We’ve long been fans of Sydney/Illawarra band FLOWERTRUCK who have perfected an antipodean-flavoured brand of indie pop that has a genetic link to an amalgam of The Go-Betweens and The Apartments on one side of the ditch, and the Dunedin sound epitomised by Flying Nun roster of The Bats and The Chills on the other side. We are therefore honoured to premiere the new video clip for the song ‘Pretending’.
‘Pretending’ will be on the band’s newly announced album ‘Partly Cloudy’ out via Spunk! Records / Virgin Music Australia on 2 September 2022. It’s been a while since we have heard from FLOWERTRUCK (see our review of ‘Mostly Sunny back on 2018), which makes this new material all the more exciting.
‘Pretending’ has a whimsical, hyperkinetic bounce with the unbounded energy of a boisterous puppy dog, laced with the delightfully wry vocals that recall Orange Juice’s Edwyn Collins. An agile, aquatic bass line winds its way throughout the track like a golden thread, supporting splashes of guitars and synths and an euphoric chorus grander and more cinematic than the outback sky at midnight. With just as many sparkles.
Lead singer Charles Rushforth says of the track:
I remember Leonard Cohen saying that there are two types of songs, ones that take twenty minutes to write and those that take two years. I’d written the music for ‘Pretending’ years prior, but I had to put it on the shelf after failing to find any words that could fit the song.
After attending a children’s birthday party, the lyrics miraculously appeared:
Like a fruit bat on a powerline, that main line just burst into my head – ‘I’m just pretending that you weren’t important’ – from there the rest of the song came together really quickly.
Despite the sugar-induced rush of the instrumentation, the song’s themes are darker – seeking self-preservation in the face of inevitable change and the death of those close to you. In a sense, this marks a more mature FLOWERTRUCK.
Directed, shot and edited by the band, the accompanying video clip is as whimsical as the song itself – the band sporting Wiggles-influenced clothing, gurning and twisting through distorted lenses that lend a psychedelic sense of surrealism. The band’s performance creates utter joy and almost innocent playfulness that is as infectious as the beats:
‘Pretending’ is out now and available through all the usual download/streaming services here.
Feature Photograph: Jordanne Chant
