WL//WH Video of the Day: CORASANDEL “1999”

Video Of The Day CORASANDEL

It’s hard to believe that it has been over four years since our dear Corasandel first appeared on WL//WH, Jimmy is also a fine contributor to the blog with precious reviews from time to time.

Founded in 2017 by Mark Merrifield (guitar, vox, and things) and Jimmy Osborne (processed guitars and fx), Corasandel is an Experimental / Ambient / Shoegaze band that lives, writes and records late at night, out in the English Lincolnshire countryside.

Inspired by the people, fields and woods of the area, the band, expanded into a five-piece thanks to Chris Lody (Keys, synths and beats), Holly Hall (The bass), and Esme Dodsworth (Effected vocals), are united by a love of reverb, dancing, soundscapes and stories.

Esme Dodsworth herself helped to bring forth the visuals for “1999”, the second of a series of singles that will lead to the release of a forthcoming EP, due out on February 2025 via Old Tin Box Recordings.

Chris created the drum and synthesized layers for this track using equipment from the late 90s, namely the Yamaha Cs2x and DJX II. The sound they produced reminds him a lot of the pre-millenial optimism he felt around that time, hence the title ‘1999’.

Mark wanted the lyric to be a positive affirmation: it’s important to remind ourselves we all deserve to be surrounded by love and kindness. Jimmy’s lush slow-mo chords add to the ephemeral golden tone.

Let’s travel back in time to “1999,” when cool immersive gauzy pads induced a droning and shivering cocoon around calmly contemplative vocals, stirred by soft shuffling rhythmic patterns, warm ‘pa-pa’ whimsical synth melodies, and organic tinkling guitar flourishings, to radiate hearty and cozy aural nostalgia.

For the video, Chris and Ez wanted to capture a similar 90s feeling, so all the footage was shot in and around Lincolnshire using handheld camcorders from that era. The feathers fluttering at night on the Humber Bridge hint at one of those nights coming back from clubbing at Gatecrasher or Cream in a Metro with crap heating.

To sync with the heady, blissful vibes of the soundtrack, atmospheric visuals by Esme Dodsworth slowly blend hard-to-see driving scenarios with open-air kite flying and up-close feather textures to transform mood and perception with gradual shifts of sentient emotion.

Keep up with Corasandel: