3 SINGLES IN ISOLATION
Illustration, Design, Animation
At the beginning of 2021 Hayes & Y approached me with the demos for their next three singles, all produced and recorded during the months of lockdown in their home studio in Manchester. The band were heavily inspired by the current events and the themes of isolation and human relations in stressful times, so I decided to use this as a foundation for my visual narrative.
The Times
Empty Orchestra
Epiphany
In the last few months I also found myself reflecting on the current situation and more specifically drawing parallels between the current pandemic and other artists' outlook on catastrophes. As I listened to the three songs, being so similar and yet so distinctively different in their moods, the Plague by Albert Camus kept on coming to my mind.
In the Plague Camus tells the story of an imaginary plague infested town, exploring the effect of the pandemic on the community and the personal journey of each character in a few life-defining months.
The Plague being of the most read books for 2020 was no surprise. As I was rereading it, I decided to visualise each song through the eyes of a character from the book. I was so impressed by the depth and the realism of Camus' heroes that I just felt the need to tell their stories again, as if they were living in 2020. The main objective was to reimagine how would they would react to the pandemic today, as if they were as real as me.
The Times - Cottard
The Times was the most up-tempo song of the three, a disco tune I would imagine myself dancing to over and over again. At the same time it has an almost undercover melancholy and a touch of madness. With that in mind, the perfect 'narrator' for the visual layer of the song was Cottard, who is the designated 'criminal' in the Plague universe. He is a man driven by the earthly pleasures, often engaging in illegal activities. Cottard is somehow walking the shortest path in the overall story - the plague doesn't really change him. He is not particularly touched by the tragic circumstances - instead he is focusing on profiting from them.
All that made it even more logical to start with him. The Times is all about indulging to the point of excess, about living like there is no tomorrow and following one's lowest instincts.
Empty Orchestra - Joseph Grand
Right when we start discussing the artwork together with the demos, Empty Orchestra stood out as the most tragically romantic love letter. And no, it is not just the slowest of the three. Empty Orchestra has the underlying feeling of missing on a person, a feeling, a place.
Naturally so, Joseph Grand, the quiet clerk, was assigned as the narrator for this one.
Grand is also my personal favourite. He represents the ordinary man - neither impulsive, nor too cautious. His existence is not exciting or tragic - he is working 9 to 5, while reminiscing about writing a book but is too insecure to go past the first sentence.
Despite his life, Grand is not even a bit as cynic as Cottard. Quite contrary to him, he goes through a long catharsis and somehow finds more meaning to his life during the plague. Along the way, Grand rediscovers the creative spark, together with the love for his wife.
Epiphany - Father Paneloux
epiphany
noun
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the manifestation of Christ to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi (Matthew 2:1–12).​
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a moment of sudden and great revelation or realisation.
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Reading the exact definition of the word, made me smirk about how well the song fits the narrative of Father Paneloux.
Epiphany is undoubtedly the most experimental, daring and psych single out of the three, which lends itself perfectly to the topic of belief, transformation and divine intervention.
Father Panloux is a Jesuit priest representing the organised religion in the Plague. He carries an abstract outlook to the events and sees them as a work of God, therefore deserved and just. Surprisingly, Paneloux is a character we see completely transformed as soon as he makes the move from abstraction to cold hard reality. After he witnesses the death of a child, he finds himself challenging his deepest beliefs and eventually unable to function in the midst of such a huge contradiction.
The narrative approach towards the three artworks gave me a whole new outlook to the traditional illustration work. I not only enjoyed every bit of the process, but reminded myself why I loved the job. Building bridges between different art forms always gives me a fresh new inspiration. Just as in this this case.
As a logical continuation of the project, I am currently in the process of creating animated versions of each artwork.