As the world struggles toward its third year of political and personal upheaval, “One by One”, the new single by Australian death pop duo VOWWS (aka Matt and Rizz), reflects a manic, self-righteous, and blissfully deluded march towards hedonistic self-destruction. The B-side, “Shadow Man”, is the introspective come down; an attempt to find meaning and redemption in the wreckage. The songs represent a dichotomy of the human mind.
“One by One is about the lies we tell ourselves to make sense of our lives,” says Matt. “If we start believing them too much, eventually they can take us over. By thinking we can have everything we want all the time, anytime, forever, and be righteous while doing it – these appetites will eventually consume us and define us, leaving us with nothing real.
Shadow Man is the aftermath…it’s no less confused but it’s looking around wondering what went wrong.”
The cinematic video for “One by One”, directed by Jordan Hemingway (Wolf Alice, Travis Scott, Yves Tumor, Comme des Garçons) was shot on 35mm film and edited by Rizz. The video captures the eminence of Oliver Stone, Quentin Tarantino, David Lynch with a production that is both slick and retro, highlighting a bizarre twist of a surrealist version of Americana.
“We’ve been working with Jordan for years on various projects,” Rizz explains, “sometimes in the same city but more often remotely, so it was great to find some time together. We’re both fans of films that capture the desert in a dark, mystical, lawless style – films like Natural Born Killers, From Dusk till Dawn, that cowboy scene from Mullholland Drive…
“It was the most insane shoot we’ve ever done, we drove out the middle of nowhere with no crew and shot for 24 hours straight,” adds Rizz.
“We were hauling 35mm cameras across sketchy landscape covered in broken glass and like, your feet would suddenly sink into some creature hole. We had extremely limited resources and everything that could go wrong went wrong, but everyone’s commitment to making it work was inspiring. As long as you have a vision & your heart’s in the right place, you don’t need food or water after all.”
Watch the video for “One By One” below:
“One by One”, and “Shadow Man” are the first glimpse of a full-length that the band is preparing for release in 2022. The single was originally timed to coincide with a 21-date North American tour with French experimental metal act Igorrr and Japanese noise rock icons Melt Banana, but the tour has been postponed until autumn.
Listen below:
VOWWS are currently based in Los Angeles. The band has always gleefully experimented with their art, appearance and music, which has won the pair interest from Gary Numan (who performed guest vocals on “The Great Sun”) Thor Harris (Swans), and Deftones frontman Chino Moreno.
VOWWS have also shared as well as a diverse range of touring spots with bands like Poppy, White Lies, The Cult, Cold Cave and others.
The fashion world has also taken notice of VOWWS’ unique musical and aesthetic sensibilities, resulting in collaborations with Comme Des Garçons, Alyx, Byredo, and Dover Street Market.
Stay tuned for more from VOWWS.
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