The Artist Explains: Alexander Biggs - 'Miserable'
Singer songwriter Alexander Biggs talks to us about his playful music video for poignant hazy folk single, ‘Miserable’ which sees him move around the Melbourne suburbs dressed as a ghost!
How does the video connect with the song?
I think there’s an underlying sweetness in the music that lends itself to the playful nature of the clip. I think both song and video balances between lightness and melancholy so maybe that helps.
I’ve had a lot of feedback people I’ve cried at the end of the video, so I guess the video and music connect in their sadness.
Do you have any behind the scenes stories you can share with us?
I don’t really have too many behind the scenes stories aside from probably featuring on a lot of people’s Instagram stories, parading around Thornbury/Preston/Northcote with a sheet on my head.
Oh! And my sheet got stuck in the bike chain so many times. It kept slipping so I had to see out of one eye hole. Almost crashed a few times but I crossed a major road just fine.
Could you tell us about the ideas/ themes/ imagery used?
At first I just found the idea of a ghost falling in love with a sheet funny. I suppose you could draw lines though, that the sheet was as despondent as the ghost in their ‘relationship’.
It's kind of my take on deconstructing the Manic Pixie Dream Girl trope. This ghost thinks it's found the thing to complete it and elevate it from it's misery and it doesn't quite work out in its favour.
Is there a message the video is trying to convey?
What I like about this video is that it isn’t trying too hard to convey anything. Upfront, it’s a narrative about a ghost trying to find meaning through companionship, but I’m not particularly trying to push that. I love hearing others’ interpretations. I hope it moves people in some way.
Interview feature by Karla Harris