Context?
Fans of intense and dark post-punk/ new wave sounds should not miss this video and the band that made it. DESPERATE JOURNALIST is the really great name of this talented four-piece from London. Earlier this year they released their highly recommendable self-titled debut on Fierce Panda (UK) and Minty Fresh (US). It’s packed powerful and driving retro rock in the tradition of a band like SIOUXSIE AND THE BANSHEES. Singer Jo Bevan really sounds like a 2015 update of Mrs. Sioux, providing confident vocals, a lot of emotion and sinister spirit. Did we already said that we can recommend that album? Well…
Why should I watch this?
The band’s latest video Hesitate is a great example of how you can do a lot of things with a minimum of budget. Just a room, good lightning and a clever use of speed and timing. Singer Jo Bevan on the idea: ‘The inspiration for the video came from my coming across the work of film artist Takashi Ito by random chance. I was really struck by how he uses time lapse photography, projection and altered film speeds in a sketching way to make something at once sadly romantic, ghostly and kind of mundane. I sent one of his films (‘Grim’) to Jason (the director) and he came up with a treatment inspired by Ito’s aesthetic which perfectly reflects the paralysing anxiety of the lyrics.’ And indeed, all elements work quite well together.
Anything else?
No, we won’t repeat that you should check out the debut album by DESPERATE JOURNALIST. We don’t get paid for the promotion ’cause in the end we are… indeed, desperate journalists by ourselves, right?
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