\u201cIt was always a fantasy of mine to make the \u2018ultimate \u201980s video\u2019 (and by video, I meant VIDEO). Plus, I really wanted to learn how to do stop motion animation like INXS\u2019s \u2018Need You Tonight.\u2019 (It took me 3 full days to do those few seconds.) When my animation buddies Steve and John Loter agreed to parody MC Skat Kat, it was the blue-screen cherry on top of the neon lit sundae of my dreams.\u201d<\/em>Formed as a natural extension of past collaborations, Johnson & McAuley serves as the latest concoction of hit songwriter\/producer Bleu and indie singer-songwriter Alexz Johnson. Having first become acquainted back in 2005 via a mutual record label (Sony), the two artists worked together on a number of projects over the past decade, with Alexz appearing on the 2015 track, \u201cBottom of My Heart,\u201d from Bleu\u2019s fifth solo album To Hell With You, and Bleu co-writing \u201cThank You For Breaking My Heart\u201d on Johnson\u2019s \u201cHeart\u201d EP.<\/p>\n
Equal parts Dare-era Human League and When in Rome (whose definitive single \u201cThe Promise\u201d lent itself well to an excellent reworking by the pair), Johnson & McAuley\u2019s first single \u201cIlluminated Dream\u201d distills many of the finer elements of the New Wave tradition, which is to say that Bleu and Alexz have undergone a staggering metamorphosis from their respective power pop and acoustic backgrounds.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen I first heard the song I instantly thought that because the song holds true to the sound of the \u201980s that the video should do the same. Using only effects and stylings found in the best and worst of \u201980s music videos we set out to offer a throwback. When Bleu proposed we actually record it to VHS and back into the computer for an authentic VHS feel, I knew we were on to something.\u201d<\/em>Laced with driving synth lines, dream pop guitar, the never-unwelcome drum machine, and vocal alternations worthy of Philip Oakley and Susan Ann Sulley, the song along with its accompanying could-it-be-more \u201980s music video, replete with VHS effects and decade-specific animations, possesses all the makings of a synthpop smash. Nevertheless, Johnson & McAuley manage to sidestep excess nostalgia by imbuing the track with a certain vibrancy that places the song both in the past and in the present.<\/p>\n
Naturally, the video itself, centered around interspersed flashes of the performing duo, more than reflects its title. Between the dramatic over-saturation of color and the image of a floating, flower-covered head, the footage often threatens to venture into a state of pure psychedelia, only to feign malfunction and return to a steady helping of blazers and neon lights, closing with a fade into the VHS ether.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo me, \u201cIlluminated Dream\u201d encompasses all of my favorite sounds and vibes from the \u201980s. Bleu and I felt that a song like this needed an equally nostalgic \u201980s approach with filming. Having worked with Gavin in the past, we knew he was the one who could deliver what we needed with the right amount of heart and humor.<\/em>\u201dThe Johnson & McAuley EP is in stores on vinyl<\/a> and available digitally.\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The music video for “Illuminated Dreams” got its own post. There is a lot of interesting inspiration and technical information about the music video in The Vinyl District Article. Check it out below: Source TVD Video Premiere: Johnson & McAuley, \u201cIlluminated Dream\u201d By Josh Lewellen | January 19, 2017 \u201cIt was always a fantasy of […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[13],"tags":[72,934,932,395,956],"class_list":["post-6463","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-article","tag-illuminated-dream","tag-johnson-and-mcauley","tag-music-video","tag-the-vinyl-district"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t