Sporting impressive killer guitar riffs, infectious melody and lyrics, and even a gang of rollergirls roving through urban Berlin architecture, "Nouveau" is the rocking new single and music video from the Berlin/London music duo of Mark Fernyhough & Steven Horry. After a few listens, you too might find yourself 'going nouveau' and singing along to this exceptional new song.
From the first listen, I was captivated by the upbeat, tight, infectious guitar riff that drives most of the song. Mark's somewhat serious vocals guide us through the 'nouveau' musical journey, forewarning us 'brothers and sisters of the world' that they're coming for us - yikes! Who are 'they' and what does 'going nouveau' entail? Mark Fernyhough explains to SoundThread, "I wrote the lyrics as a reaction to the new culture of censorship that seems to be strangely hip right now. The verses are like a warning and the chorus is about a girl who has remodeled herself to fit in."
Musically, "Nouveau" is refreshing, modern and stylish alternative rock that brings to mind musical gems from iconic artists the likes of Peter Murphy, Iggy Pop and David Bowie. The song was written by Mark and Steven, and mastered at London's Abbey Road Studios by Christian Wright.
If you're not familiar with Mark and Steven, these two are not only musicians, but well-established multi-professionals: Mark is a prolific visual artist, photographer, and writer; and Steven is a renowned comic writer, artist and illustrator. In addition to "Nouveau", Mark and Steven have previously collaborated musically with the single releases of 'Fireworks" (2016) and the recent, stunning "Steal My Love" (2017). With Mark located in Berlin and Steven in London, we wondered how their musical collaboration came about. Mark explains, "I was actually introduced to Steven by Eddie Argos from Art brut. Steven and I have just the right amount of musical similarities and dis-similarities that it works splendidly."
MARK FERNYHOUGH & STEVEN HORRY "NOUVEAU" (Official Music Video)
The accompanying music video for "Nouveau," directed by Lisa Marie Lange, was shot on location in Berlin and, in addition to Mark and Steven, features a band of roving rollergirls. We asked Mark about the inspiration for the rollergirl theme of the music video. "It’s funny cos it all happened by accident," Mark relates. "By random chance I met the director and one of the stars of the video, Lisa, outside a club in Berlin. We became friends and the video came as a result of that." We also wondered if Mark considered skating along with the roller girls? "I don’t think the world is ready for a Mark Fernyhough on roller-skates music video just yet sadly!", Mark tells us.
"Nouveau" is just a taste of more great new music to come from Mark and Steven. Mark reveals to SoundThread, "We’re recording both my solo album and an album of Fernyhough/Horry co-writes. Expect further singles and music videos in the near future. The songs we’re working on keep taking new and exciting directions. We will play more gigs in Europe - especially in London and Berlin." Exciting news indeed!
For more information on Mark Fernyhough and Steven Horry, follow on social media (Facebook, Instagram, YouTube) and find Mark and Steven's music on Bandcamp, Spotify, Amazon, and iTunes.