Exclusive Video Premiere: ‘Running Red Lights,’ The Postelles

ABOVE: THE POSTELLES (LEFT TO RIGHT: DAVID DARGAHI, DANIEL BALK, JOHN SPEYER, AND BILLY CADDEN). PHOTO COURTESY OF HARPER SMITH.

“We’ve been in all of our previous videos, so we thought people might be sick of us at this point,” explains Daniel Balk, lead singer of The Postelles. The New York quartet is notably absent from the new video for “Running Red Lights,” the first single off of their sophomore album, which is due out in 2013.

Instead, the video focuses on an attractive group of 20-something friends, the sort of which you might find cavorting in an Abercrombie & Fitch Catalogue, wandering around Big Bear, California. They splash together in the water, drink a few beers, and chortle around a campfire. Much like the jaunty rhythm of the song, it is all very light-hearted. You begin to notice, however, some inappropriately lingering glances between the protagonist, whom we have decided to name Oliver, and his best friend’s lady-love. We don’t entirely blame Oliver; the object of his affection, whom we shall name Hester, is a skinny brunette with enviable bone structure and a Cindy Crawford mole, but it’s clearly an ill-advised idea, and Oliver’s determined to take it to the limit. “He is indeed ‘Running Red Lights’ with his best friend’s girl,” Balk affirms. “The idea is the girlfriend is definitely open to the idea as well… I mean, the guy is pretty fucking handsome,” comments the director Gus Black, who is also a musician himself. “At the end of the day, they realized that timing is everything. Yes, it could happen… but not now,” he continues.

As the video progresses, Oliver finds Hester away from the crowd on the corner of the beach. The sexual tension rapidly rises, there’s a beat, and it seems as though the two might kiss, but instead they break into laughter. Crisis avoided. Good on you, Oliver and Hester; don’t betray a friend!

FOR MORE ON THE POSTELLES, VISIT THEIR WEBSITE.