Just in time for the Halloween season, a pair of locally connected bands have out new music videos that are engaging, energetic and a tad disturbing.

First up is Little War Twins with its new video for “Mother Pulls.”

The song clips at an odd, anxiety–raising tempo, largely courtesy of drummer Trick, and singer-guitarist Gaetana Brown wails like a banshee, something primal being unleashed in her voice. And yet, it's a cathartic song, and the video captures it with rapid-fire cuts of surreal-filtered imagery, most memorably of Brown caked in mud. In the end, the song transcends being a pat environmental message by pointing toward a disconnect that runs deeper, a sense of not just being out of touch with the planet, but also of being out of touch with our own natures. It's a big topic to scratch at, but Little War Twins — which is performing Nov. 14 at Electric Haze in Worcester — pulls it off with a panache and stylishness that's almost unsettling. Brown leaves you wondering what happens when the screaming ends.

Likewise, local metal favorite River Neva has a new video for its song “Night of the Long Knives,” and while unsettling imagery and frenetic, demonic caterwaul might not be atypical of a metal band, it's used here to great effect. Still, it should be noted that the depictions of people being kidnapped at gunpoint and mysterious chemicals being injected into drinks may be a trigger for some, although really, it's handled with surprisingly good taste, and even maintains something of a narrative.

The song itself is a screacher, moving forward with unrelenting force, with Trey Holton's vocals taking on an inhuman quality. The whole thing is a blistering bit of rage set to music, but somehow manages to maintain its listenability amid the cacophony. Which is a pretty good trick.
In all, it's always great to see local musicians going the extra mile to make videos that aren't just clips of themselves playing at a local club, and these two bands both succeed in taking the songs at their hearts and transforming them into something more. (Victor D. Infante)