Premiere: Creating a World of Abstraction Mixed with Longing, Hot Flash Heat Wave Brings the Emotions to “m o t i o n s”

Q&AMusic
Written By The Luna Collective
 
 
 

CREATING AUTHENTICITY THROUGH SYNTHETIC SOUND IS DIFFICULT - but for Hot Flash Heat Wave, it’s a walk in the park. The vibrancy of their new video “m o t i o n s” cannot be denied and is proof that the band is pushing themselves more and more with their visuals and instrumentals. If anything, it’s clear to see how much the band loves music. With influences such as Frank Ocean, New Order and Toro y Moi, the band draws from a variety of genres that really inspires their own unique sound of Hot Flash Heat Wave. 

Reminding us we’re not alone, “m o t i o n s” invites us to be part of a family. It features the band driving through the city at night and taking us through a journey of desert and sea; we don’t know where we’re going, but we know we’ll be okay. Bandmate Adam Abildgaard has been transparent on how much the band hopes their songs help heal their listeners and remind them that they’re seen and heard. While “m o t i o n s” is open to interpretation, I see it as a refreshing piece of connectedness that is rare to see in a field where community isn’t as celebrated as the individual.  

Hot Flash Heat Wave is for the people. From writing Neapolitan in their house in San Francisco in 2015 to last year’s Mood Ring EP, the band is in a league of their own. They’re currently busy busy busy deciding to go back on tour again and planning world domination (as they should). We’re excited to premiere the “m o t i o n s” music video and hear from the band in our interview below.

LUNA: Happy Spooky Season! Got any fun plans for Halloween?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: Adam’s cousin is actually having her wedding on Halloween this year – we’re going to go dressed up as characters from “That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime” (an anime) with a big group of friends and spend some time in San Francisco. We also might hit Outside Lands for a day and catch some music.

LUNA: Congrats on “motions”- what was the inspiration behind the song?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: Thanks! It's taken many forms during its creation and pulls from a lot of different places. It’s a good example of the sort of blend of genres and sounds that we’ve been interested in creating on our new record. The lyrics are very visual, describing a moment during a night drive to escape a monotonous cycle. Lyrically we wanted to set a scene rooted in one moment. The second verse also makes a reference to a great book called “Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black,” by Cookie Mueller.

LUNA: The music video is artistically stunning. Being from San Francisco, which is known for its art scene, are your visuals influenced by the style you grew up with?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: I definitely think so. The art and artists that we meet and that inspire us have an impact on the art we make and vice versa, which is part of the beauty of finding creative community. This video was a collaboration with our long time friend Ryan Molnar, a talented photographer who we met through the art scene in San Francisco. We’ve worked together for photoshoots a few times in the past, but this video is his directorial debut.

LUNA: This year has been filled with lots of movement as we’ve been slowly emerging from exile. When your listeners watch “motions”, what do you want them to take away?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: I think the video is a sort of visual metaphor for escape and catharsis. It has a loose narrative, but we really wanted to capture stunning images and make something that is more visually oriented and leaves room for interpretation rather than focusing on telling a concrete story. It’s more classic ‘music video’ than anything we’ve done before, meant to exist as a visual art piece to accompany the music.

LUNA: You all have been together since high school; any advice for people trying to find their community?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: I wish I had better advice, but I really feel like despite all my searching for community my lasting friendships and collaborations have sort of found me instead. I guess I’d say that doing what I loved led me back to the people who stuck by me from the beginning, and although it felt really scary and uncertain at times, sticking with it paid off. Appreciating the people who show up for you regularly in your life rather than some idea of what your life is lacking is a lesson I’ve been learning through my life and especially in this past year, and I think it has really helped me.

LUNA: You’re heading out on tour soon! How do you feel about playing live again?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: So excited! Gearing up to play shows again and getting our live act together feels like reawakening a part of me that’s been dormant for so long, that I didn’t realize how badly I’d missed. I can’t wait to get out into the world and meet with our friends and fans again!

LUNA: With the emergence of TikTok and fast paced media, is there a pressure to sacrifice authenticity and vulnerability in favor of producing fast “hits”.

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: I could see the desire to make music that tries to match the pace of TikTok or Spotify playlists, but for us that’s really not the end game. We’re interested in making music that incorporates modern inspiration rather than being defined by it, and I think authenticity and vulnerability will always take precedence. I think we write more for the music itself, for our own healing and for our live shows, but a part of that is definitely writing into something within our sonic landscape that feels fresh and modern.

LUNA: Being huge music fans, what should we be listening to right now?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: I’ve been loving the new Porches and Magdalena Bay records. I’ve also listened to a lot of AceMo, Brian Eno, and Tanukichan lately to name a few acts.

LUNA: As we move into winter, what does the next chapter look like for you?

HOT FLASH HEAT WAVE: Now that we’ve finally finished the record, we’re shifting the focus to preparing these songs for the stage with a new lineup and bringing them to life. From its concept, this album was meant to exist as both a record and a live experience, so nailing the sound and performance is really important to us and we have some ideas to sort out.

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