Michael Ragen reunites with Portugal. The Man with this enigmatic promo for Doubt - a fever dream shot on a frozen lake in Alaska, involving swordplay, snowboarding, military helicopters and a burning piano.It's the first of three new videos by director/DoP Ragen to promote the artist's latest album, Chris Black Changed My Life, and was filmed in December 2022 with a skeleton crew in the band's home state.For Ragen, its also the latest work in a long association with John Gourley (frontman of Portugal) that goes back more than a decade - including the 13 minute Sleep Forever/Got It All - also set in the wilds of wintry Alaska.The Doubt video features a Conan-inspired kata, snowmobiles and a Black Stealth helicopter, mingling to create an atmospheric, sub-zero daydream. Sat at a piano whilst the action unfolds around him, Gourley is the glue that binds the concept together. And he keeps his cool - pun intended - whilst fires and violence erupt around him.
Rob Ulitski - 12th Sept 2023