Rose Haze Share “Heaven of Las Vegas” Music Video

Rose Haze releases their music video to accompany their cover of the Cocteau Twins’ “Heaven or Las Vegas.” The music video, as well as the cover, is a tribute to late guitarist Ruben Gonzales. The video includes footage of the band, Ruben included, on dreamy VHS tape. Featuring psychedelic imagery and colouring, abstract editing, and heartfelt scenes of the band dancing on a boardwalk, the video is a heartwarming DIY memorial.

When Kate Ramsey met Ruben Gonzales in early 2019, the two immediately felt a musical kinship unlike anything they had ever experienced, and they coined their friendship an “eternal marriage in music.” Together, they morphed the formerly progressive rock sound of Rose Haze into what it is today, which lands amidst dream pop, shoegaze, new wave, psych rock, and experimental noise. The two often compared their sonic styles to that of “Robin Guthrie and Elizabeth Fraser” of Cocteau Twins, which eventually led to them recording their cover of “Heaven or Las Vegas.”

Gonzales passed away unexpectedly on Jan 31, 2024, at the young age of 37, to complications of cancer, an illness no one knew he had, including himself. On the day he passed, Rose Haze received the mix back for their cover of “Heaven or Las Vegas.” What began as a tribute to Cocteau Twins became a sacred song for the band to honour their beloved Gonzales. Rose Haze chose to cover this track in particular because Ramsey enjoyed trying to decipher the lyrics, loved the melody, and knew that Gonzales would crush the guitars. As Rose Haze loves many other Cocteau Twins songs, Gonzales wasn’t so keen on covering “Heaven or Las Vegas” at first, but the track grew on him as he discovered its nuances during recording.

Ramsey feels that as an artist, it’s a huge risk to cover a track, and at first wanted to make it really different from the original track. But after they got going, she decided she didn’t want to deviate too far because Gonzales’ guitar tracks were so spot on. The band derives much inspiration from Cocteau Twins, and this is their tribute to the band and now also to Gonzales.

Rose Haze “Heaven or Las Vegas” single artwork