Swiss-American musician Manuel Gagneux has recorded under many guises and in many genres. He even turned to the controversial website 4chan for concept ideas, resulting in him forming avant-garde band Zeal & Ardor to combine aspects of metal and spiritual music.
Nonetheless, he keeps returning to the Birdmask moniker as an identity and chamber pop musical style in which he feels most at home.
Brighton based partnership Flexer and Sandiland – led by choreographer Yael Fleer and installation artist and director Nic Sandiland – realised his vision for the latest Birdmask song, Set Me On Fire.
Flexer and Sandiland made the most of the realities of our times rather than being constrained by them. The creative team explained “working under social distancing meant a skeleton crew of just 4 people (including our dancer, Luke Birch) all multitasking without the luxury of assistant directors, runners, grips etc.”
As you will see, the interplay of the choreography, handheld camera work, and the soaring song all add to the intimacy of the piece.
Set Me On Fire is out now.