A still from the music video
Arca’s Mind-Bending “Thievery”
Watch a creepy, indelible new video from the Venezuelan producer
For awhile, Venezuelan producer Alejandro Ghersi, aka Arca, was something of an enigma. Crafting pitch-shifted, fractured beats for the likes of Kanye West and FKA twigs, Ghersi shielded himself behind a convenient veil of mystery that left much to the imagination — until now. In an inspiring new interview with the Fader, Ghersi has opened up about everything from co-producing Björk‘s new record to his own coming out story, the latter of which he describes as igniting an “artistic breakthrough” that led to the Arca moniker. “It was about different voices that came from completely different parts of my mind or my heart, shouting at each other in this crowded room. Kind of settling into your body sexually,” Ghersi told the Fader. “It was a lot about flexibility and elasticity, things wrapping around themselves in a very charged way.” That description is an apt one for Ghersi’s upcoming debut album, Xen, which takes its name from a “sassy, confident” fictional alter ego of himself.
For the first single from Xen, “Thievery,” Ghersi enlisted his partner in crime, visual artist Jesse Kanda, to direct a totally bizarre, creepy, and indelible new music video. Focusing solely on a nude digital dancer (which, let’s be real, looks like an alien who invaded earth, saw the video for “Anaconda”, and stole Nicki Minaj‘s ass), the video serves as the perfect accompaniment to Ghersi’s hypnagogic, mind-bending production. November can’t come soon enough.
Xen is out 11/10 via Mute. Check out the video for “Thievery” below:
