Kamandi is a Kiwi producer with a passion for dreamy, contemplative beats. He’s produced for Azizi Gibson, releasing Crown Violet on Flying Lotus’s Brainfeeder label. Now, he’s collaborated with artist and animator Dr Foothead to produce this deeply meditative and hallucinatory video for his independently released single "What About You". The video is a strange and beautiful fantasy-horror freakout, blending a psychedelic self discovery with a classic fairytale love story. Watch out for the LSD colour palate and childishly creepy monsters reminiscent of Adventure Time. The track itself is meandering, pensive, smooth and soulful. Check the video below.NOISEY: So animation isn't just for children and dorks?
Kamandi: Ha, animation is for everyone. I think you can draw things that capture a mood that can't be easily portrayed by real people.How did you get on to your animator?
He (Dr. Foothead) actually reached out to me. I was looking to do a video and his prior work let me know that yeah we could do something high level if we worked together.Animation is a grueling process, was there much of a drafting process?
Oh man I have a box of hundreds of hand-drawn frames that I was sent by the animator that really made me realise how much work he put in. I know he worked his ass off. I was really just looped back in and shown it a few times to make sure I liked the direction. Once I saw the first draft I thought it was incredible and knew he could nail the look.Your online bio mentions that you’re “in love with [music's] ability to intimately describe feelings and thoughts better than words can.” How did you communicate the elements of your music that you wanted to see reflected in the animation style?
Ha, I don't know when that bio was written, but I guess when we were planning he video we talked more about a look and a feel to match the song, then the loose narrative part came after.Does it feel strange seeing your innermost musical thoughts drawn out in moving images?
Yeah, it's always weird seeing someone’s interpretation of what my music is but I think this is probably the best visual representation I've seen to date as far as creating the right feel or whatever.Peter is a Melbourne writer. Follow him @leigh_sales1
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Kamandi: Ha, animation is for everyone. I think you can draw things that capture a mood that can't be easily portrayed by real people.How did you get on to your animator?
He (Dr. Foothead) actually reached out to me. I was looking to do a video and his prior work let me know that yeah we could do something high level if we worked together.Animation is a grueling process, was there much of a drafting process?
Oh man I have a box of hundreds of hand-drawn frames that I was sent by the animator that really made me realise how much work he put in. I know he worked his ass off. I was really just looped back in and shown it a few times to make sure I liked the direction. Once I saw the first draft I thought it was incredible and knew he could nail the look.Your online bio mentions that you’re “in love with [music's] ability to intimately describe feelings and thoughts better than words can.” How did you communicate the elements of your music that you wanted to see reflected in the animation style?
Ha, I don't know when that bio was written, but I guess when we were planning he video we talked more about a look and a feel to match the song, then the loose narrative part came after.Does it feel strange seeing your innermost musical thoughts drawn out in moving images?
Yeah, it's always weird seeing someone’s interpretation of what my music is but I think this is probably the best visual representation I've seen to date as far as creating the right feel or whatever.Peter is a Melbourne writer. Follow him @leigh_sales1