Brooklyn-based electro-pop artist Paul Feder recently released the single/music video, “Lose My Mind,” a track lifted from his forthcoming debut solo EP, NIghtwalk, slated to drop August 20 via Aion Records.
The songs appearing on Nightwalk started out as solo vocal harmonizer experiments, followed by burgeoning into full-fledged jam sessions with members of Jane In Space — Jesse Jensen (additional production), Tom Vickers (additional songwriting), Andrew Tell (guitar), and Brian Korpalski (drums).
The video, filmed by Eric Martich, aka Permian Strata, balances surreal, trippy effects with orthodox visuals. Paul sang at double speed while Eric filmed at 60fps, followed by halving the speed of the footage. The kaleidoscopic effects entailed extensive manual layering.
According to Martich, he used a video synthesizer “to create shapes that mirror the architecture of the city, paired with its ‘neon’ color palette, which matched the bright colors of the street art…” Those shapes were patched into another video synth “which generated an internal feedback loop, creating the illusion that the shapes are receding into the distance.”
Feder grew up listening to his parents play electronic music, such as Kraftwerk’s Trans Europa Express. In high school, he began remixing, followed by synth instrumentals in college, and MIDI interfaces in grad school. Later, he began DJing, producing songs, and performing around NYC.
In 2010, Feder’s synth-pop project Pico Fermi released Start It Over. In 2012, he took on the role of resident DJ at Tromba, while forming Charcole Federation, an electronic band highlighted by a sitar. Charcole Federation release their self-titled EP in 2015, giving performances at the Rubin Museum and Holi Festival of Colors.
In 2019, Feder arrived at Battalion Studios with a laptop, synth, and harmonizer. Alone in the studio, he attained a creative and technical “aha moment,” followed by beginning work on NIghtwalk.
“Lose My Mind” opens on emerging layers of low-slung synths flowing into an electro-pop rhythm topped by shimmering colors. Feder’s dreamy vocals imbue the lyrics with lingering timbres, at once haunting and wistful.
The video depicts Feder walking through the industrial landscape of Gowanus, painted by a sense of gliding through a trancelike world rippling with spine-tingling morphing visuals.
The combination of surfacing electro-pop savors and eldritch visuals provides a wonderful, mesmerizing audio-visual experience.
