A few months ago, we raved about singer/songwriter/horror enthusiast Nicole Atkins and her latest album, the dark Southern Gothic mood piece MONDO AMORE. Now she has some more video to share with us.

At the time of the original item, Nicole had approached us, wanting to give a way a few copies of her album and DVDs of her three favorite horror films, SUSPIRIA, NIGHT OF THE HUNTER and THE SHINING. I thought it was an ingenious bid to help flesh out—and perhaps spell out—the driving aesthetics behind her music, tunes that blend the melancholy evil of vintage Nick Cave, the sultry blues rock of PJ Harvey and the atmosphere of Mogwai (and the country shock of Johnny Cash, and the…etc.; you get it…lots of influences here, worn on her sleeve). After watching the creepy, minimalist video for “Vultures” (embedded in that story), I was fascinated, and after actually spinning the album more times than my limited intellect can tally, I was officially a fan.

But after seeing the three brilliant video vignettes below, portions of her MONDO AMORE songs set to dark, eerie, surreal visual storytelling, I may be a bit obsessed…

Rare is the artist who can create mystery and allusion with a simple palette, and these sparse, stylized mini-clips help propel the music and create a dark, ominous cinematic landscape for Atkins to reside in.

Forget the guys with the blood and skulls who oversell their dark leanings; this is the pop-music equivalent of one of my favorite horror movies, THE WICKER MAN. No, not that Nicolas Cage one, dopey—the real one…elegant, and yet somehow gently depraved.

Anyway, have a look at those clips…

“Dark Magic in Your Eyes”—Vignette #1

“And What I Wouldn’t Do”—Vignette #2

“Metal and Memories”—Vignette #3

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