Joe Wong Drops Fred Armisen-Directed Video for ‘Nite Creatures’
Joe Wong has released a hazy new video for “Nite Creatures” — the title track to his debut album — directed by Fred Armisen.
The clip opens with birds chirping as Wong appears inside a lavish living room. Psychedelic swirls surround him for the chorus, alongside Seventies-style production with a horn section. “Relax your mind,” he sings. “The night creatures wander past you.” Later, Ex Hex’s Mary Timony reads sheet music, gazing at the notes.
Wong met Armisen in the Nineties, when Armisen was a drummer in Trenchmouth. The duo reconnected in 2013, while Wong was playing drums for Marnie Stern. He helped produce Armisen’s 2018 special Standup for Drummers.
“It was inspiring to witness how he’d evolved from the drummer I met over 20 years ago to the singular talent he is today,” Wong said in a statement. “When I decided to make a video for ‘Nite Creatures,’ I thought Fred would be the ideal person to direct. Because of his sense of narrative rhythm (we’re both drummers, after all), surrealist aesthetic, and ability to make creative decisions on the fly, he proved himself the perfect director, indeed.”
Added Armisen: “I love Joe’s album, so when he asked me to work on the video, I was like, ‘Yes!’ The song is so sonically rich, I think it makes dreamy videos in everyone’s mind. I just wanted to try to match that feeling.”
Nite Creatures arrived last month via Decca. The album features contributions by Timony — who produced the record — as well as Marry Lattimore, the War on Drugs’ Jon Natchez, the Flaming Lips’ Steve Drozd, and others.