NN Music Video of the Week: “Metal” by Franny London
Adding a visual dimension to the song's magnetic pull, California-based experimental art-pop musician and producer Franny London is excited to reveal the visual for her latest single 'Metal', which is our NN Music Video of the Week. Directed by LA-based filmmaker Tess Lafia, celebrated for her stylized sense of humour and visual playfulness, the video for ‘Metal’ features London on a treadmill against the Los Angeles night sky. Racing against wind and haze, her tenacious portrayal is a perfect reflection of the song's chase scene essence, encapsulating themes of danger, fear, and playful mischief. Ensuring her personal touch is felt, London infuses her favourite hue, orange, into the visuals, and adopts a Caravaggio-esque lighting style reminiscent of her album cover, to further elevate the visual narrative.
Speaking about her inspiration behind the ‘Metal’ music video, Franny London says, “The ‘Metal’ music video is a perfect reflection of the song and the themes of desire and its impermanence. The video is simple, hitting, and precise. I wanted there to be a quality of danger, a quality of fear, and a quality of flirtatious mischief. It was crazy fun to shoot, and it pushed me as a performer in ways I found exciting and expansive. It was fun to play a character whose only job is to run. It is unclear if I’m running away or towards something, when the reality of life is that both are always true.”
After wrapping up last year with her critically acclaimed debut EP Cold Water on the back of being championed by the likes of NYLON, The FADER, and Flaunt Magazine, Franny London recently released her exquisite new single ‘Metal’ to rave reviews from fans and critics alike, including Live Nation’s Ones To Watch, and has begun to lay the trail for her highly anticipated sophomore EP titled California Poppy. ‘Metal’ was written and produced by Franny London and her longtime collaborator Sam Irving, who has also worked with BENEE, Felly, and Fran Vasilić, with additional production, live instrumentation, and engineering by Sebastian Jones (Momma, Charlie Havenick).
Effortlessly crafted by Franny, Sam, and Sebastian, despite being across two different coasts in LA and New York, ‘Metal’ is led by driving drum patterns, lush synths, and harmonic guitar arrangements, over which Franny London exudes the strong lure of desire and a delirious crush. The captivating pop offering is held together by Franny’s beautiful vocal performance, infectious melodies, and her layered songwriting. Described by Franny as “always shades of blue when I was conceiving it - turquoise, cobalt, and ultramarine blue”, ‘Metal’ is a true pop song made for the evening, for driving on Mulholland drive, for spy movie chase scenes, for driving on the coastline listening as loud as you can.
Already with over 1.5 million plays online, Franny London is an exciting talent with her own unique experimental art-pop sound that is both sprawling and precise. Having been playing music since she was 7-years old, Franny London is doing what she has always wanted to do, and now at 23-years-old, the multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, producer, and performer comes with an alternative sound that is at the forefront of pop music’s new expression. Highly recommended if you like the sounds of St. Vincent, Florence + The Machine, or Caroline Polachek, Franny London invites you into her glittering labyrinthine musical universe, centred around attentive songwriting and textured soundscapes.
Listen to “Metal” on: https://lnk.to/FrannyMetal