Local Natives - Airplanes

What this video is

Released in early 2010 as the third single from Local Natives' debut album Gorilla Manor, 'Airplanes' arrived during a fertile moment for West Coast indie rock. The album was recorded collaboratively in a shared Orange County house—the eponymous 'Gorilla Manor'—before the band relocated to Silver Lake, Los Angeles. The song addresses grief and intergenerational memory, specifically keyboardist Kelcey Ayer's…

Why it matters

Local Natives occupy a key position in the late-2000s indie folk-rock continuum, bridging the harmonic density of Fleet Foxes and Grizzly Bear with the rhythmic drive of Vampire Weekend. 'Airplanes' as a single—and its music video—documents the moment when Silver Lake indie aesthetics, shaped by…

The director

Mark Waring is a director credited by Local Natives themselves in a 2010 interview as the director of the 'Airplanes' music video. His specific background in music video and commercial direction is documented via band-sourced interview; he is distinct from…