Miink is a London singer, producer, and video director who is making otherworldly music that at some points feels rooted in R&B and pop, but subverts and confounds expectations at every turn. Built around his haunting falsetto vocals and shape-shifting production, Miink has emerged with a singular sound and approach. He debuted last year with "Who Are You?" and returned in January with "Yellow Dust," each song accompanied by a striking video, and today we get more of the same.
"'Scorched Moth' is about habits and rituals," Miink explains. "It's about returning to what you know out of fear of what you don't know. Understand that while people have different patterns, the reason why they stick to them is the same."
Speaking on the video specifically, he tells us, "I wanted to play with time and present something similar to the idea of your whole life flashing before your eyes in a split second before death. The long drawn out gun duels in westerns came to mind. The way they framed those shots was always what interested me—under an arm or through a pair of legs. Samuel Bradley has a stylish way of composing this sort of thing in his stills and it also reminded me of the graphic novel Maus, where limbs are occasionally used to frame the focus points."
Watch "Scorched Moth" above and dive into the previous two videos below. Look out for more music from Miink this year, too.
On his approach to creating the videos:
The videos so far have been about capturing a moment before the energy is lost. I find trying to organize, prep and plan everything can take away from the creativity, so I like to show up and shoot. I don't care to follow the rule book or ask for permission because it takes too long. I like to discover a location on the day or build the set I've been thinking of right before filming.
On being a creative living in London:
London is boring because it's too expensive to take chances. If you try something new and fuck up you can't pay your bills and your electricity gets shut off. So no one wants to take chances. I have inspiring friends in London but more time no one wants to take a chance with them or their work if it isn't the tried and tested, people pleasing stuff everyone is used to.
Every day I feel less and less like the city I was born and raised in is for me. The flats I shot my first video in don't exist anymore. I watched them get torn down to make way for some luxury apartments... I'm pretty sure we don't need even more of those.
