Photo credit: Kelsey Pecchia

We all need a place to go when the world feels heavy.

For LA-based indie pop artist Sloan Golden, that place has always been her car — it has been a place for hard conversations, as well as a refuge where she has collected her thoughts. She translates these real-world experiences into art in her new single and video, “Parking Lot.”

“My seventeen-year-old self, who sat alone in her car in the Best Buy parking lot having a meltdown, wouldn’t believe that all that pain she felt might’ve been worth something,” Golden said.

“Parking Lot” — co-written with Jensen McRae and produced by acclaimed indie rock musician, Runnner (Skullcrusher) — was crafted to represent “the sonic encapsulation of what an anxiety attack feels like.” Golden’s aim was to help listeners connect to the release via their own similar experiences.

“I intentionally never mentioned the title of the song within the lyrics, as I want listeners to be able to place themselves in their own ‘parking lots’ without me ever having to say it,” Golden said.

The video expands on this notion. Directed by Madi Boll, the cinematic offering begins with a disagreement — and Golden’s seemingly complete dissociation — outside of her own birthday party, as she retreats to her car to gather herself.

“A panic attack feels like everything inside of you is at hyper speed while the world outside is hazy and out of sync,” Boll said. “This got me thinking about a world where everyday objects move in sync with our mental highs and lows, and thus ‘Parking Lot’ came to life.”