Multimedia artist Eddie Peake has directed a 3D-rendered video for Gwilym Gold’s new single ‘Flex’, released on Peake’s HYMN label in collaboration with The Vinyl Factory.
The pair originally teamed up for ‘Muscle’, and have renewed their relationship for ‘Flex’, which follows the label’s vision of building three-part audio-visual packages for each release, combining music, artwork and video.
“I wanted the video to respond to what I interpret as a central theme in the song, of a protagonist performing for another, and the feeling of both power and vulnerability that can be experienced by taking on that role within a relationship”, Peake tells us. “Gwilym and I both very much liked the possibility of animating a character that I have developed in my work, the ‘bendy’ cartoon figure, and sexualising it in some way, even though it has no discernible sex/gender.”
“I wanted there to be a tender and affectionate sex scene in which it is difficult to say what exactly is happening, who is being passive, who is being aggressive, or even who is being male and/or female”, he continues. “As such, the phallus in this instance is an oversized audio jack placed on the body solely for the purpose of sexual gratification.
“Also, the ‘bendy’ character takes its cue from a key scene in the film Who Framed Roger Rabbit? in which Judge Doom, the central baddie, is run over by a steam roller. And finally, in terms of the environmental setting in the video, and the very final scene when the shot slowly zooms out to reveal a seemingly infinite number of ‘bendies,’ and the fact that things just seem to appear, such as the audio jack, we took our cue from the moment in The Matrix when Neo first enters it, and finds himself in an infinite white space in which he is able to call upon an infinite supply of guns, or anything else, should he want them.”
‘Flex’ is available for pre-order now ahead of its official release on July 24, featuring the original alongside a rolling jungle rework by bass heavyweight Zomby, Head here for more info.
