The Hellp – Go Somewhere directed by Noah Dillon
Max, you’re 15 and already curating a list that feels wildly ahead of the curve. How do you usually discover new music videos? Where do you look?
Well I attribute my music taste to my sister who at an early age would give me music recommendations and ever since I’ve been interested in the creative aspect of music for example music video aesthetics and such. I usually discover music videos through youtube or instagram because I follow many creative directors that I really like, or sometimes for inspiration I look deeper scrolling through youtube.
Do you remember the first music video that really hit you – the moment you realised visuals can completely shift how a song feels?
I remember being about 10 when watching the music documentary “Look Mom I Can Fly” by Travis Scott. The visuals for all his music videos were so psychedelic which at the time really intrigued me. Then I started getting interested in his inspirations like Kanye and Kid Cudi who really built the foundation for this sort of psychedelic feel I really love. The first music video has to be “Technologic” by Daft Punk or “The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room” by The Flight of the Concords. I really like the practical effects of Technologic and I feel like it was way ahead of its time, there was no cgi which makes it even more special to me, and the whole DIY feel to “The Most Beautiful Girl in the Room” with the comedy mixed in really made me love that video.
What’s your own relationship with music? Do you play anything, sing, produce, or make things with friends — or is music more of a private world for you?
Well I’ve always been influenced by my sister who started playing guitar and trumpet at an early age, in turn making me interested as well. I started playing guitar when I was 12 years old, and started producing on my laptop at 13. I started singing over my beats as well as recording guitar. I really love sampling songs and getting my friends to send vocals to me to play around with. My Family, especially my sister and friends are really supportive and one of the big reasons I make music. I also make music with my producer friends but really we just have fun making music which is honestly the best part. Without them, especially my friends supporting me since day one I don’t think I would’ve continued making music like I am now. (See here).
Frost Children – Control directed by Ben Turok
Does making or playing music influence the way you watch videos?
Yes, 100%. Since I started producing the main thing I think about is how the song was made, and I really study songs I love, trying to break the beat down to see how they were made. In terms of music videos, I’m always looking at the way the artist displays their idea of a song compared to mine. Sometimes it’s totally different and sometimes we are on the same wavelength. The concept of the music video as well and the way it was executed is a huge part to me, because when I make music I’m always thinking about the visuals and what it represents, a lot of the time I start with a visual idea and try to turn it into music, which i think is what makes music and the videos really special. I believe music doesn’t happen without a vision, and a vision doesn’t live without music.
When you’re watching a video, what grabs you first – the mood, the edit, the colour, the casting, the world-building?
I think it’s a mix of all, but initially it was to be the mood and colour. For a music video to mean something to me I have to feel immersed almost as if I’m in the video, and it has to be easily pictured in my mind after I watch it if that makes sense. The editing is also really important. I really love when artists direct their own videos or have a low budget because their inaccessibility to expensive equipment is what makes it special and a real sort of feeling resonating with people who don’t have those kinds of funds.
Forever Salty directed by Termite Lounge
A lot of your picks lean into this dreamy, post-internet, slightly surreal aesthetic. What draws you into this kind of visual world?
It’s very unlikely that I like music videos with high production costs, which leans into the surreal aesthetic created by this inaccessibility. The flashy glitchy editing, and high exposure colours, sort of like a video collage really excites me. It makes the video seem like more of an art piece (which it is) than just a video, which I feel about a lot of music videos nowadays. When I was younger as well I really loved making art and stop motions with lego which is sort of incorporated in these videos with the stop motion editing and collage like styles.
You opened your list with Live Forever and Go Somewhere both by The Hellp. What made it feel like the right starting point?
The Hellp is one of my biggest inspirations ever, they have a deep ingrained influence with the music world as well. What Noah Dillon and Chandler Lucy create visually (for their own tracks) is pure and self-contained, artists shaping their own world, not trying to fit into anyone else’s. Their visuals are always striking but never overcomplicated. Take the video for “Confluence,” where Noah Dillon runs naked down a road for almost the entire thing. It’s such a simple premise, but it lands with real power. That’s what I love about their work: every idea is carefully crafted, the message is clear, and the execution feels honest. Starting with them set the tone for everything that came after.
Fakemink – Fidelio directed by dopesolitary
And then there’s Fakemink, who appears twice in your selection with “Bite My Lip” and “Fidelio.” What is it about his sensibility that speaks to you?
These videos especially really hit me, because the visuals are so raw and self generated. Both “Bite My Lip” and “Fidelio” have this instinctive energy that you can only get when the visuals are made independently. This is reinforced further through DopeSolitarys’ distinctive editing style. Their approach feels honest and nothing about feels like it’s overproduced or forced which I feel about most music videos nowadays relying on the overuse of special effects or perfect camera quality. His videos always carry this mix of vulnerability and intensity, and even when the concepts are simple, they feel deeply personal. That kind of DIY precision really speaks to me and pushes me to think more intentionally about the visual side of my own work.
Yung Lean – Forever Yung directed by Aidan Zamiri
I was also pleased to see a couple of our regular established directors in the mix — Anton Tammi and Aidan Zamiri — backed by the big production companies. It’s a great blend of DIY and high-end production. What made this mix appealing to you?
For some videos, the high-end production really shines. “Expression on Your Face” and “Forever Yung” are good examples. The sound of both tracks sits right between DIY and polished production, and their visuals reflect that balance. With “Expression on Your Face,” the industrial synths fit in perfectly with the clean, electronic aesthetic of the video. It creates this striking, unforgettable atmosphere, something that’s difficult to pull off in a purely DIY setup. But that difficulty is exactly what makes a video so compelling, pushing the idea of the video into a space that feels bigger than the song alone.
With “Forever Yung,” I love how the video mixes personal intimacy with refined production. Including Yung Lean’s friends and family brings a warmth and honesty that you usually only get in independent work, while the high-end production brings it into something cinematic. That blend of raw emotion and polished execution is what makes the video so strong.
Fakemink – Bite My Lip
