Feature Video: Velvet Trip - The Bends
Velvet Trip's new music video 'The Bends' has all the flickering phosphor glow of technology lost in time, the texture of a lovingly worn-in VHS tape recorded late at night, and an irresistible groove that is impossible to not bop head to. It's the very definition of a "rage vibe".
The Gadigal conceived, psychedelic experiment of Wiradjuri man Zeppelin Hamilton last week released a new EP, Glimmers , with 'The Bends' serving as the first official music video from a collection of five songs. Directed by Sydney-based creative Claire Salter, 'The Bends' is a trippy, glitchy, vintage VHS inspired journey with deep roots in the overarching creative direction of the EP.
'The idea started from the top and trickled down to me, so I'll try not to take too much credit!' says director Claire. 'The incredible mind behind Velvet Trip, Zeppelin Hamilton, approached me with a couple of 70s-inspired reference images and asked if I could turn them into a music video.'
'Zep had already begun reaching out to a creative team to collaborate with for the release of the Glimmers EP launch, including local contemporary photographer Macami and Brazilian-based analogue & VFX artist Rollinos. Both brought their own vision and mood boards, and my task was to fuse it all together and bring to life a project that combined all elements in a fresh way that honoured everyone's individual style.'
The shoot came together across four performance sets and plenty of footage shot on a blank cyc for Rollinos to rotoscope and go wild with his VFX magic. 'Originally, the plan was to keep the set footage clean, contrasting it with the VFX-heavy shots' explains Claire. 'But after seeing Rollinos' first round of VFX, we changed course—more is more! (It was actually the first time he'd ever been told to go harder on effects!)'
'The shoot day started early—Zep rolled into Alchemy Studios at 8:30 am after a sunrise flight from Brisbane (like the rockstar he is) and headed straight into hair and makeup. Suzanna worked her magic to hide any signs of exhaustion. We were hit with a 30°C day after a cool week of rain—and Zep was immediately suited up in a three-layer outfit styled by Yuzhen, then asked to dance non-stop for 10 hours. (Yes, the fan got a solid workout!)'
'It was a tight day but we were lucky to have our incredible gaffer John Young (also a co-owner of Alchemy Studios), which made lighting transitions smooth and efficient. With only 10 hours to shoot stills and video, our DOPs Zac Heath and Will Valander ran dual 4K cameras the entire time to ensure Rollinos had plenty of material to work with.'
That's approximately 10 hours of 4k footage needed to be clear (about 5 days to upload and the same to download… 🙃). We're so happy that the persistence paid off!
'These days film can be so calculated, so it's super exciting to try something uncertain' says Claire. 'And in the end, that risk made it all the more fun and exciting.'
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