Long-time rotation staple Leicester’s Dayflower dropped their anticipated honeyspun LP last Friday, and it’s full of dream pop gems. Subtle and tuneful, it’s an engaging listen from end to end, especially if you’ve been following the preceding singles, as we have. “Daisy Age”, “Big Blue”, “Heart Shaped Tambourines”, all display depth and and earnestness, executed with heart. Which brings us to the video premiere for a “refreshed” 2019 version of “Big Blue”.
All layered in pinks, blues and greens, this is part performance video, part pure sugar rush. Layers, glitch and jump cuts intertwine with dancers and performance footage to make this presentation fly.
We got to talk to bassist/guitarist David Dhonau about the video, which he compiled and edited. A notation on the video dedicated the work to Chris Tressler, one of the great champions and cheerleaders of the genre before his untimely passing in 2017. “I think I had less direct contact with Chris than Alex our singer,” David said, “although in our brief chats he was very encouraging. I remember playing him the music video that I had filmed for our song ‘Genie’ during a stay in Philly as he hailed from there. it was only after his passing that I began to realise just how extensive his work was in the shoegaze community and how many folks’ lives he impacted so greatly. We were honoured to be able to contribute a song to the compilation in his memory.”
Why video? David sees it as a straightforward outreach to the uninitiated. “As the newly remastered version of ‘Big Blue’ kicks off the album, it felt appropriate to give it a visual accompaniment. The hope is that it could be a ‘way in’ for people to discover the album (possibly the band) for the first time.”
It’s not that Dayflower hasn’t been busy enough recently. Besides writing and recording their brand of hazy ‘daydream pop’ at various spare bedrooms and performance spaces in and around Leicester, they’ve been playing and hosting shows there. They’ve welcomed Dublin noisemakers Girl Band, Russian standard-bearers Pinkshinyultrablast, and they continue to host their own regular club night, branded “Candy Dust”. That’s a full working calendar.
But back to the video for “Big Blue”. Useful data to place the visuals in context: The geometric digital forms are generated from the tempo and frequencies of the track itself using bespoke audio responsive software (programmed by local digital artist Johnny c.). An unusual but impressive creative leap for less ‘beat-driven’ but more textural songsters, and it simply works. Contrasting clouds of color are generated by Lumière Ogbanje, a visual artist who often supports Dayflower live performances through light projections using swirls of oil and ink on water. You’ll still find a few around the world who excel in this nearly-lost art form. Dancers fill out the presentation: Danni Spooner and Abi Harrison. Danni is a prolific performer with a varied resume, including a recent video from Goldfrapp. So the talent bench behind this video is deep and wide. Perhaps unknown to the international set, the arts community in Leicester that rallied to this effort cannot be dismissed.
Follow Dayflower on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and pick up Honeyspun (and the rest of their discography) on Bandcamp! Above photo credit: Miriam Bean.
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