Neil Frances & Raffaella Hit-And-Run In “On The Lookout” Video
October 30, 2020 BY Nettwerk
Los Angeles duo Neil Frances (Jordan Feller and Marc Gilfry) share the official video for their new track “On The Look Out.” The single is their first collaboration with New York native Raffaella who lends her lush vocals and dark witty lyrics to the duos funky groove-driven beats. The song tackles the dark underbelly of celebrity obsession and the popularity of morbid comments on social media.
Raffaella explains, “When we wrote this song I had been feeling increasingly, well, run down… apathetic, numb, generally losing perspective. There’s something cathartic in making fun of a hypothetical, violent desire to compensate for a lack of a physical reality… finding a way to ground ourselves in a world where we’re constantly chasing the intangible. My brain immediately went to that lyric ‘someone famous hit me with your car’ because there’s something psychologically satisfying about tying humor to frustration. I was also just immediately struck by the siiick beat Jordan had built — he came in with a blueprint and built it out throughout the session as we talked through something I had been processing at the time. The whole process super easy — we literally met that day, hit off and wrote this together in a few hours. Some kinda magic. Grateful for it all. After we wrote the song, I came across an article by Jia Tolentino, which felt weirdly serendipitous. She explains our song better than I could have ever put into words. i.e. ‘Love may be timeless, but the half-ironic millennial death wish has become an underground river rushing swiftly under the surface of the age.’”
WATCH (AND SHARE) “ON THE LOOKOUT”:
Directed by Harrison Schaaf
Neil Frances adds, “The fact is, we live and love in a language that celebrates violence. This socially positive connotation to death and violence has risen to a whole new level in a time where social success is an obsession, a world where we are constantly rewarded by selling ourselves. One’s proximity to celebrity [and micro-celebrity ;)] has never more been a measure of social success and even financial success for many people. Celebrities become icons and role models for their sheer celebrity because the ability to become famous has become idolized and is justified by any means. The desire to be connected to celebrity can lead us to compromise values that we might otherwise give more credence. Now we see people asking celebrities to hit them with their cars in online forums, and it’s a little funny, but also a little frightening. Check out Nicholas Braun’s post here for one of many examples of this. We hope these comments are tongue-in-cheek or hyperbolic expressions but as we all know, in every joke lies a sinister truth.”
Neil Frances formed in 2016, having both relocated to LA from London and New York, in pursuit of new projects. With Gilfry’s inherent knack for hooks and melodies and Feller’s encyclopedic sonic recall ability and vast knowledge of production, the pair hit it off and began to develop their brand of beat-driven pop earworms infused with a more organic warmth than most modern electronic dance music. Putting special emphasis on their enthralling live sets—always performed with a multi-piece band and never relying on playback—the group quickly developed a reputation as a must-see stage artist. Soon their reputation as a diverse act with a wide range of talents began to build among listeners of all kinds. Their 2018 debut EP, Took A While, with its blend of psychedelic rhythms, vibe-y, infectious grooves, and raw, funky spirit put Neil Frances firmly on the map and propelled them to tour slots with Jungle and Unknown Mortal Orchestra. The band joined Nettwerk in 2020 and are currently working on new music.
Stay tuned for more to come from Neil Frances.
