Premiere: Heather Nova Goes Back to Her Roots with “Just Kids” Music Video

Released 25 years ago this fall, Heather Nova’s breakthrough album, Oyster, earned the singer-songwriter a faithful following, due in large part to her angelic soprano, memorable pop hooks, and, above all, her alternately thoughtful and visceral ruminations on love and healing. Singles like “London Rain (Nothing Heals Me Like You Do)” and “Heart and Shoulder,” from 1998’s Siren, further solidified Nova as a cult pop figure at once capable of harnessing the grit of alt-rock, the candor of folk balladry, and the sleek accessibility of Top 40 music.

Following a series of more stripped-down fare, Nova’s 10th album, Pearl, reprises the crisp, layered aesthetic of those early efforts, thanks in large part to the singer’s reunion with producer Youth (The Verve, Dido, Pink Floyd). Nova describes the album’s second single, “Just Kids,” as a celebration of the “carefree sense of open possibilities” that new love can conjure in us. “It’s a song about how love can make you feel like a kid again,” she says.

Shot in Bermuda, where Nova was born, the music video for “Just Kids” is a charmingly simple visual depiction of the song’s universal concept. Co-directed by Nova and photographer Vincent Lions, the black-and-white clip is largely composed of one long take that finds Nova lounging on the beach while Lions (Nova’s boyfriend) frolics playfully in the background in a valiant attempt to make her break.

Watch “Just Kids” below:

Pearl will be released on June 28 via Saltwater Records.

We’re committed to keeping our content free and accessible—meaning no paywalls or subscription fees—so if you like what we do, consider becoming a SLANT patron, or making a PayPal donation.