Video Premiere : “Thank Ya” by Alex Bent + the Emptiness

Photo by Logan Tanner

From The Artist : “Thank Ya was created in my bedroom in December. If I had to summarize, I’d say it’s a song about being self aware.”

Alex Bent + the Emptiness is the recording and performing alt-pop/R&B solo project of Saskatoon singer Alex Bent. Likened to that of hip-hop/R&B artists Post Malone, Joji and Frank Ocean, Bent mixes his own twist of nostalgia with the current trends of the genre. His debut EP, Vanilla Blue, was voted #6 on SaskMusic’s Best Saskatchewan Albums of 2018 List. Bent’s new album, Baby, is set for release on August 23 and was mastered by Trevor Case of Case Mastering (Kelly Clarkson, Missy Elliot). The album features contributions from Brockhampton affiliates singer-songwriter Jack Larsen and producer Connor Barkhouse as well as Samurai Champs’ Merv xx Gotti and Jeah.

New single ‘Thank Ya’ starts off with a repeating chilled-out guitar phrase placed over a simple lo-fi beat. Soon Bent’s smooth, expressive vocals open up the song to glorious emotive heights. The single is able to straddle both an introspective distance while also coming across with monster melodic hooks. There’s a tricky balance between a nostalgic VHS viewpoint and a pure modern pop approach that the track is able to melt together. The video is able to juxtapose even further with slapdash aesthetics and awkward dancing. In theory, all of this shouldn’t work, but there’s reverence in Bent’s world-building. He truly is fascinated by these disparate forces. Alex Bent + the Emptiness is a polymath for these times.

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