Blue Hawaii share haunting visuals for ‘Do You Need Me’

Blue Hawaii, the duo act of Raphaelle ‘Ra’ Standell and Alexander ‘Agor’ Kerby, have shared a new video for their track, ‘Do You Need Me‘.

The visuals were directed by acclaimed director Kevan Funk who has shown at Toronto International Film Festival and been nominated to four Canadian Screen Awards. The haunting visuals for ‘Do You Need Me‘ feature a number of individuals transfixed by their phones and illuminated by the lights of their screens. watch below.

Speaking about the video the Montreal band say: This video depicts the slow, almost meditative aspect of using one’s phone. The dichotomy of staying connected while alone is experience shared by a very diverse group of people regardless of age, race and even income. This video is shot so delicately; the often juxtaposed vignettes speak for themselves and are oddly soothing. Kevan really nailed this one!  

When asked about the concept for the video Kevin Funk explained: For me, the concept was really tied to the song’s title. I was interested in how this concept simultaneously recontextualized and reinforced that express sentiment. The idea that we are now constantly constructing an idealized characterization of ourselves and projecting that out into the world is not a new observation, but here I was interested in the hypnotic consumption of that output, and our individual longing for approval. Our window to the world, particularly our social space, is quite literally through our phones, and I was interested in this meditative portraiture that simply gazed upon our gaze. The sense of stillness and isolation feels both striking and distinctly familiar, specifically because of how much of our social activity and interpersonal connection is spent in this stasis. 

As a side note, this is the first video I’ve made that I hope people actually watch on their phones, as I feel the overall effect is much more compelling.

Do You Need Me‘ is taken from Tenderness (their first new album in 4 years) which was released in October of last year. The record is a concept album which brings forth the challenges of handling relationships online.