Metal, Hardcore, Indie, Rock
London-based artist A.A. Williams has unveiled a captivating new video for “The Veil,” one of the most delicate and exposed moments on her third studio album “Solstice”, released June 5, 2026 via Reigning Phoenix Music. Built around piano and voice, the song strips away the record’s heavier textures to reveal an unguarded portrait of longing, perseverance and the quiet pain of accepting what cannot be changed.
Directed and filmed by Jake Owens, the accompanying film gives those emotions a dreamlike physical form. Lengths of flowing fabric rise, fall and surround Williams as she performs, creating a sense of movement suspended in time. Its restrained visual language mirrors the vulnerability of the music, allowing the smallest gestures to resonate.
A.A. Williams reflects:
“The Veil was always a bit of an outlier on Solstice, being the only stripped-back track on the record. A simple song, a song of trying your hardest, a song of yearning for change, a resignation to failure.
This video matches the song’s softness perfectly. It has a dreamlike quality that re-centres the meaning of the song for me, creating a hazy memory of a distant struggle. A gentle treatment of sorrowful moments, the delicately flowing material emphasises the vulnerability of the text with simple, quiet beauty.”
The film’s weightless appearance was achieved through an unusually tactile production process. Owens recorded Williams performing at double speed and shot at 60 frames per second so that the footage could be slowed by half while remaining synchronised with the song. Approximately 40 metres of fabric, five fans, a hair dryer and a leaf blower created the movement, with all effects captured live in camera rather than added digitally.
Owens explains:
“The concept for the video came to me the first time I heard Solstice, something about this track jumped out as having potential for a cool music video. The pace of the song informed my idea that the video should be slow motion, with lots of dramatic movement from the various fabrics.”
“Solstice” has earned widespread praise for its balance of intimacy and intensity. Metal Hammer UK called it “Her most dynamic and dramatic effort to date,” while Prog highlighted its “Post-rock flavour, building tension and intensity.” The album has also been praised by Kerrang!, Visions and Metal Hammer Germany, whose review specifically singled out “The Veil” as a piano-only song that retains the record’s darkness.
Following summer performances and appearances alongside A Perfect Circle, A.A. Williams returns to stages across the UK and Europe this winter supporting Chelsea Wolfe. The run begins November 21 in Utrecht and includes Berlin, Hamburg, Copenhagen, Oslo, Warsaw, Vienna, Paris and London, among other stops.
Full dates and tickets: https://aawilliams.music/pages/tickets
“Solstice” is available now via Reigning Phoenix Music: https://aawilliams.rpm.link/solsticePR
