The thing about a year as good for music as 2018 has been is that it’s easy to forget albums, even the better ones out there. It’s not just a case of quantity alone; it’s what it does to the mind. It makes the year feel longer and thus, even if you do remember a specific release, it seems like it was dropped months ago, surely in the previous year! That’s what happened to me with Reformat‘s The Singularity; I recently went back to it, as I’ve been craving more of that sweet metal/electronics blend that they do so well. In my mind, I was revisiting an excellent 2017 release only to then realize the album was released this year!
This gives you insight into why it’s good that artists stagger the release of things like singles and videos, which is exactly what Reformat have done with their video for “Hot/Knives”, on of the more satisfying tracks on the album. It opens with these huge synth/guitar combos that immediately remind you of 65daysofstatic‘s “Heat Death Infinity Splitter“, arguably one of the best album openers ever. But Reformat, as hinted to by the pastoral images of the video which now accompanies it, take their track in a more dreamy, relaxed direction. The result is a track that hints well at its name, channeling both the sensations of red hot iron and the cool steel of the knife.
The last piece of the puzzle is the sleek futuristic hints dropped throughout the video, from the opening logo of the VR product we’re supposedly consuming, to the glitch effects scattered throughout. The juxtaposition of the futuristic elements and scenes from the North of England is interesting and pleasing to say the least, meshing very well with the track itself. What more could you really ask for from a reminder of one of the best albums released in the by-now incredible 2018?