For most of us, it’s hard to believe that Elon Musk thinks anything that Elon Musk does is cool. Similar to how far removed we are from his income bracket, we’re also infinitely more plugged into the shared reality that he continually proves to be entirely cut off from, giddily taking on the role of symbolizing just how delusional the billionaire class has become with every tweet and, perhaps more tellingly, every tweet reply. The rest of us are left gawking at this cautionary tale of flying directly into the sun in the process of chasing the American dream, never quite realizing that by all intents and purposes you caught it years ago.
Such is the subject matter of German synth duo Felsmann + Tiley’s recent single “God Is Lonelier,” an epic-scaled work of atmospherics and mounting tension that never breaks. “It looks at our instinct to grow, optimize, conquer, and dominate—all the ways in which we try to shape the world, and ourselves, into something more powerful and controlling,” the duo shared upon the track’s release at the beginning of January. “But we play God while being inherently human, and that tension sits at the heart of the song. The more control and power we gain, the more disconnected we become.”
Today the duo is sharing an aptly cinematic visual for the track which takes an abstract and fairly surreal approach to this idea, featuring slo-mo wrestling matches, screaming, and apes doing donuts in a parking lot—lads getting up to lad stuff, generally. “Proton, the human ape, explores a fractured inner world shaped by loneliness and the pressure to always be strong,” shares the clip’s visionary director Alexander Norek. “He embodies an inherited survival instinct that demands dominance when facing the outside world. Dreamlike imagery collides with harsh reality, and powerful visuals mirror Proton’s internal collapse, questioning what is lost when strength is mistaken for humanity. The topic challenged us to think outside the box and express the narrative in a metaphorical way. I am profoundly thankful to all the incredible people who contributed their talent and heart to bring this project to life.”
Check out the video below. The track will appear on F+T’s upcoming album Protomensch, dropping February 13 via Mute. You can pre-order that here.
