The Band Explains: Buddha Trixie - 'Real' (Video)
Who: Southern California quartet, Buddha Trixie is Andrew Harris (lead guitar) Daniel Cole (drums, lead vocals) Dennis Moon (bass) Kenzo Mann (guitar, synth)
"The video was produced by a good friend and talented artist, Philip Stilwell. I can’t wait to work with him in the future. In some vein, he’s one of the most imaginative and creative individuals I've met in my life. When you combine that with a good taste for music and film, you end up with an absolute powerhouse of a guy in my book. The video is animated in that it consists of a very large pool of pre-existing clips that have been cut, modified, and appropriated to fit the song.
The video compliments the song both in terms of synchronization and style. We wanted something that could bring out the psychedelic and trippy undertones in the song. I feel like anyone can film the band playing the song in a room from a couple of different angles, but to me, that defeats the point of a music video. If you’re not somehow creating art that in some respect exists independently of the song, then you’re not fully taking advantage of the opportunity at hand. You have the ability to further develop the song through and entirely different medium, you may as well take some risks or do something interesting.
The video is animated in that it consists of a very large pool of pre-existing clips that have been cut, modified, and appropriated to fit the song. If my understanding is correct, Philip compiled an absolutely massive playlist of videos that contained clips that he felt had potential. From the mishmash of sources, its not that there is necessarily a consistent narrative or theme behind the clips used, but a surreal and fantastic aesthetic that is maintained from start to finish. From the second the song kicks in, you’re overcome with this sense of bewilderment and curiosity. The video really plays with your mind and forces you to become a participant in what can only be described as a trip.
When we initially approached Philip, he asked us what the song meant to us. He wanted to understand where the song was coming from emotionally and thematically so he could accurately reflect those sentiments in the video. To me, 'Real' is a song that is intended to express frustration with the mundane and pedestrian world that most people have blindly accepted to be their reality. Whether or not it be intentional, we’re programmed from day one to subscribe to a very rigid idea of how we ought to live our life. You spend a large amount of your life preparing for life to actually begin, to transcend into the “real world” which ends up being comprised of a 9-5 job and a nuclear family that you inevitably end up resenting. That life simply isn’t for everyone.
But there are many inherent social standards that will turn heads if you try to challenge them in the slightest. People assume that you want to go to college, and one day have a really big house that you can brag about when you go back to your high school reunion. However, when you begin shutting out those expectations and voices that dictate your life, you gain this sort of emotional and psychological independence; you actually believe that you’re living for yourself and yourself only.
People love to talk about other people, they love to judge others in some sort of attempt to shield themselves from their own inner demons, which is why their opinions are void anyways.
'Real', to me, is about escape, about distrusting what’s presented to you so that you don’t have to live as a sheep.I think that the video is a very tangible representation of the sense of freedom that 'Real' alludes to being out there" - Daniel Cole