The Band Explains: Brenda - 'Children'
Toronto four-piece Brenda speaks to us about their sinister clown visual for 'Children' - the lead single from the band's debut EP, 'Creeper'.
Brenda's 'Children' takes big walls of indie rock sound and punches holes in it with dreamy, unnerving textures. Paired with a bizarre psych-influenced vocal, the track is potent in the way that it distorts and disturbs. This reminds me a lot of what Kate Bush might sound like if she took acid and joined a rock outfit!
Where was the video filmed?
The video was filmed on a VHS camera by artist Sarah Ann Watson in South East London at a church holding a remembrance service commemorating Joseph Grimaldi, who was an entertainer considered to be the father of modern clowning. He died in the very early 1800’s.
How does the video compliment the song?
The song is essentially about growing up and shedding what it means to be a young. Coming of age and suddenly realizing you aren’t a child anymore makes you wonder when that transition takes place and what it means to be an adult. What is my purpose? Should I be doing this? Why don’t I want to do this? Are all questions we hope everyone faces at one point. We think the video compliments 'Children' because clowns are this unusual entity that are so strongly associated with children but are played by adults. They exist to entertain mainly children but the clown could be such a sinister representation of the struggles of growing up.
Any behind the scenes story?
Maybe just how long it took. Sarah the artist that crafted the video shot the whole thing on an old camcorder and had to get the film developed. After the film was developed, the footage was jumbled up amongst other unrelated footage she shot previous so she had to first sift through and pick out the relevant footage and then piece together a fluid video. We went through a number of ideas for a video before mSarah proposed this one and it couldn’t have been more perfect.
Tell us about ideas/ themes/ imagery used?
The video wouldn’t have been the same if shot digitally when tied with the song. We certainly enjoy the eeriness that the camcorder gave to the shots of clowns that complimented the track’s kind of dreadful, creeping feeling. We certainly weren’t into having ourselves in the video, we felt as though that may have taken away from that dreadful feeling and made it too obvious by removing the mystery behind the tones.
What is the message you hope people take from watching the video?
Try not to get carried away with childlike antics but don’t let adulthood completely overcome you- Find the centre between adulthood and your adolescence.
Interview Feature by Karla Harris