TOKiMONSTA launches new 'Instrumentals' album with lockdown-inspired video

Apart from the very obvious spectre that's hung over 2020, when all things are considered it's fair to say LA-based TOKiMONSTA has had a relatively successful year. Her 'Oasis Nocturno' album hit the stores in March to critical acclaim, featuring collaborations with Drew Love, Bibi Bourelly, VanJess and more. The album went on to spawn an expansive remix project, featuring excellent reworks from Soul Clap, Damien Lazurus, Dombresky, Halogenix among many other talented artists from wildly varied musical backgrounds. The final piece of the 'Oasis Nocturno' project sees the original album tracks presented as instrumentals, giving the backing tracks further room to breathe while allowing the nuances of her tight productions to take centre stage. Standing alone, the tracks dispense a level of their pop aesthetic, and as such may find a new audience among die-hard electronica fans.

Accompanying the release is a striking new video to the haunting sounds of the poignantly titled 'To Be Remote'. Shot in LA, the video shows a series of contemporary dancers performing – most of them alone – at various locations across the city. The impressive short was directed by Mitch deQuilettes with the stunning dance movement choreographed by LA resident Genna Moroni. The net result feels like a striking audio-visual representation of the paranoid sense of isolation that the majority of us have faced in abundance this year. There is, of course, an affecting beauty in the music and the dance, so the overall mood is far from gloomy despite these troubling times. TOKiMONSTA announced the release via her Facebook page. “I’ve wanted to re-introduce this project in a special way to say thank you to all my fans,” she said, adding “I hope it brings you comfort and happiness during this lockdown holiday.”

You can watch the video here:

TOKiMONSTA 'Oasis Nocturno Instrumentals' is out now on Young Art, you can listen and buy it here

Photo by Nikko Lamere