I was sonically stunned when I came across the work of Gold Coast (Yugambeh/Kombumerri)-based six-piece Selve. I reviewed their last single ‘Breaking Into Heaven’ (see my review here) and their new single indicates its business as usual when it comes to stunning songwriting and exemplary musicianship.
The humorously titled track ‘Loki Horror Picture Show’ reveals another side to the band: an ability to inject funky day-glo humour into their music in a track that bubbles and pops with a gay abandon: it is carefree, funky and uninhibitedly joyous: glam-infested hyper pop you need shades on from its luminescent glow.
Proud Jabirr Jabirr man Loki Liddle’s vocal are louche and filled with an insolent incousiance and the delivery make you gyrate wildly with a chorus that soars like a free wheeling albatross. The self-referential title makes passing references to rock and pop icons – Charlie XCX and Lou Reed – and the band’s recording experience in Abbey Road Studios, and mixes an element of pride with the feeling of imposter syndrome as Liddle repeats ‘I’m alright’ in a tone that suggests perhaps he isn’t. It’s absolutely brilliant stuff – funky and funny delivered with an arched brow and a sardonic smile:
Well I feel like Lou Reed
Smoking a big cigarette
I’m here in Madison Square Garden
With my own fighter jet
Chatting like a brat
To Charli xcx
Bout why the global revolution
Hasn’t happened yet
And if the song wasn’t enough to put a spring in the step, the accompanying video, directed by Liddle himself and Joshua Tate, adds fuel to the fire. Set in some sort of post life threatening event, it ups the glam ante with its hilarious game show take and enhances the sense of imposter syndrome felt by the protagonist. Liddle says of the video:
The ‘Loki Horror Picture Show’ music video is an exploration of identity, mental health and the dangers of getting lost in the sauce when chasing your dreams. This version of myself in a dying delusion of grandeur is a hyperbolic representation of the parts of ourselves we are willing to sacrifice and compromise in order to pursue a vision of success. We wanted to underpin the spectacle with a little bit of darkness to make clear that we’re not glorifying it, but investigating its absurdity. The device of the gunshot came from this place – to contrast the lightness of the song and create a sense of unease – however it was important for me to have the gunshot be off-camera, stylised and implied rather than shown in great detail, as depictions of gun violence are something that I know require great sensitivity.”
Selve are proving themselves to be titans of intelligent dance music: delivering epic anthemic songs that thrill with a message:
‘Loki Horror Picture Show’ is out today and you can stream it here.
This is the second release from the album ‘Breaking Into Heaven’, the first full-length album to ever be recorded at the legendary Abbey Road studios by an Aboriginal artist. It is anchored and inspired by Nina Simone’s words that ‘The people who built their heaven on your land, are telling you that yours is in the sky” – a powerful testament of First Nations stories, music and culture breaking into the spaces that have been stolen or denied to them and traditionally reserved for the select few.
Out on 12 September – and certainly one of my most anticipated releases for the year – you can pre-order the album here.
You can catch Selve live – details are:
Fri 1 Aug – Bleach* 2025 @ HOTA – Gold Coast/Yugambeh Country, QLD
Tickets available here
Feature Photograph: James Caswell
