Premiere: Stanley Most - “MLX01”

Stanley Most is a man of many talents, most of which involve rapping. You may know him from back when he churned out mega hits with Rune RK, but supposedly he’s not that guy anymore. Instead he’s moved on to more serious territory with his latest album Monster I Byen. According to Mr. Most, the album is about the different sorts of pressure our generation is under, and what that effectively does to us all.

As for his latest music video for the track “MLX01”, Stanley Most tries his hand at a psychoanalytical mashup involving cars, graveyards, a samurai chick and analog overlays. At one point in the video, the samurai lady burns a dream catcher at a graveyard.

We gave him a call to hear what it’s all about.

VICE: Hey man, tell us about the record.
Stanley Most: It’scalled Monster I Byen and it’s really about what it’s like to grow up in a city that’s both a capital and small town. Also, I think our modern times tend to bring out the monster in the youth. I am part of the generation that’s been most heavily bombarded with commercials, sex, alcohol and drugs. The 90's were a very dark period compared to the happy-go-lucky 70's and all that shit.

In what way are you a monster then?
It’s all the stuff I say. I curse a lot, I talk about girls in a sort of demeaning fashion, I’m the worst version of my self in a way. It’s not that I really am that person, it’s just the part of me the shined through on this record.

All right. How about the video, though? A lot of stuff going there.
The video symbolizes the cross between our modern technological age and the more natural world. There’s the contrast of the new car and the general high tech fashion look of the video, in opposition to the graveyard. And the samurai chick with the ninja sword, she symbolizes my thoughts. That’s also why she burns a dreamcatcher at the end. That bit symbolizes my mind caving in or something like that. She’s burning all the thoughts, that keep me up at night.

There’s also the white, clinical, almost divine sequence, where I ride the elevator. The contrast of the mechanical and the divine. It’s just to put our modern times into perspective. It seems like humans seek to live forever through technology.

Cool. Tells us more about, what brings out the beast in the youth though.
These are difficult times, with the youth living the Instagram life, and the demands for education increasing all the time. There's more homeless youth than ever before. There's more depressed youth than ever before. There's more youth on Prozac than ever. We have more confusing options than ever. There’s also an entirely new social plane on social media, where we have to showcase all the shit we have, new shoes and such, and then there’s the side which is never shown - where you’re just depressed. That won’t get any likes on Facebook.

Things have gotten worse for the youth then?
Society’s void of the depth it used to have. There used to be more time to deal with issues. Now we just want a like and move on, and you’re left to deal with your problems yourself. It makes nightlife crazier too, because young folks need a bigger release, when dealing with so many things.

That’s what I mean about being a monster in the city. I’ve been through that grind too.

But you’ve moved on?
Well, I feel that art can make an ugly thing beautiful, and that’s kind of what I’ve done with this release, instead of just making pop hits, claiming that everything’s fine and we should all get together and have a soda. I had it the worst back when I made hits and happy songs, hiding all the shit I had inside of me. Now I feel so much better, letting it all out.

But it’s getting better for the youth in general.

Yeah, how so?
They're getting more enlightened, becoming better at realizing how the world works. Hopefully, this will make them more considerate, also in terms of the environment.

That’s great news. Anything else you want to tell us?
Not to be too fucking cheesy, but you should pursue your dreams. It can’t go wrong that way. Don’t listen to those who tell you, you can’t. Go all in. It’s awesome not knowing how it ends.

Thanks a lot mate.