Trivial Shields has released a new music video for “Rip-Off Angel” filmed entirely inside Bamonte’s, the historic Italian restaurant in Williamsburg that has operated continuously since 1900. The video transforms the century-old dining room into a 1970s mob film setting, featuring ventriloquist performances and an ensemble cast of Brooklyn artists.
Christian Carpenter, the musician behind Trivial Shields, spent weeks in January frequenting Bamonte’s at the end of lunch service, hoping to connect with ownership about using the space. On his third visit, he met Lisa Bamonte, who along with her two sisters represents the third generation to own and operate the restaurant. Bamonte, who lives above the restaurant, agreed to let the crew film on a Monday when the establishment is closed.
“I had a fantasy of shooting a music video for a specific song at this iconic Italian restaurant hold-out next to the BQE,” Carpenter wrote in his announcement of the video’s release. The project came together after he reconnected with Forest Erwin, a director of photography who has lived in New York since age 18 and owns a production company and equipment rental service in the city.
Erwin volunteered to shoot the video for free and encouraged Carpenter to simply ask the restaurant’s proprietors for permission. The video features a collaborative approach typical of independent Brooklyn productions, with friends and colleagues contributing their talents without payment.
Melanie Drew Chambers, Carpenter’s former bandmate, handled production design and was “instrumental in pulling this off,” according to Carpenter. The video features Sarah E. Goldstone and Jake Lamarca, who brought his ventriloquist dummy Louie to the shoot. The cast also includes Katie Battistoni, Anna Fox Rochinski, Nick Baker, Katy Pinke, Ali Fenwick, David Axell, Rory O’Connor, and Brama Sukarma.
The production faced technical challenges when Erwin forgot to bring the audio accessory necessary to record sound. This forced Carpenter to edit the entire music video without any sound source to sync to the original recording. “I had to scrub frame by frame to match me lip-syncing the lyrics to the audio recording of the song, it was a painstakingly tedious but ultimately extremely rewarding experience,” Carpenter explained.
Post-production involved collaboration with Brooklyn-based professionals. Alex La Liberte of Otium provided color grading that “expertly places the video into the sleazy 70’s mob-film we had envisioned,” while VFX artist Ben Smith morphed the restaurant’s exterior awning to read “Trivial’s Restaurant.” Dana Akashi handled makeup for the shoot.
Bamonte’s, located next to the Brooklyn-Queens Expressway, represents one of Williamsburg’s longest-operating businesses. The restaurant has maintained continuous operation through the neighborhood’s transformation from industrial area to cultural hub. The Bamonte sisters’ willingness to open their historic space to local artists reflects the ongoing relationship between established businesses and the creative community in contemporary Williamsburg.
The “Rip-Off Angel” video is available on YouTube, Spotify, and Bandcamp, with the song available for purchase and streaming across multiple platforms.
Featured image: Courtesy of Trivial Shields
