Queer Narrative & Symbolism in Orville Peck’s Music Videos
“Orville Peck” is not queer country musician Orville Peck’s real name. Not many people know anything about his identity. It is known, however, that he is from South Africa and has been on several creative career paths before turning to country music, including musical theater, acting, and performing in a punk band. Now, he’s adopted the moniker Orville Peck and produces crooner country music, taking inspiration from his punk days as well as artists like Merle Haggard and Dolly Parton. His trademark is a leather mask with lengthy fringe which he wears at all times in public. His choice to cover his face is often misunderstood, however. Many people think Peck wears a mask to conceal his identity, but in reality, he uses the persona to express himself truly. In a 2020 short documentary film sponsored by Honda-Stage, Peck stated:
“I don’t think of myself as anonymous at all. It’s what I needed to do to make the kind of art that I want to make. This is just an expression of who I am deep in my heart and it allows me the freedom to be completely exposed and sincere. I guess that’s kind of the irony of what I do” (Honda-Stage).
Peck’s use of the mask and cowboy persona is easily comparable to the practice of drag among queer communities. Peck, who is gay, performs queerness and a hyper-masculine gender expression with authenticity and campness that is impossible to render without the way he presents himself. The image of a cowboy has long been associated with cultures of extreme toxic masculinity and a clear distaste for anyone who is not cisgender, heterosexual, and white. Peck reclaims part of that imagery and makes it his own. Throughout his content, Peck has embraced a flair for the dramatic, frequently implementing practices like dance and other types of performance aside from music. In 2022 he stated that “all of the kind of extra stuff I put on top of the sincerity is still coming from an authentic place — all of it is just me being myself” (Billboard.com). Drag artists operate the same way. Putting oneself into drag is entering a space of true self-expression, where one can be wholly sincere and perform one’s gender expression with absolute authenticity. Peck embodies this idea with his use of cowboy attire.
In March 2022, Orville Peck released four new music videos. The songs are titled Hexie Mountains, The Curse of The Blackened Eye, Daytona Sand, and C’mon Baby, Cry. These songs were released in Chapters 1 and 2 of his sophomore album Bronco, which then came out in its entirety in April of 2022. Peck described the album as “untamed and unaffected and unrestrained” and likened it to a wild bronco, hence the title (Vulture.com). Looking at these music videos, in particular, one begins to notice a narrative. Hexie Mountains is written as a letter from Peck to himself about struggling to accept that a relationship is going south. In a 2022 interview, Peck stated that he “was in a really bad situation relationship-wise and in [his] personal life, and was just… not at all in a good place” before writing Bronco (Billboard.com). Hexie Mountains is about his decision to take action against this slump. The music video, which premiered on YouTube on March 24, 2022, uses beautiful cinematography to narratively depict the moments leading up to this decision.
The video begins with Peck behind the wheel of a vintage car with a woman in the passenger seat. As stated, Peck is gay, but in this video, he portrays his male significant other with a female actor. This is a curious maneuver, given that in the following music video for The Curse of The Blackened Eye, the partner is represented by a male actor. Peck may have wanted to convey different emotional levels with the character by using actors of two distinct genders as well as portraying them in very feminine and masculine attire, respectively. The woman wears red and gold colors as well as two different animal prints. This kind of wardrobe suggests she has money and wants people to know it. Peck, however, is dressed in shades of gray and black, a stark contrast to the woman’s vibrant patterns. Next, in the video, the woman gets out of the car into a motel parking lot and appears frustrated with him. Peck, meanwhile, turns and looks into the distance. Due to the fringe mask covering most of his face, Peck has to rely on his eyes to be expressive. The lyrics “young man, fill yourself with dread” with a close-up of his tired and quietly unhappy eyes support the idea that Peck is the one filled with dread about being at the motel. His companion then goes alone to the motel worker to get a room, perhaps because she does not trust Peck to speak to strangers on his own for fear that he will try to wriggle free from her control. She also appears unreasonably annoyed or frustrated with the worker while they are doing their job. These scenes, located right in the first verse of the song, define the characters’ power dynamic immediately, which sets the stage for the rest of the narrative to unfold. It instantly places the woman as having instinctive control over Peck as well as everyone around him, even strangers such as the motel employee who have no real impact on their lives. This shows the extent to which the woman will go to control Peck. Next, there is a zoom-in on Peck while he lip-syncs the lyrics “Wouldn’t it be nice if I could sleep in my own bed”. This emphasizes the idea that the couple is not in a healthy spot, at least from Peck’s point of view. The technique of panning in on Peck’s face reinforces the moment of self-reflection. Additionally, there are dozens of lines of lyrics throughout the video, but Peck only sings along to a certain few. He does this to emphasize the lyric and directly tie it to what the character in the video is feeling or thinking.
