seconds of the video are nothing but darkness and silence before it officially comes to a close.
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In the latest Waterparks Alternative Press cover interview, Knight revealed to his podcast co-host Travis Riddle that “Just Kidding” is the darkest song on the album.
“This album was obviously made when I was very stuck at home, but the three songs that were made before that were done right before we left for the FANDOM tour,” Knight says. “It was ‘Just Kidding,’ ‘Secret Life’ and ‘Crying Over It All.’ But the thing is, it works really fucking well, and I made sure because I’m not going to throw songs in just for the fuck of it, but it plays so well into the dream thing because ‘Just Kidding’ is probably the most blatantly dark part of the album.”
You can watch the full video for “Just Kidding” below.
Ahead of Greatest Hits release May 21 via 300 Entertainment, Waterparks have released four official videos to coincide with the album, including “Lowkey As Hell,” “Snow Globe,” “You’d Be Paranoid Too (If Everyone Was Out To Get You)” and now “Just Kidding.” The band also performed the new track “Numb” on their Anti Tour Veeps performance in April.
While touring is still on pause due to COVID-19 restrictions and safety protocols, Waterparks will be commemorating the release of Greatest Hits with a special livestream performance as part of The Wiltern Livestream Series June 4. You can get tickets for the event here.
Last week, the band also released the full tracklist for their upcoming LP. Spanning 17 tracks, Greatest Hits will mark the group’s longest body of work to date. You can see the full tracklist below.
GREATEST HITS MAY 21
WATERPARKS ALBUM 4 TRACK LIST
PRE-ORDER LINK IN REPLIES
THANKS FOR ALL THE LOVE SO FAR pic.twitter.com/TiZkNkDc25
— DANNY FANDOM (@awsten) May 6, 2021
Waterparks Greatest Hits tracklist:
- “Greatest Hits”
- “Fuzzy”
- “Lowkey As Hell”
- “Numb”
- “Violet!”
- “Snow Globe”
- “Just Kidding”
- “The Secret Life Of Me”
- “American Graffiti”
- “You’d Be Paranoid Too (If Everyone Was Out To Get You)”
- “Fruit Roll Ups”
- “LIKE IT”
- “Gladiator (Interlude)”
- “Magnetic”
- “Crying Over It All”
- “Ice Bath”
- “See You In The Future.”
What song are you most looking forward to hearing off Waterparks’ forthcoming album? Let us know in the comments below.
