Vehlinggo is proud to premiere the video for “Closer,” Brooklyn-based Diamond Field’s new single and his latest collaboration with Texas-based singer Rat Rios.
It’s a catchy synthpop cut you’ve got to hear, and the video is really cool. Whether you’ve been to New York City or not, you’ll find its premise compelling. You’re following certain creatures as they traverse this fine city, doing some occasionally quixotic sightseeing. Trust me, it’s a cool concept.
The single, which comes out today, features remixes by the following synth artists: Furniteur, Saint-Samuel, Morgan Willis, and Stereospread.
What Diamond Field Says About the Video
Andy Diamond, the native New Zealander behind Diamond Field, talks about his mission with this video: to change things up — to do something completely different than what everyone would expect from a video — while still conveying the song’s sentiment.
“Alice Teeple and I had fun shooting it and we got quite a few odd looks from people along the way, though being New York City, it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary to see adults carrying around stuffed animals on the subway…,” he says.
What Diamond Field Says About the Song
Diamond tells of an interesting history behind “Closer.” For starters, it’s the only cut on the forthcoming album that he didn’t write.
“I first heard the song in 2009,” Diamond says. “It was by a husband and wife duo called ‘Tangled’ that a friend of mine Simon Holloway was producing.”
“The band had released one single, ‘Make Your Way There,’ through Sony Music, but nothing really happened with it,” he continued. “‘Closer’ was going to be on the Tangled album. Via the producer I got to hear the song, along with several other works-in-progress for the album and loved what I heard. Unfortunately, the album was never released, so all of these great songs were stuck on the shelf.”
“Because I liked ‘Closer’ so much and thought it deserved to be heard, I decided it would be a great fit for a Diamond Field release,” Diamond says. “I got in touch with the songwriters, Sloan and Sonna, and they gave me the go-ahead to use it.”
“To cover the vocals, Rat Rios immediately came to mind, so I sent her the original song along with a sketch for the Diamond Field version,” he continued. “We also worked together on a cover version of a Twin Peaks song and she nailed it as usual. She’s totally awesome.”
Diamond Field’s version of “Closer” shares an intimate connection with the original, beyond composition: Jonathan Campbell, who worked on the original version mixed this one.
“The song has been finished for some time, but I wanted it to be an introduction to the Diamond Field album,” Diamond says. “That’s still the plan and the album is getting the final touches as we speak.”
“Closer” is out now as a seven-track maxi-single on Bandcamp and will be available on Spotify, Apple Music, and all other digital platforms on June 9.
(Feature Photo: Sammy “Rat Rios.” Photo by Rob Martinez.)
Full Disclosure: Diamond Field is generally a part of Vehlinggo.