The couple has no luggage or belongings with them aside from Peck’s acoustic guitar and a black briefcase that belongs to his companion. This briefcase is a major piece of physical symbolism in the video. Though the viewer never sees its contents, it is implied that Peck’s companion unhealthily values the briefcase or the symbolism within. When the couple is taking their belongings out of the car, the woman picks the briefcase up from the passenger side seat, while Peck retrieves his guitar from the trunk. This leads one to believe that the briefcase is important enough for the woman to keep it on her person. She also pushes Peck’s belongings — the guitar, which represents his love for music — into the back and out of sight, which is another instance of her desire to control his actions. Next, the pair enter the motel room, where the woman hangs up black-out curtains and closes all the blinds. She takes Peck’s guitar from him, literally grabbing his passion right out of his hands. In film, lighting plays a very important role. The room begins with daylight streaming through the windows and illuminating the space and ends with a very different and dark setting. This change from light to dark symbolizes the dark underbelly of their relationship. In this new dark and private room, she opens the briefcase and bright blue light pours out. It is unclear if there is any physical object inside the case, but metaphorically, the case represents Peck’s potential for fame through his passion for music. In a 2022 interview, Peck stated that “in a strange way, Covid… took me back to a place where I was able to just write music because I loved it and not because I felt like it was my job” (Bustle.com). Peck’s inclusion of the briefcase and the woman’s deep possession of it directly represents a relationship in which he felt that he had no artistic say over what he created anymore. In the video, she takes the guitar from his hands because she wants to control the way he exercises his passion to ensure he makes something of himself in the way that she wants. This is because she can then feed off the attention and have other needs like money and a lavish lifestyle met. While opening the briefcase, the woman looks straight into the light as though it is something divine. At her side, Peck glances at the light but looks away and then into the camera. When an actor looks directly into the camera, they are making a connection to the viewer. In this case, it is interpreted as a cry for help. In the next scene, Peck and his companion are seated in lawn chairs inside an empty below-ground pool. Peck is fully clothed and sits upright and looks very out of place in the setting. The woman casually strolls in and reclines on a chaise-style lounge chair several feet away from him while wearing clothing more appropriate for a day at the pool. The choice of setting inside an empty pool combined with his clear discomfort in being there allows for the idea that Peck feels trapped in this situation. Additionally, the direct visual contrast between Peck and the woman as well as the fact that not even their shadows touch one another shows how far apart they are from being on the same page about their relationship.
The next grouping of scenes focuses heavily on the woman’s face. There are scenes with the pair embracing and in all of them, Peck’s back is to the camera. This strategy invokes the idea that this character is uncomfortable or not fully present in the scene. Next, we see Peck and his companion lying on the motel bed. The woman appears to be sleeping. Peck gets up and enters the bathroom, where he lip-syncs to the lyrics, “Haven’t been out in so long”. The choice to have him stare into a mirror while singing along to these lyrics portrays a moment of self-reflection. He then grabs the briefcase and walks outside to the car. He is followed by the woman, who yells inaudibly and rips the case from his hands. She then storms back into the room and leaves Peck outside alone. This is followed by him lip-syncing the lyrics, “But wouldn’t it be nice if I could hold it off again”. The nature of this relationship caused him to doubt his sense of self, so almost on instinct, he wishes to bottle up his unhappiness.
He watches the woman open the case in the motel room and appear relieved. One can infer that the relief is for herself and the safety of the briefcase rather than Peck. It is at this moment that he decides he deserves better, so he gets in his car and drives away. It is important to note that he does not stop to get his guitar from the room, which is significant because it shows how sudden and desperate the realization is. The video concludes with footage of Peck driving away into the night looking taken aback by his actions.
