Tom Aspaul has released a short film to accompany his debut album Black Country Disco. A visual introduction to the album, the film covers three of the nine tracks – ‘W.M.‘, ‘01902‘ and ‘Tender‘ – and covers the story that encapsulates the album in an aesthetically vintage format. Shot by Sam Taylor-Edwards, the 10-minute clip was shot entirely on film and VHS for an authentic look.
In Sam’s words, they say “Oddly, growing up, it hadn’t occurred to me why I loved pop music so much. Or why I was drawn to the often epic, event-like music videos that came from likes of Madonna and Britney… aside from being a closet gay-boy! Now an adult, I’ve come to realise it’s because pop videos have always been about spectacle. They’re colourful and loud and shamelessly unapologetic. That’s exactly what Tom and I wanted to channel with Black Country Disco: The Movie – but gayer.”
A beautiful celebration of the West Midlands, Aspaul and crew were granted exclusive access to shoot on the trams and platforms of the Midland Metro with the network displaying lyrics from the song across their display boards. The film is a stunning fever dream of heartache and self-discovery through a queer-positive lens. About the project, Tom says:
“I have been making and releasing music for quite a while now and in that time, I have tried (and failed) to create some kind of music video that I felt matched up with the music. Be it budget restraints or health emergencies (my appendix burst on the day of a shoot once!) I never quite managed to finish a visual – but with ‘Black Country Disco’ being my debut album, I decided it deserved something bigger, more ambitious and more expansive, mostly so I could express all the emotions I had on the record, which to me is as much about dancing and joy as it is pain and heartbreak – but also to try and encapsulate the ‘Black Country’ as a place, distinct, removed from London and full of character and history. It was really important for me to work with a queer director, so we were both on a certain level aesthetically and referentially – and Sam has pulled it off and truly realised the vision I had for this film! I hope you enjoy watching it as much as I did making it! The dancing! The stomping around Wolverhampton! The 70s styling! It has all been an absolute joy.”
The album, Black Country Disco, released earlier this year, received a ten out of ten review from me, where I said “I don’t have a bad word to say about this album. It made me smile, it made me cry, it made me dance and it did it all while being polished with stunning attention to detail and a beautiful art style. It even managed to tell a cohesive story with no filler tracks in sight. The tracks make perfect sense in sequence but they are also each strong enough to stand on their own merits. This may be my album of the year. Please do yourselves a favour and listen to it.”
Black Country Disco by Tom Aspaul is out now.
