For fans of electronic pop, Justice and Tame Impala are a match made in heaven. The synth stylings that each artist brings from their respective discographies into their collaborative single, “Neverender,” can be described as nothing short of magical. The track primarily places Tame Impala’s Kevin Parker as the vocal performer, but his role in the song is still irreplaceable.
Although the song itself was released back in April, its music video was only just released within the past day. The reason for the wait is evident, though, in the level of detail and fluidity in the animation, as directed by Masanobu Hiraoka, who has also worked on acclaimed anime such as Chainsaw Man and Jujutsu Kaisen.
The video seamlessly morphs from surrealist imagery to animated portrayals of both Justice and Tame Impala to the transformation of a woman with looks straight out of Ghost in the Shell. One second, the visuals have a distinctly retro sci-fi feel to them and the next they have the fluid dreamlike state of Hiraoka’s usual work.
When asked about the visual style of the video, Justice explained, “Together with longtime collaborators Pascal Teixeira and Armand Beraud, we drew initial inspiration from the title sequences of the 1980s anime we grew up on, which set the visual tone for the video. From there, other key images from our teenage years naturally came into play. Whether it was the work of Moebius, psychedelic art, graphic novels, or iconic film posters that fascinated us, Masanobu’s style seamlessly absorbed and unified them all.”
In the month to come, Justice will be finishing up their Hyperdrama Tour with primarily sold out shows.