The next video in Peck’s storyline is The Curse of The Blackened Eye. The song is about traumatic and painful memories that follow Peck around in his daily life, and it takes place after the events of the Hexie Mountains video. The Curse of The Blackened Eye opens in a diner, where Peck sits at a table. Across the room sits a man, portrayed by Norman Reedus, wearing dark gray makeup and a long black jacket. He stares Peck down but Peck does not reciprocate the eye contact. This figure, known simply as “The Curse”, is the embodiment of Peck’s memories of the abusive relationship that he recently escaped. The song’s title is a nod to this as well; “Blackened Eye” may imply physical abuse within the relationship in addition to the emotional damage, and “The Curse of” could hint that Peck felt ashamed by this abuse. In the video, the figure literally follows him around; after Peck leaves the diner, it is seen lurking behind Peck as he walks down the street, almost as naturally as a shadow. Peck’s choice to represent the memories in this way allows for creative freedom surrounding the song and permits the video to fully clarify the meaning behind the lyrics. The next scene finds Peck walking with a bellhop (played by Peck’s bassist, Kyle Edward Connolly) down the hallway of a hotel. The Curse can be seen following them a few feet behind. After leaving his significant other at the motel in the Hexie Mountains video, Peck had no place to go but another hotel while he tried to figure out his next steps. The following scene has Peck and The Curse lying side by side in a bed. Peck has replaced his trademark cowboy hat with a baseball cap, and his body language suggests that he is afraid to be alone with The Curse: to be alone with such painful memories. This wardrobe change emphasizes how disconnected Peck felt from his identity as Orville Peck. He is then seen being wrapped up by CGI thick, dark tentacles, again a representation of feeling trapped by the memories. The visual of the tentacles combined with a slimy sound effect overlaid on the song stresses how disgusted Peck feels to be mentally weighed down in this way. Despite being physically out of the relationship, the emotional toll still follows him around, as the chorus says. Peck is then seen singing along to the lyrics at a cowboy-themed children’s birthday party, yet The Curse sits at a table with a party hat askew on its head. This is another example of Peck trying to live a normal life but being plagued by his memories. Peck is then seen stiffly embracing The Curse while the camera revolves around the pair. There is a single spotlight illuminating them from above, invoking the idea that the relationship is on display or perhaps on-stage, trying to pretend that everything is okay between Peck and his mind when in reality he is struggling.
Next, as the bridge of the song begins, the framing of the video changes from a 3:4 ratio to 16:9. This choice allows for a flashback sequence in line with the song’s bridge in which Peck is seen conversing and laughing with The Curse at half-speed. The Curse is now dressed formally and no longer has dark makeup, causing him to look more human and less like a lurking ghost or shadow. This scene represents times in which Peck felt happy in the relationship.
People who have been abused for long periods of time like this will try to focus on the parts of the relationship where they found happiness, despite knowing that it was an illusion. Peck’s decision to include this scene marks a transitional period and illustrates his thought process of trying to rationalize what happened. The camera then pans out to reveal a skull sitting beside The Curse. Skulls frequently represent death or danger, and in this case, it symbolizes Peck’s realization that if the relationship had continued, he may not have been so lucky as to escape with his life. The framing then returns to 3:4 and we see Peck lip-syncing to the chorus (“It’s true, true it follows me around”) in a bare hallway filled with flashing white light. Behind him, we can see the silhouette of The Curse clawing at a partially-transparent door. Putting The Curse behind a physical barrier and reducing him to a shadow lets the viewer know that Peck begins to work through the trauma instead of letting it fill his mind. This is represented in his wardrobe as well; he is pictured wearing clothes that are more consistent with the high performance that the persona of Orville Peck demands. This includes over-the-top silk shirts and tight pants with large belt buckles as well as cowboy boots and a cowboy hat, of course. We also revisit the street and the child’s birthday party to see that The Curse is nowhere in sight. The tentacles release their grip on his body as well. The video ends with The Curse, Peck, and another man sitting at a bar. The camera pans to The Curse and he and Peck make eye contact for the first time. Peck finally addresses its presence and impact on his life. The camera then pans over to Peck and the man who is conversing with him, and then back to Peck, who realizes that The Curse is gone. He begins to reclaim himself and his identity as Orville Peck after feeling disconnected from it for so long.
These two music videos Orville Peck produced for his album Bronco tell a story of escaping an abusive relationship, but they do so much more than that. The story represents finding and presenting one’s authentic self to the world and overcoming the fear that prevented that in the past. Peck’s attention to detail and use of symbolism in his videos are just as if not more important than the lyrics and music of the songs themselves.
-
Works Cited
Daw, Stephen. “Orville Peck Was Scared of the Sophomore Slump. with ‘Bronco,’ He Became Fearless.” Billboard, 8 Apr. 2022, https://www.billboard.com/culture/pride/orville-peck-bronco-album-interview-1235055919/.
Orville Peck. The Curse of the Blackened Eye [Video]. YouTube. 11 March 2022. https://youtu.be/S8CkMRomRXs
Orville Peck. Hexie Mountains [Video]. YouTube. 24 March 2022. https://youtu.be/Z93KdVfpyMM
Rollins, Samantha. “Orville Peck Won’t Reveal His Identity — but He Will Sing Whitney Houston Karaoke.” Bustle, Bustle, 8 Apr. 2022, https://www.bustle.com/entertainment/orville-peck-on-his-identity-tour-new-album-bronco.
Turman, Katherine. “Orville Peck on Horses, Masks, and Crying While Writing Music.” Vulture, Vulture, 7 Apr. 2022, https://www.vulture.com/2022/04/orville-peck-bronco-interview.html.
