[gtranslate]
Interviews

Why Metronomy’s Joseph Mount began directing his own videos

Metronomy fans with a keen eye would have noticed a few things on the band’s latest two music videos; they were both directed by Joseph Mount. Or should we say, self-directed.

Since Metronomy was founded by Mount in 1999, they’ve released some of the classiest music videos of all time, from the slick one-taker Love Letters to the iconic, seagull-y The Look. To find out what made Mount decide to step into his directing shoes, we caught up for a quick chat.

metronomy joseph mount lately salted caramel ice cream

Alongside many contemporary artists, Metronomy have decided to direct their music videos in-house. We spoke to Joseph Mount to find out why.

When Metronomy’s clip Lately dropped back in May, Mount shared the following in a press release:

“I’ve absolutely loved taking the opportunity to direct our own music videos. I have quite strong opinions on what music videos are for in 2019 and how they should be presented and this has been a chance for me to put my money where my mouth is!”

“The most impressive thing I’ve realised is how much of a group effort creating a music video is. I’ve always known it, but this time I’ve obviously worked much closer with the various characters, involved in every department. So, thank you to them.”

When we asked Mount what those “strong opinions” on what music videos were, he shared that it was all about connecting with your favourite band.

“To me its about seeing the faces and characters of the artists you’re interested in. The only only reason I watch music videos is to see what a band looks like.”

Which has legs. Depending on how you discover a band these days, you may either have their image painted on the side of a billboard, or you may never see them at all.

With artists who fare particularly well on streaming services, for instance, it’s entirely possible that you may never see their faces – something Metronomy are evidently out to fix.

“If I watch a video and don’t see the band I get pissed off!” Mount continued, “People like people, that’s the way I see it.”

What made Mount take the big plunge though? With such a strong suite of clips to his band’s name, we guessed it could be pretty intimidating to take on the director’s role.

But in his case, the quality of Metronomy’s previous clips was exactly what gave him the confidence.

“I feel like I’m coming from a relatively experienced place. We’ve made loads of videos and I feel like I’ve understood why the good ones are good and what makes the experience a positive one. I’ve always wanted to give it a try, but its only now I have the confidence.”

If you’re a fan of the two new visuals, you’re in luck, because it sounds like Mount doesn’t plan to stop directing any time soon. We even asked him if he’d be keen to work on other artists’ film clips.

“I’d love to”, he answered. “I think the next video I do will be super low budget and for a band that no one has ever heard of.” 

 

Metronomy’s new album Metronomy Forever  is out September 13th. Pre-order your copy here.