Australian artist Mild Minds has unveiled the official video for his latest single ‘WALLS’, directed by New York-based filmmaker Colin Read (Radiohead, Battles, Danny Brown), out now. The track, which also includes vocalist BOATS, will feature on Mild Minds’ highly anticipated debut album “MOOD”, out 13th March.
Sensitively capturing the poignancy and high emotions of the single, the official video for ‘WALLS’ paints the picture of a father and daughter who are struggling to adapt to life on the streets. “All of us were very impressed by Alberto and Ana—the real father and daughter acting pair. They brought real intimacy and feeling to the quiet story,” says Read.
“It’s always special when you can use music videos to tell a very human story”, he continues. “So I loved the opportunity to create a narrative about migration, displacement, and family separation—which are topics very close to me and my family, and more important to talk about now than ever.”
“I liked the idea of using digital “walls” to stitch together the little moments into one continuous, scrolling journey. We used the alleyways to keep the story feeling very linear, as if the father and daughter had to always keep moving forward. The visual technique let us show a story without words in a fresh way.”
First delving into directing with several full-length independent skateboarding films (including ‘Tengu: God of Mischief’ and ‘Spirit Quest’), Read’s work has been screened at venues including MoMA, The Hammer Museum, the Berlin Music Video Film Festival and Mimpi Film Fest. He has directed music video pieces for the likes of Radiohead, Battles, Danny Brown, Converse and Viceland.
“The meaning behind ‘WALLS’ is somewhat dichotomous, we wanted the track to have a dual meaning depending on the listener,” Mild Minds previously mentioned. “BOATS wanted the message to be somewhat political, a nod to the issues happening at the American border, whilst I wanted to reference the more internal and interpersonal walls we build every day.”
BOATS added: “Walls have been built and those same walls have been brought down. It’s important to remember that people’s desire will always win out over overstate or forced control – if there is a significant will. I think a lot of people forget or simply don’t respect the power of protest.”
MOOD marks the follow-up to ‘SWIM’, Mild Minds’ lauded maiden EP, which garnered over 2 million combined Spotify streams. The Australian is also fresh from playing a three-date North American mini-tour with Tycho, taking in sold old shows in Oakland, Santa Cruz and LA earlier this month.
The official video for ‘WALLS’ is a captivating, heartstring-tugging journey that leaves a lasting impression – an ideal visual representation of the track.
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