The Formnalist
“A=N”
Directed by Stephen Krieger
Mother West
Add date – 7/26/2024
About The Formalist
Something happens when rain falls on downtown streets at night. Clouds mute the streetlights, fog blankets the intersections, store windows become darkened mirrors, and pavements shine with moisture. All of the city’s hard edges dissolve; everything softens and becomes welcoming. Stephen Krieger and Erik Laroi of The Formalist make similarly transportive music. Their sophisticated art-rock and dream pop songs shiver with mystery: they’re intelligent, cultured, philosophically probing, and subtly complex. “A=N,” the latest single from the immersive 2023 album A Trace Of Yourself, leads with its intoxicating qualities. Krieger’s hypnotic beats and synthesizer textures and Laroi’s haunting vocals combine to create something more than the sum of its parts. Together, they make the sort of magic that generates deja vu, reflective feelings, deep rumination, and gently altered states. If the rain on a city pavement could have a musical and textural analog, The Formalist would be it.
About “A=N”
Given all of that, it almost goes without saying that “A=N” is about remembering and forgetting, nostalgia and anticipation, what people retrieve from the palaces of the past, and what they let go. It’s a heady composition, but it’s also thoroughly enjoyable, and it’s the centerpiece of an album that doubles as an exploration of consciousness. Like the rest of the songs on A Trace Of Yourself, it’s a gorgeous trip, a meditation, an amble down the alleys of the mind.
About the “A=N” Video
The lyric clip for “A=N,” which was directed by Stephen Krieger himself, directs viewers to those rain-washed precincts. It’s after dark in the metropolis, and it’s coming down. Everything is pleasantly blurred, and the electric light that radiates from the streetscape fills the saturated air with a ghostly halo. The imagery could be anywhere in the world where people gather in large numbers; Krieger has kept the whereabouts deliberately obscure to guarantee that fans will catch some wistful feelings about *their* hometown. There are people on these streets, but they’re transient, elusive, melting into the rhythms of city life. Even the text superimposed over the images feels nostalgic — it’s made to resemble neon lights, shining for a brief, glorious moment, and then fading away into the night.
Want more from The Formalist and HIP Video Promo?
We are grateful to be working with Mother West and the wonderfully creative members of The Formalist and to spread the word about the brand new, “must-see” lyric video for “A=N”! Make sure to check out their latest album A Trace Of Yourself. Your consideration of this clip for inclusion in your programming and online presentations is greatly appreciated. For more information, or if you’d like us to send some stylish The Formalist merch for on-air contests and giveaways, contact Andy Gesner and the team at HIP Video Promo at 732-613-1779, or email us at info@HIPVideoPromo.com. For more from The Formalist, please visit https://www.instagram.com/wearetheformalist/