Jimmy Vallance and Tom Howie first connected during their high school days in Vancouver, Canada, over a common interest in pop-punk bands. Later, their pursuits brought them together again in Brooklyn, New York, and in 2012 they joined hands to form the band Bob Moses. Their début album Days Gone By came in 2015 after signing up with Domino Records and a second one, Battle Lines, released in 2018. The just-released ‘Desire’, the title track from their forthcoming album is an interactive animated video. The album with six tracks is set to release on August 28.
The video of ‘Desire’ allows viewers the experience to choose between ‘pleasure’ and ‘pain’ by pushing buttons. The colours, the beats and the figures transform according to the viewers’ choice. The clip was directed by Owen Brown of the creative agency CTRL5.
Bob Moses - from the video ‘Desire’
In an email interview Bob Moses tells us of their new venture and their eagerness to visit India:
The psychedelic visuals of ‘Desire’ take us back to Pink Floyd’s imagery. How strong is the influence?
We love Pink Floyd, especially ‘Dark Side of the Moon’. Our EP is a concept record in the sense that it is continuously mixed together like a DJ set and meant to be listened to from start to finish, and the lyrical themes are all centred around the idea of desire. The songs are contemplations of different aspects of desire.
Were the lyrics written with an eye on the visual potential?
The lyrics and music were all done before a video was even considered. When we wrote the song, we weren’t sure whether we would even make a video or not, so the visuals came afterwards as an interpretation of the song.
Any apprehensions regarding ‘concept videos’ diluting the musical essence?
We feel as though this video really sums up and enhances the music and the meaning of the lyrics. We were inspired by the idea that following your desires can either set you free or send you to ruin, akin to the old Greek myth of Icarus who flew too close to the sun, which melted his wings and he fell to his death below.
Why did you choose the interactive video format? Can you elaborate on segregating the video experience into pain and pleasure, with no middle path?
We worked with CTRL5 on this video, and they suggested the interactive part after they heard the song and knew the themes about duality and desire. We thought it was really cool to see the two paths separately, and then the middle ground is when both of them are together. We thought that making the video interactive and giving the viewer a chance to make a choice could help encourage people to think about the subject matter and how it shows up in their own lives, and to drive the concept home better than if people just viewed the video with both colours together.
Coming as it does amid the pandemic and lockdown, did you consider a theme that would be high on positivity in your music; say, overcoming the crisis and global harmony?
We seem to have trouble writing overly positive music, although we are generally very positive people! Our music always has a sense of hope at the end, light at the end of the tunnel so to speak, but we usually gravitate to heavier subjects. We use music as catharsis, an exploration of our emotions, and by expressing those thoughts through music and lyrics, we strive to overcome them. So we tend to gravitate towards subjects that have some sort of struggle.
How’s the experience of collaborating with ZHU?
It felt really natural. We both had a day off from tour, we were in LA and we rented a studio in North Hollywood for a few hours. We bounced some ideas back and forth and what you hear is pretty much what we did in those few hours.
Tell us how you came to be known as ‘Bob Moses?’
In the beginning we didn’t know what to call ourselves. We wanted to be mysterious. Two people with one name, we thought it would be cool, sort of like Jethro Tull or Alice Cooper. Everyone knows someone named Bob...and Moses is a historically significant name. One time, we played a Halloween show where we dressed up as ‘Bob the Builder’ and ‘Moses’.
How soon would you like the India tour to happen? Any collaborations with Indian artistes in mind?
We’ve been trying to come to India for years. We would love to come tomorrow if we could. We both grew up in Vancouver, which has a large Indian population, so we’ve always loved the food and culture. No plans for any collaborations at the moment, but we are open to anything. We both love Ravi Shankar and 70s Hindi and Bhangra music.