Hen Ogledd (ft. Dawn Bothwell, Rhodri Davies, Richard Dawson and Sally Pilkington) have shared a new video for End of the Rhythm, the latest single from their forthcoming album DISCOMBOBULATED, out tomorrow, February 20th.
Directed by James Hankins — who has helmed all three video releases from the album — the clip draws on the visual vocabulary of early rave culture, translating that energy into a vivid 3D world. “For this third and final DISCOMBOBULATED video I wanted to blast off into space… sort of,” Hankins explains. “Inspired by early 90’s rave visuals and similar computer animations from that time, we started creating a bunch of different gaudy vibrant visuals that we would then take into our 3D world and apply to the objects we built.” The director was equally clear about the ambition underpinning all three clips: “From the start of this project, I wanted to make three videos that felt connected in a way but that also looked completely different from each other.”
The visual approach suits the song. KLOF’s own Thomas Blake, who reviewed DISCOMBOBULATED ahead of its release, called it “their most consistent, relevant and boundary-pushing record yet,” singling out End of the Rhythm as a highlight: “a paean to physical movement and the emancipatory power of the collective, which hurtles along in a pulsating rush that only adds to the urgency of Bothwell’s words.”
Fans in London will have the chance to experience the album in a rather more unconventional setting later this year. On June 6th, Hen Ogledd will perform a special 8-hour sound-ritual — dubbed DISCOMBODURATION — at The Horse Hospital, running from 2pm to 10pm. Featuring drone, improvisation, dance, kinetic sculpture and more, the event promises to be an immersive reckoning with the album’s themes of collapse, persistence and collective imagination. With costume and a life(ish) size, ‘pop up book set’ artist Rachael MacArthur will bring forth a lucid psychogenic fantasy episodic landscape with each stage of the performance.
Details and ticket links for the event can be found here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/weird-world-upset-the-rhythm-presents-discomboduration-hen-ogledd-tickets-1983387750152
Pre-order the album on DomMart-exclusive pink vinyl (w/ signed art print), standard vinyl, CD and digitally: DomMart | Digital