The trend running through each of Tom Krell’s records as ghostly R&B singer-songwriter How To Dress Well so far has been for each one to sound like he’s stepped a little further forward from behind the smoke. With last year’s Total Loss, Krell found a new directness in his vocal-led arrangements and starkly open lyrics, and his upcoming What Is This Heart? looks to be even more soul-baring; “Repeat Pleasure”, the first official single from the album, is a funky handclapping anthem that features full-on falsetto belting as Krell explodes with catharsis on the line “Even broken my heart will go on.”
In the first of a three-part video series, Norwegian director Johannes Greve Muskat and creative director Luke Gilford take a glossy yet earthy approach to bringing Krell’s vision to life in a way that takes it beyond pop music and into the reverent realm of fables. Focussed around the heartbreak of other characters, with Krell himself making spectral cameos, the clips spin a universal and simply told tale of love, loss and risking everything. Peace.