Route 1 in Saugus has taken its share of hits lately. The famed Hilltop Steakhouse closed exactly two years ago last Tuesday, the majestic (if not actually operational) Weylu’s restaurant faced the wrecking ball last month, and over the summer it was reported that the Route 1 Miniature Golf and Batting Cages had been sold to a developer, displacing perhaps the area’s greatest icon: The orange tyrannosaurus rex statue.
Since that last news broke, many have taken selfies, pilgrimages, and more selfies with the beloved dinosaur while community officials have debated a potential new home for the endangered beast. Boston guitar-rock trio the Sun Lions, in a supportive show of animal magnetism, gave the dinosaur a starring role in their new video for “Whatever’s On Your Mind,” the title track to their recent LP that still stands as one of the best releases to come out of New England this year. Watch the clip via Vanyaland premiere below.
“The video was filmed totally home-movie style on a shoestring budget at the Route 1 Mini-Golf course,” says the Sun Lions’ guitarist/vocalist Pete Schluter. “We heard it was being shut down after this season so some rich dude could build more condos, which totally sucks. That’s when we decided to get in one last bit of late-summer American fun before this Mecca of kitsch closes forever. Consider the video a tribute to a simpler time.”
Lions and dinosaurs, roaming together in a show of solidarity.
Cinematography on the “Whatever’s On Your Mind” video was done by Ali Evans and Dan Korick, and the track was recorded by sound wizard Justin Pizzoferrato at Sonelab in Western Massachusetts.
In the words of the Sun Lions: “Long live the orange dinosaur!”
Featured photo by Greg Mironchuk