What’s News | Kristian North’s Fantasy
Kristian North’s latest video, Fantasy, off his forthcoming album, Passion Play (April 2021, from Mothland) definitely captures the textures of the day. The director, Phil Osborne, says that North ”… brought up the idea of capturing the times we are in… we cooked up a little dystopian sci-fi style intro… which quickly transitions to a one man disco party.” This description is pretty astute.
I don’t know about the rest of you, but I have definitely been having zany living room dance parties alone or with my dog. Fantasy alternately shows North sprawled on a couch plucking an unplugged bass, messing around with turn tables, and mouthing off into the camera, windswept and splashed with frantic lights in an empty warehouse/jam space.
The video aptly captures defiance in the face of isolation as well as determination to continue making life into a joyful performance.
North had the following to say about the new track: “I was kind of humming the chorus in my head and then I watched Donkey Skin and it all clicked. There’s something to be said about reality there but mostly it’s candy, melodrama, fairy tales. We did very little in the way of second takes. Abigail was basically running out the door, that’s why it sounds cool. The song has some nods to George Michael, who listened to it religiously for a couple years.”
You can pre-order the album here. Track listing to the album Passion Play:
1. Fantasy
2. Halfway To Heaven
3. I See You Everywhere
4. More Than Yesterday
5. Shadow of the Pyramids
6. Eye of Love
7. Genius of Song
8. Tilted
Bad Feeling Magazine says North “lets his inner Prince shine” on Fantasy, and such a comparison is definitely not misguided. Fantasy is a wonderful jam for grooving these grim times off your heart.
Kristian North is a songwriter whose poetic wordplay and deep crooner voice lay the foundation for candid songs that have approached the hi-fi soft rock of Warren Zevon, the arty disco of Roxy Music, and the smart new wave of Sparks or Elvis Costello.
Go on, shake your ass in Covid’s face. Kristian North has made the perfect song for it.
