Conor Oberst and Craig Wedren, filmmakers of the award-winning short documentary ALOK, share the end-title track, “Justice to a Scream,” on November 20.
Co-written and performed by Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst (he/him) and Shudder to Think’s Craig Wedren (he/him), the track features lyrics that include lines from the film and poetry from the film’s subject, internationally acclaimed nonbinary author, poet, comedian and public speaker Alok Vaid-Menon (they/them). Along with “Justice To A Scream,” ALOK also features a score by Wedren (YELLOWJACKETS) and Simón Wilson.
Watch the music video for the track, here:
“Conor Oberst was my idol growing up,” notes Vaid-Menon. “I’ve always regarded his lyricism as among the very best of contemporary poetry and it’s such a full circle moment to collaborate with him on this song. Literally a dream come true. And what a bop!”
“I am a longtime admirer of ALOK,” adds Oberst. “Their powerful writing, art and advocacy for transgender people and all people who suffer from the lunacy of ignorance and bigotry that permeates our society is inspirational. So when the opportunity to work on this song with Craig Wedren came along, I was thrilled. I am also a big time, lifelong fan of Craig—from the amazing Shudder to Think records through his various projects and solo work. He possesses a truly one of a kind musical mind and a voice as unique and iconoclastic as he is. He has also been a great and treasured friend of mine for many years. This is all to say I loved working on this project with these two incredible pioneers.”
The thought-provoking short documentary explores the limitless expression of self, challenges societal norms and inspires viewers to embrace personal freedom beyond the binaries that divide them.
As Alok says in the film: “The most controversial pronoun I have is ‘we’… And what the ‘we’ pronoun actually is insisting, is that I believe that we are all part of a shared, in common … humanity… but it’s even beyond humanity, maybe even community. And I believe that the work that I want to do in the world is to look at every single thing that gets exiled from my concept of ‘we’ and find a way to incorporate it back again.”
Look for screening of the film and more via ALOK Film.
Listen to the track here, available on all platforms.
Photo via Grandstand Media
